A new report claims that radiologists fled the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs health system after the agency eliminated policies allowing remote work in 2025. While the VA has since rescinded the ban, the article in The American Prospect claims that plummeting morale continues to plague the health system’s radiologists.
The VA’s Veterans Health Administration operates one of the largest health systems in the U.S., serving some 9.1M veterans through 170 VA medical centers and affiliated outpatient sites across the country.
- While there are no official figures, estimates suggest the VA employs at least 1.5k radiologists, or 4%-5% of all active U.S. radiologists.
While radiologist salaries at the VA don’t approach levels found in the private healthcare sector, many imaging specialists are drawn to the system thanks to perceptions that it offers more job security and stability, as well as its mission in serving the nation’s veterans.
- But the VA’s image of stability began changing in January 2025, the article claims, when the Trump Administration ordered federal employees to return to working in offices.
The order hit VA radiology particularly hard. Thanks to PACS and teleradiology, remote image interpretation has become a staple of the average radiologist’s workday.
- Remote reading is even seen as a possible solution to radiology’s rising imaging volume and stagnant workforce.
So it’s no surprise that VA radiologists recoiled against the new policy, which “ignored the realities of radiology work” and caused morale to plummet among the health system’s imaging specialists.
- The VA eventually recognized its mistake and rescinded the in-office requirement for radiologists. But by then the damage was done.
The article claims that VA radiology has experienced ongoing repercussions from the turmoil…
- Many radiologists have left for the private sector, where average salaries are over 40% higher.
- Workloads for the remaining VA radiologists have skyrocketed.
- Primary care physicians are reporting it now takes “days, not hours,” to get imaging results.
- VA medical centers are being forced to outsource some specialized scans like amyloid PET exams, for which turnaround times are stretching to two or three months.
The Takeaway
It’s hard to tell exactly how many radiologists have left the VA health system, but any job loss is significant for a provider with a mission as important as the VA’s. While the agency’s turnaround on remote work is welcome, it’s likely that the country’s veterans will bear the brunt of the VA’s misguided policy change for years to come.