海角大神

As he moves toward the general election, Donald Trump is reiterating a focus on veterans鈥� issues, wading into what has often been a fraught debate about how best to reform the healthcare provided to veterans through the Department of Veterans Affairs.

鈥淲e made a promise to these heroes. You defend America, and America will defend you,鈥� Mr. Trump, the presumptive Republican nominee, said in a speech on Monday in Virginia Beach, Va., .

罢谤耻尘辫鈥檚 calls for veterans to be allowed to seek government-funded private medical care, while also criticizing the Obama administration for the 2014 VA scandal where many veterans faced long wait times for care.

The speech could also serve a broader public relations function for Trump, who has faced a slew of controversies around his statements involving veterans 鈥� including criticizing Arizona's Republican Sen. John McCain, who was a prisoner of war in Vietnam; comments that seemed to equate Trump's own experience at a 聽itself; and to veterans' charities.

Under the plan he unveiled last fall, eligible veterans would be able to bring a veterans鈥� identification card to any private doctor or facility that accepts Medicare and receive immediate treatment. 鈥淭he guiding principle of the Trump plan is ensuring veterans have convenient access to the best quality care,鈥� the plan says.

But for some veterans鈥� groups, that guarantee sounds uncertain.

鈥淲e do not agree with the go-anywhere card. Just because you have a go-anywhere card doesn鈥檛 necessary mean the private doctors have space for you,鈥� says Joe Davis, the public affairs director at the Veterans of Foreign Wars.

The group instead supports combining care offered by the department with private care in particular situations, such as to fill in for a doctor who works in an unusual specialty at a particular hospital who is unavailable at the time of care.

鈥淭he thing about the VA, it's family. Once [veterans] get into the VA, they want to see the VA, you鈥檙e surrounded by veterans in the waiting room, and you鈥檙e seeing a doctor that understands the issues that veterans face,鈥� he tells 海角大神.

罢谤耻尘辫鈥檚 plan shares some similarities with existing efforts, including the Choice Plan created by Congress in 2014 in response to the wait-time scandal. The plan allowed veterans to see a private doctor if they lived more than 40 miles from a veterans鈥� hospital or faced wait times of more than 30 days.

Last week, with members from healthcare providers and veterans organizations recommended creating a new, nationwide network that would include doctors from the VA, military hospitals, and private doctors who have been approved by the Department.

But the report has prompted a controversy of its own, with three commissioners refusing to sign it and penning letters of dissent.

Stewart Hickey, former director of the lobbying and service group AMVETS, and Darin Selnick, of the Concerned Veterans for America, as 鈥渄eeply compromised, disjointed and incomplete.鈥� They had supported turning the veterans鈥� healthcare system into a nonprofit public corporation.

Michael Blecker, executive director of the veterans group Swords to Plowshares, offered blunter criticism of the commission鈥檚 proposed care system, saying it or atrophy of important health services that the VA provides.鈥�

The system relies too much on privatization, he wrote, and comes with 鈥渁larming鈥� proposals, such as paying for the increased costs of the system by reducing the number of veterans eligible for VA health care.

On Monday, Trump continued his push to allow veterans to use any doctor they choose, including outside local VA hospitals.

鈥淰eterans should be guaranteed the right to choose their doctor and clinics, whether at a VA facility or at a private medical center,鈥� he said. His plan also includes proposals for improved mental health services, increased funding for job training, and placement programs for veterans.

Reports that many of Trump's donations to veterans' organizations only came in recent weeks聽have sparked controversy. Some reports suggest that Trump donated to many of the groups he had already claimed to have paid only after a Washington Post investigation raised , as well as his throughout his career.聽

Nevertheless, some polls suggest that he continues to enjoy support of many veterans over Democratic rival Hillary Clinton.聽A May of veterans and active duty troops showed Trump beating Mrs. Clinton by 9 percentage points, while a Military Times poll of active duty troops showed his lead to .

One key factor, especially when it comes to efforts to reform the VA, is 罢谤耻尘辫鈥檚 status as a political outsider, some say.

鈥� and [Democrat Sen. Bernie] Sanders has brought new people into the political process and fired up the base of both major parties,鈥� wrote Michael McPhearson, executive director for Veterans for Peace, in an essay for BillMoyers.com. 鈥淭rump has masterfully used the media and large crowds to create a spectacle to build support. He has featured veterans in his stage show, using them as props to gain credibility, and making us more visible in the process.鈥�

But Mr. McPhearson, and , some of whom also said they were military veterans, distanced themselves from 罢谤耻尘辫鈥檚 other stances, including his ban on Muslims entering the United States.

鈥淰eterans should watch Trump making fun of the disabled,鈥� wrote commenter Gwenn Murry, referring to his mocking of a New York Times reporter with a physical disability. There are disabled veterans in the US today, she noted.

Mr. Davis, of the VFW, which doesn鈥檛 issue endorsements, says many of 罢谤耻尘辫鈥檚 proposals looked familiar.

鈥淔ixing the VA is on every candidate鈥檚 platform, because its a story, veterans vote, their spouses vote, their voting age children vote,鈥� he says. 鈥淭aking care of America鈥檚 veterans, service members and their families is a national responsibility, and no one running for president can ignore that responsibility.鈥�