The dismissals of more than 1,000 new employees at the Department of Veterans Affairs as part of the wave of federal government layoffs have led to serious concerns that it could hinder operations at medical facilities and impact benefits for former service members.

The VA exempted many of its frontline employees from a government hiring freeze and made many ineligible for the Department of Government Efficiency’s “deferred resignation offer” but veterans advocates and terminated VA personnel are warning the reduction in just two percent of the agency’s probationary workforce is expected to have ripple effects, especially at an agency already battling severe shortages.