Extend Under Secretary for Health term to five years with reappointment authority
Mandate proposes extending the Under Secretary for Health term to five years with authority to reappoint for a second term for continuity and insulation from political transition.
Mandate
Mandate Ch. 20 (Veterans Affairs) — VHA Personnel: extend the term of the Under Secretary for Health (USH) to five years; additionally, authority should be given to reappoint this individual for a second five-year term both to allow for continuity and to protect the USH from political transition.
Undo plan
1) Keep USH as a PAS position accountable to the Secretary/President for Take Care duties—not a quasi-independent satrapy.
2) If term length changes, pair with removal-for-cause standards and Senate oversight rather than insulation from lawful policy change.
3) Restore career clinical leadership pathways alongside political leadership.
4) Avoid locking in one Administration’s privatization preferences via long USH tenure.
5) Verify: clear succession and acting-authority rules published in VA org manuals.