DSW Showcase Student Presentation

Philip Breeze

LMSW

Veteran Healthcare: Problems, Progress, and Partial Privitization

Concentration -

Abstract

The Department of Veterans Affairs provides care for millions of veterans but is continually plagued by mismanagement of the burdensome healthcare system. This has produced failures in maintaining appointment wait time standards for more than a decade, with notable investigations revealing the deaths of veterans while waiting for care. The VA Mission Act of 2018 sought to improve the VA healthcare model by funding $5.2 billion to expand access to care through community providers and reduce veteran wait times. Peer-reviewed research on the efficacy in achieving appointment wait time reduction is limited, and early data suggests that the legislative goals have not been met. The presentation will explore historical healthcare challenges, highlight current federal legislative efforts, and propose future solution initiatives to solve this complex issue.

Biography

Philip Breeze was born and raised in Lexington, Kentucky, where he enlisted in the United States Navy after the passing of his mother and father.

Philip honorably served 14 years of active duty in the Navy as both an enlisted Sailor and commissioned social work Officer. His awards include the Navy and Marine Corp Commendation Medal, six Navy and Marine Corp Achievement Medals, four Good Conduct Medals, Military Outstanding Volunteer Service Medal, and in 2014, was named the Navy 10th Fleet Junior Sailor of the Year. He was assigned 100% disabled veteran status from the Department of Veteran Affairs after the conclusion of his military service.

He currently works as a government contractor while finishing his social work clinical licensure and Doctoral degree. His clinical competencies include cognitive behavioral therapy, cognitive processing therapy, prolonged exposure therapy, and motivational interviewing. He provides pro bono services at a local non-profit agency in Portsmouth, Virginia, counseling children and families to ease the trauma of illness and death through bereavement therapy. His Dissertation Capstone Project is on veteran healthcare, a population that is deeply personal to him, and his career goal is to teach military social work at the university level.

In 2024, Philip was awarded a commission as a Kentucky Colonel, the highest title of honor bestowed by the Governor of Kentucky, for his volunteer and humanitarian service in communities across the United States and overseas.