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President-elect Donald Trump has named Pete Hegseth, an Army veteran and Fox News host, as his choice for secretary of defense. ... Hegseth, 44, is a National Guard veteran from Minnesota who has been a commentator on Fox News for the past decade. He once led an advocacy group that sought to privatize healthcare provided by the Department of Veterans Affairs, leading Trump to consider him as VA secretary during his first term. (Ward and Salama, 11/12)

Project 2025, a mandate for conservative leadership created by the Heritage Foundation, a think tank in Washington, D.C., includes plans for restructuring the Department of Veterans Affairs—such as increasing "robust political control" of the VA, removing abortion access for VA health care recipients and reviewing the VA's protocols for disability aid. Michael Embrich, a former member of the Advisory Committee on the Readjustment of Veterans, has been vocal about his fears surrounding the manifesto, saying in July that Project 2025's policy proposals to overhaul the VA—the largest health care provider for veterans—is the "worst-case scenario" for veterans in the U.S. (Clark, 11/11)

The Department of Veterans Affairs has started the process to designate multiple myeloma and acute and chronic leukemias as linked to military service in the Persian Gulf, Afghanistan and elsewhere, a change that will give affected veterans quicker access to disability compensation. During his last Veterans Day address as commander in chief, President Joe Biden announced the update to the list of diseases presumed to be related to exposure to burn pits and other airborne pollutants according to the PACT Act. (Kime, 11/12)

A federal program serving 2.8 million veterans isn't delivering on key promises. The big picture: The Veterans Community Care Program was set up to help veterans secure appointments with providers near their homes when they can't receive care from a Department of Veterans Affairs facility. ... Veterans are waiting more than two weeks on average from the time a referral is made to even schedule an appointment through the community care program, according to audits by the Government Accountability Office. They're supposed to have mental health appointments within 30 days. (Bettelheim, 11/11)

Veterans Affairs leaders plan to eliminate all co-pays for telehealth services and award grants for telehealth clinics in rural areas, part of ongoing efforts to expand virtual care options within the medical care system. In an announcement Monday, department officials said the moves could help “lower costs and expand access to care for all those who served.” Both proposals will have to go through a months-long rulemaking process before either could be put into effect. (Shane III, 11/12)

Boston University School of Public Health research suggests that virtual mental health care may significantly reduce suicide-related events (SREs) among veterans recently released from service. For every 1% increase in virtual mental health visits, there was a 2.5% decrease in SREs. (Jackson, 11/11)