(TNND) — Veterans Affairs is launching an effort to cut its workforce by 15% to reach pre-pandemic employment levels, Secretary Doug Collins announced Wednesday.

Collins said they want to go from about 470,000 VA employees now to about 398,000, which is a reduction of 72,000 employees.

Other reports have indicated cuts of 80,000 employees.

President Donald Trump has pledged to prune the federal bureaucracy and carve out government waste. Trump has empowered billionaire ally Elon Musk and the Department of Government Efficiency task force with much of that work.

VA, with the largest payroll of the 18 cabinet-level departments, might seem like a logical place to make cuts.

However, millions of men and women who have fought for our country depend on the care and benefits provided by VA.

Collins vowed in a video message that the workforce cuts won’t jeopardize health care or benefits for veterans.

And he said VA will continue to hire for more than 300,000 mission-critical positions.

Collins said VA has been a “punching bag” for decades, and veterans deserve “a more efficient, accountable and transparent VA.”

He said the layoffs will be conducted through “a thorough and thoughtful review” and with a “pragmatic and disciplined approach to eliminating waste and bureaucracy.”

Most VA employees work in the health care side of the department, which delivers care to over 9 million enrolled veterans.

The Veterans Benefits Administration, meanwhile, serves over 5.5 million veterans who receive pensions, survivors' benefits, education assistance, home loan guaranties, and more.

VA operates on an annual budget of over $300 billion.

Republican Rep. Mike Bost, the chair of the House Committee on Veterans’ Affairs, said in a statement that he has questions about how the workforce reductions will impact the delivery of services, especially following the implementation of the PACT Act.

President Joe Biden signed the PACT Act into law in August 2022, expanding health care to veterans exposed to toxins during their service.

Burn pits used at U.S. bases during the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan were blamed for illnesses, including cancers, and brought this issue to the forefront. But pre-9/11 veterans who suffered toxic exposure are also covered under the PACT Act.

“And from my position as Chairman, I will continue to ask questions and keep a close eye on how, or if, this plan evolves,” Bost said in a statement. “I will work with our entire Republican conference, our colleagues in the Senate, and the administration to ultimately put veterans back at the core of VA’s mission.”

Nearly 740,000 veterans enrolled in VA health care during the first two years of the PACT Act. That was a 33% increase over the previous two-year period.

And VA said last month that it had completed over 2 million PACT-related claims.

Democratic Rep. Mark Takano, the ranking member of the House Committee on Veterans’ Affairs, called the VA workforce reductions “dangerous” and “an outright betrayal of veterans.”

“Gutting VA’s staffing to pre-PACT Act levels will cripple the very system that millions of veterans rely on, denying them access to lifesaving health care, claims processing, and education benefits they’ve earned,” Takano said in a statement.

Jim Lorraine, the president and CEO of America’s Warrior Partnership, a group that works on behalf of veterans, said Thursday that he’s heard concerns from veterans about how the VA workforce cuts will affect them.

“Nobody knows where the cuts are going to occur,” Lorraine said. “Is it going to occur in VBA? So, is it going to slow the ... pace of claims? Or is it going to occur in (Veterans Health Administration)? And so, you have ... a reduction in the access to services and care? Is it going to get cut within the administrative world, so that maybe your calls aren't answered in a prompt time?”

Lorraine said he trusts the VA secretary to make cuts in the right places.

And he said VA, like any government bureaucracy, likely has inefficiencies that need to be addressed.

But he questioned whether VA should return to 2019 employment levels, given the new demands from the PACT Act.

And Lorraine said he hopes the cuts aren’t rushed, that they are undertaken in a “deliberate” manner.

There might be some low-hanging fruit as VA leaders look to begin the cuts, he said.

“But then, as you start working your way up the tree, it gets tougher and tougher and tougher,” Lorraine said.