VA Names Former Head of Caregiver Program Office as Chief of Staff

Veterans Affairs Secretary Denis McDonough has named a longtime figure in the department's caregiver community as the VA's new chief of staff.

Margaret "Meg" Kabat was sworn in Wednesday to the critical post following the departure July 13 of Kimberly Jackson, who had been in the job for eight months. Kabat had served as principal senior adviser to McDonough since 2022 and, before that, a year as the VA’s senior adviser for families, caregivers and survivors.

"Meg is a tireless advocate for veterans, their families, caregivers, and survivors -- and we're thrilled that she's going to be helping lead VA in this critical role," McDonough said in a statement Wednesday. "As our next chief of staff, she will undoubtedly continue to positively impact our organization and ensure we deliver on the most sacred mission there is: serving America's veterans."

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A licensed clinical social worker, Kabat worked for the Department of the Navy as a caseworker at the National Naval Medical Center in Bethesda, Maryland, before joining the VA in 2011. She was instrumental in developing and leading the VA's Program of Comprehensive Assistance for Family Caregivers, or Family Caregiver Program, which provides services and financial support for caregivers assisting veterans severely injured in the line of duty.

In a statement, she said her job serving that community "has been the greatest privilege" in her career, and she pledged to continue "driving [the] mission forward."

"As the daughter of a Vietnam veteran and the granddaughter of a World War I and a World War II veteran, I carry our mission close to my heart. I am so very grateful to President Biden and Secretary McDonough for entrusting me with this great responsibility," she said.

During her tenure in the VA's National Caregiver Support Program Office, she helped prepare for the expansion of the Family Caregiver Program to include veterans who served before 2001.

Among the challenges faced by the office in the late 2010s was a review to ensure the program provided benefits to the neediest families. That review forced some families out of the program or decreased their stipends, prompting multiple pauses of participant evaluations and drawing criticism from those enrolled in the program, as well as some members of Congress.

Also during that time frame, the office sought to ensure that its computer systems could handle an anticipated influx of applications from newly eligible veterans, prompting delays in the expansion as the VA worked to upgrade the required information technology systems.

The VA changed its eligibility criteria for the Family Caregiver Program in 2020 to prepare for its expansion to veterans from all eras. Within two years, the VA again paused discharges from the program after complaints from post-9/11 veterans in the program that they were being unfairly dismissed based on eligibility criteria that was expected to trim roughly 6,300 veterans from the program but instead would have discharged about 17,000 veterans.

Caregivers placed the blame for the changes squarely on Kabat, although the expansion was mandated by the 2018 Mission Act, and members of Congress were made aware that the eligibility criteria would change to accommodate new families.

Some caregivers trolled, harassed and bullied Kabat on social media platforms such as X, formerly Twitter, and Facebook, driving her from those platforms.

She has the backing of at least one caregiver advocacy group, however -- the Elizabeth Dole Foundation, which sponsors programs and provides support and fellowships for the caregivers of service members and veterans,

"We are thrilled that Secretary McDonough has asked Meg Kabat to take on this senior leadership role. Meg's longtime service at VA has been rooted in her advocacy and support for caregivers. This is a tremendous signal to the community that VA recognizes the vital role caregivers play in the health, wellness and recovery of our nation's veterans," said Steve Schwab, the foundation’s CEO, in an email to Military.com.

As a senior adviser to McDonough, Kabat oversaw the expansion of women's health services at the VA and health benefits for veterans who received other-than-honorable discharges; provided guidance during implementation of the PACT Act; and "played a vital leadership role" in providing housing to 75,000 homeless veterans, according to the VA.

Kabat holds a bachelor's degree in psychology from the College of the Holy Cross in Worcester, Massachusetts, and a Master of Social Work from the Catholic University of America in Washington, D.C.

Related: VA Family Caregiver Benefits for 'Legacy' Veterans Extended Through 2025