The nurse practitioners aren't replacing anyone. There aren't enough physicians that are interested in taking care of our Veterans, but there are more than enough nurse practitioners that are. That's the thing about us nurses, we are willing to go into those rural areas that don't have enough providers even though it might mean less income. We go towards the populations that need the most help, even if it's not to our advantage. This includes the Veteran population. The VA is critically short of providers. Nurse practitioners can fill that gap and provide top notch notch care to those that need it most. You should be applauding the men and women wanting to care for our Veterans, not sabotaging them.