Legion: Veterans health care must remain top priority

The Department of Veterans Affairs Veterans Choice Program (VCP) has helped increased veterans' access to health care since the program’s inception in August 2014. To date, more than two million appointments with community care providers have been scheduled and completed for eligible veterans enrolled in VA health care programs.

As the program draws closer to its 2017 sunset date, Congress and the VA continue to mull over future delivery of VA health care.

VCP was created by Congress as a temporary rapid-fire solution to alleviate long wait times at overburdened VA medical facilities after damning reports were released detailing long wait times and secret waiting lists at VA medical centers across the country.

The American Legion remains at the forefront of advocacy efforts, challenging Capitol Hill’s decision makers to enact legislation that would hold VA accountable for providing the nation’s heroes with access to the health care they need, when they need it. The complex system through which veterans receive their care must become ever-changing and take into consideration the unique needs of veterans from various war eras and recent conflicts.

“At the end of the day what we want to see as a vision for (VA) is what we call an integrated health-care system. It’s a system that includes VA health-care providers and clinics leveraging expertise from the private sector,” said Baligh Yehia, an assistant deputy undersecretary for the Veterans Health Administration, during a recent panel on the current state of veterans health care hosted by the Alliance for Health Reform and Ascension Health.

The panel discussion provided Congressional staffers with an introduction to the VA health system. Public and private sector health providers also gave an overview of how the VA acts as both provider and purchaser of care and discussed policy prospects for the future, assessing the potential for increased collaboration between civilian care coordinators and VA providers.

As policymakers decide how to proceed going forward in the months to come, The American Legion plans to address veterans health-care issues during National Commander Charles E. Schmidt’s testimony before Congress at the Legion’s Washington Conference in February.