VA Puget Sound Health Care System

VA Puget Sound Health Care System prepares to launch new VA health care options under MISSION Act

VA Puget Sound Health Care System prepares to launch new VA health care options under MISSION Act

SEATTLE — June 4, 2019 — The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) will launch its new and improved community care program June 6, 2019, implementing portions of the VA Maintaining Internal Systems and Strengthening Integrated Outside Networks Act of 2018 (MISSION Act), which both ends the Veterans Choice Program and establishes a new Veterans Community Care Program.

“From our new and improved community care program to expanded telehealth services, the MISSION Act empowers our Veterans and greatly enhances their care options,” said VA Puget Sound Health Care System Director Michael Tadych. “This step underscores our relentless focus on providing our nation’s heroes – America’s Veterans – and their families with the best care experience.”

The MISSION Act will strengthen the nationwide Veterans Health Administration by empowering Veterans to have more options in their health care decisions.

Empowering Veterans with increased access to community care
Veterans may be able to receive care from a provider in their local community if they meet specific criteria. Generally, Veterans must be enrolled with VA to receive care, although there are some exceptions . Veteran eligibility largely depends upon individual health care needs or circumstances. In most instances, VA must authorize care before it is received.

Under the MISSION Act, there are six different eligibility criteria for community care. Meeting any one of these criteria for the specific care needed means enrolled Veterans are eligible to elect to receive that care either through direct VA care or community provider in VA’s network:

• A Veteran needs a service not available at any VA medical facility.
• “Grandfathered” eligibility based on residence and the 40-mile eligibility criterion from Veterans Choice Program.
• The specific care needed is not available within designated access standards.
• Veteran and referring clinician decide it is in the patient’s best medical interest to receive the specific care needed in the community.
• VA has designated the VA medical service line delivering the specific care needed as not providing care that complies with VA’s standards for quality.
• Veteran lives in a U.S. state (Alaska, Hawaii, New Hampshire) or territory (Guam, American Samoa, the Northern Mariana Islands and the U.S. Virgin Islands) without a full-service VA medical facility.

Statutorily authorizes “Anywhere to Anywhere” telehealth across state lines
Under the new and improved Veterans Community Care Program, eligible Veterans can use VA health care services nationwide, including through mobile health clinics that serve rural areas and via telehealth (care through a phone or computer) in their home or on the go.

New, urgent-care benefit
Under the MISSION Act, the VA will also offer an urgent/walk-in care benefit for minor injuries and illnesses, such as pink eye or ear infections. To be covered by this benefit, Veterans must be enrolled in the VA healthcare system and have received care from VA within 24 months prior to seeking this care.

Eligible Veterans can seek this care from an urgent care facility or walk-in retail health clinic that is part of the VA’s community provider network, but not all urgent care facilities or walk-in retail health clinics are in VA’s network.

Strengthening VA’s ability to recruit and retain clinicians
VA Puget Sound, and VA facilities across the nation, will be better equipped to recruit and retain the best medical providers through new scholarship programs, education debt reduction, and bonuses for recruitment, relocation and retention. VA is also starting a pilot scholarship program for DoD trained corpsmen Veterans to get medical training and credentialing in return for serving in a VA hospital or clinic for four years. Recruitment and retention programs are expected to roll out over the course of 2019 through 2020.

To help employees prepare for this transformation and others under the MISSION Act, VA Puget Sound dedicated the month of May to readiness. Staff training, employee town halls, director’s meetings, a congressional staff briefing, social media and other activities were focused specifically on the MISSION Act and what it means for patients and staff. VA Puget Sound also invited more than 10,000 Veterans from the Mount Vernon, Everett, North Seattle and some of the surrounding islands to participate in its May 29, 2019 tele-town hall. It will also host “Ask about the MISSION Act” informational booths from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at its Lakewood (American Lake) campus June 4, and Seattle campus June 5.

“While any significant transformation can sometimes bring challenges, we are confident changes under the MISSION Act will greatly improve Veterans’ access to care,” said Tadych. “Aiming for excellence, we will work hard to support a smooth transition and will embrace all opportunities for improvement.”

More information about the MISSION Act can be found at www.missionact.va.gov, in the Enhanced VA Options Under the MISSION Act brochure and on the VA blog, VAntage Point.

VA Puget Sound provides comprehensive care to more than 110,000 Veterans across its nine facilities in the Pacific Northwest. It has the 5th largest research program within the national VA system and seven Centers of Excellence (in areas from limb-loss prevention and prosthetic engineering to primary care education and substance abuse treatment). More than 2,000 individuals participate in its undergraduate and graduate training programs each year. The new Mental Health and Research facility represents an investment that brings the Seattle Division on par with the expert patient-centered care VA Puget Sound has been delivering to Veterans for the past 96 years. For more information visit www.pugetsound.va.gov.

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Resources

• Fact Sheet – Veteran Community Care – Urgent Care (VA MISSION Act of 2018)
• Fact Sheet – Veteran Community Care – Eligibility (VA MISSION Act of 2018)
• Fact Sheet – Veteran Community Care – General Information (VA MISSION Act of 2018)