Watchdog: Vets in D.C. Waited More Than a Year For Home Health Care

Government Executive: Some veterans in the Washington, D.C., area waited more than a year for home health care services, including one who died before he could receive it, according to a new watchdog report.

Demand among vets for at-home nursing care, and spending on it, more than tripled at the Washington, D.C., Medical Center between fiscal years 2010 and 2014, the VA inspector general found, which created a wait list for patients requiring those services. Wait lists for home health care are used when the department doesn’t have the money to meet demand. Priority is given to vets who need nursing home care for the treatment of a service-connected disability rated at 50 percent or more. The program provides an alternative to nursing home care, and help vets with daily activities, such as eating and bathing.

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