Federal Healthcare

House Chairman Unveils Bill to Overhaul VA-Funded Private Care and Shutter Department Facilities

Government Executive: A key lawmaker in the House on Thursday introduced a measure to expand veterans access to private health care on the government’s dime while also instituting a process by which the Veterans Affairs Department would begin closing underutilized facilities.

The Veterans Affairs Maintaining Systems and Strengthening Integrated Outside Networks (VA MISSION) Act would provide veterans access to private sector care when the services they are seeking are not offered at VA, there is no full-service medical facility in their state, they previously were eligible for outside care under the Veterans Choice Program or VA cannot meet its own standards of care in providing care to an individual veteran.

Read article