The House of Representatives last week passed an AFGE-backed bill that would allow veterans to access more care at home.
H.R. 8371, The “Senator Elizabeth Dole 21st Century Veterans Healthcare and Benefits Improvement Act,” passed on a bipartisan 389-9 vote.
Under the bill, veterans who are eligible for VA care are covered for non-VA care at home if it doesn’t cost more than that provided by the VA. The bill creates a program that allows people to hire home health aides, among other things.
“Better access to home care is a longstanding priority for veterans who wish to live with as much autonomy as possible as they age or deal with functional impairments that require long-term care,” said AFGE Legislative Director Julie Tippens in a letter to House representatives. “AFGE very much appreciates that bipartisan leadership of the House Veterans’ Affairs Committee worked to come up with a compromise that will limit the impact of privatization while delivering needed benefits to veterans.”
A compromise was reached on a provision that would make final decisions to refer to private care made by a veteran and a doctor based on the best medical interest of the patient.
AFGE is concerned that taking away the VA’s ability to review these decisions will lead to inappropriate use of private care. In response to these concerns, the compromise sunsets this provision after two years, which will allow Congress to evaluate its impact on the integrity of the direct care system before making a permanent change that could undermine VA’s ability to provide the quality, integrated care veterans only receive at the VA.
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