Key initiatives were recently announced that will expand telehealth services to support convenient, high-quality care for all Veterans. VA Secretary Dr. David Shulkin announced he will be issuing a regulation that explicitly authorizes VA providers to serve Veterans via telehealth, regardless of the provider’s or Veteran’s location in the country. Referred to as “Anywhere to Anywhere VA Health Care”, the regulation will empower VA to hire providers in major metropolitan areas in order to connect them with Veterans in rural communities which lack sufficient medical services.
In the announcement, Shulkin stated that “what we’re really doing is, we’re removing regulations that have prevented us from doing this. We’re removing geography as a barrier so that we can speed up access to Veterans and really honor our commitment to them.”
Virtual care will be critical to support the mental and behavioral health of Veterans. In a 2016 CBS News story, Shulkin said that preventing suicide is the VA’s top priority. Shuklin indicated that VA data shows that those who receive mental health care from the VA are less likely to commit suicide than those who do not access / receive care.
According to the Office of Mental Health and Suicide Prevention, suicide amongst veterans is especially high in the western U.S. and rural areas. Montana, Utah, Nevada and New Mexico had the highest rates of veteran suicide according to the most current VA data available which was recently re-examined in August, 2017. The suicide rates in these four states were 60 per 100,000 individuals or higher, significantly greater than the national veteran suicide rate of 38.4. The government data suggests social isolation, gun ownership and access to health care may be factors. Veterans in significant areas of these four states are more than 70 miles away from their nearest VA medical center.
Virtual consults and virtual visits can be a convenient and impactful way for Veterans to receive mental health care. By driving better access and outcomes, virtual care solutions are bringing critical care to the comfort of patients’ homes across population segments and conditions.