CRITICAL ACCESS HOSPITALS

S. 1868, the Critical Access for Veterans Care Act, is scheduled for deliberation at the Senate Committee on Veterans Affairs hearing on March 18th. The Veterans Healthcare Policy Institute has written extensively about how this legislation, as currently drafted, would accelerate the privatization of VA healthcare. Among the chief concerns is a provision that would allow veterans to completely bypass local VA clinics and medical centers in favor of seeking care directly in the community.

Proving the point, VHPI just completed a study examining every VA facility located within 40 miles of the Critical Access Hospitals included in the bill, identifying 845 such instances. The full spreadsheet is posted here.