The Department of Veterans Affairs’ (VA) more than 900,000 veterans have used VA telehealth https://connectedcare.va.gov services. The 17% increase over the prior fiscal year has contributed to the VA’s delivery of more than 2.6 million episodes of telehealth care in FY 2019.
This is a result of having the VA inform veterans about telehealth service options and having completed the VA’s “Anywhere to Anywhere” initiative. The telehealth program enables VA healthcare teams to treat veterans in any location and includes locations across state lines. By the end of FY 2020, all primary care and mental health providers will be able to deliver care to patients, both-in-person and via a mobile or web-based devices.
Use of “VA Video Connect” https://mobile.va.gov/app/va-video-connect app connecting veterans to their care teams through secure video sessions, increased by 235% in FY 2019 with more than 99,000 veterans using the app at home. More than 200,000 or about two-thirds of the 294,000 VA Video Connect appointments in FY 2019 were for telemental health visits.
VA launched “Accessing Telehealth through Local Areas Stations” (ATLAS) https://connectedcare.va.gov/partners/atlas in Eureka Montana to provide care for veterans living long distances from VA medical centers or that have poor internet connectivity at home. Additional locations are scheduled to open as pilot sites in select American Legion Veterans of Foreign War posts and at Walmart stores.