The 1-year anniversary occurred last month of the signing of the PACT Act—the sweeping legislation that expanded healthcare and benefits to veterans exposed to toxic substances during their service.
House Subcommittee Chair Expressed Concerns About VA Contractor Conflicts
VA spends more than $3 billion annually on management consulting contracts, relying on those contractors to help run nearly every facet of its operation in VHA and VBA.
Surprises in Patterns of Healthcare Use Among Urban AIAN Population
While healthcare access and use is a subject of national concern and considerable study, such studies often have failed to capture of subtleties of the healthcare experience of the American Indian and Alaskan Native (AIAN) population.
Impaired Mitochondrial Function, Not Inflammation, Appears to Be Cause of GWI
Future clinical interventions for Gulf War Illness should focus on impaired mitochondrial function, not inflammation, according to a new study.
Statins Play a Role in Type 2 Diabetes Progression to Insulin Use
In patients with Type 2 diabetes mellitus, cardiorespiratory fitness and body mass index (BMI) play a role in statin-related progression to insulin therapy, according to a recent study.
House Version of NDAA Sets Up Fight With Democrat-Controlled Senate
The House of Representatives passed its version of the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) by a narrow margin and with multiple controversial amendments targeting abortion access and gender-affirming healthcare for servicemembers, as well as diversity and inclusion efforts in the military.
Dermatology Group Seeks Better Stevens-Johnson Severity Tool
Stevens-Johnson syndrome/toxic epidermal necrolysis (EN) is a severe adverse mucocutaneous drug reaction with life-threatening implications, usually caused by drug reactions.
Racial Disparity Common in Receipt of High-Dose Influenza Vaccines
Racial disparities in receipt of high-dose influenza vaccine (HDV) have been documented nationally, but a new study sought to determine if small-area geographic variation in such disparities also exists.
How Lung Volumes Change During Progression of Spirometric COPD
Abnormal lung volumes representing air-trapping identify the subset of smokers with preserved spirometry who develop spirometric chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and adverse outcomes can be identified by abnormal lung volumes representing air-trapping.
Dispute in House VA Committee on Allowing Remote Witnesses After COVID-19
Like most of the professional world, when the pandemic hit in 2020 and meeting in person became more difficult and dangerous, Congress began relying on remote technology to conduct some of its business.
New Equity Teams Seek to End Disparities in VA Care, Benefits
To ensure that quality VA care is being provided to all veterans regardless of age, race, ethnicity, gender, or sexual identity, an agency equity team is being established.
Penumbra Sheds Light on Use of Virtual Reality for Veteran Rehab
In partnership with the VA’s Office of Healthcare Innovation and Learning (OHIL), Penumbra Inc. aims to change the way veterans receive and literally see rehabilitation services.
VA Doctor-Turned-Inventor Works to Prevent Infectious Disease Spread
Part of the inspiration for Chetan Jinadatha, MD, MPH, to specialize in treating infectious disease comes from going to medical school in his native India, which has a high burden of such diseases. However, he also likes to say it’s partly for selfish reasons.
Hundreds of Thousands of PACT Act Claims Strain VBA’s Processing Capacity
The VA had received over 700,000 PACT Act-related claims as of last month, testing the department’s processing capacity and threatening to significantly increase the existing backlog of claims.
VA Researchers Find Biomarkers for Potentially Serious Parasitic Infections
Asymptomatic Leishmaniasis Infected Nearly 20% of Soldiers in Iraq BETHESDA, MD—New research has identified three chemokines as potential biomarkers for asymptomatic visceral leishmaniasis (VL), a chronic infection caused by Leishmania (L.) donovani or L. infantum....
VA Facilities Plagued by Security Lapses, Serious Incidents
By their nature, VA healthcare facilities are meant to be easily accessible, but open-campus layouts also make them difficult to secure.
VA Relying on Fewer Companies, Broader Contracts to Build IT Infrastructure
Despite an increase in spending on information technology contracts, the number of companies that VA is relying on to build its IT infrastructure is decreasing.
VA House Committee Chair Raises Concerns About VA ‘Sustained’ Leadership
Legislators and agency watchdogs are concerned about the lack of strong, sustained leadership at VA’s highest levels. Part of the worry is about the department’s ability to carry through on major projects and enact the provisions of recent legislation, as well as learn from previous mistakes.
Few VA Facilities Have Radio Networks for Communication During Emergencies
In the event of an emergency that causes traditional communication networks to fail, many VA facilities would be unable to talk to each other, despite the department having spent millions of dollars on an emergency communications network, according to a VA Office of the Inspector General report.
Care Integration: Is VA Trying to Reinvent Something That Already Existed?
Despite the VA’s claims of an integrated, veteran-first model of healthcare, its patients regularly find themselves lost in a landscape of complex, siloed treatment that they are left to navigate for themselves. The challenge for patients only increases when community care is added to the equation, and they cannot rely on the consistent sharing of their records between VA and a private healthcare system.
Legislators Worried About Increased Pharmacy Errors With EHR Rollout
While the rollout of VA’s new electronic health record (EHR) has been paused indefinitely as the department works with the developer to address serious flaws in the system, legislators are worried about ongoing issues at the sites where the new EHR has already been introduced.
Rural Residence Affects Clinical Trial Enrollment for Veterans With Blood Cancer
DURHAM, NC – Participation in clinical trials (CTs) remains low among cancer patients in general, but, in veterans, that issue is exacerbated because of the higher percentage of rural residents, according to a new study. “The barrier of rural residence is relevant to...
Retaliation Common Against ‘Whistleblowers’ Who Point Out VA Wrongdoing
Despite strong messaging over the last few years that VA would protect employees who come forward about wrongdoing in the workplace, the percentage of whistleblowers who experience retaliation from co-workers is growing.
OIG Calls for Update of 2008 VA Mental Health Services Handbook
VA’s mental health services handbook is almost a decade out of date, making consistent care more difficult to achieve and possibly putting veterans’ safety at risk, according to a report by the VA Office of the Inspector General (OIG).
VA Renegotiates EHR Contract With Oracle, Seeking More Developer Accountability
VA has renegotiated its $10 billion contract with Oracle, the developer of its troubled new electronic health record (EHR) system, which is currently in use at only five sites across the VA healthcare system.
Adherence to Diabetes Medications Remained High During COVID-19 Pandemic
During the COVID-19 pandemic, high-risk diabetes patients who were treated in the VA Healthcare System adhered to their diabetes medication regimens and maintained high primary care use, even though virtual care replaced in-person care, according to a recent study.
VA Makes Argument in Congress for Its Record-Setting $325.1B Budget Request
VA vociferously defended its proposed FY2024 budget before Congress in an effort to justify the record-setting $325.1 billion request—a 5.4% increase over last year’s enacted budget.
Telemedicine Increase During Pandemic Put Spotlight on Possible Disparities
The VA has long been a leader in the use of virtual healthcare to improve access to care. When the pandemic caused shutdowns in 2020, virtual care became even more important at the VA.
VA Demonstrates Success in Remote Treatment of Aggressive Cancers
Initially, the TeleOncology service managed oral therapies and watchful waiting and surveillance of veterans with cancer, but it has expanded to offer remote supervision for intravenous cancer treatments.
VA Study Shows Low Use of Primary Care for Reproductive Health Services
The integration of reproductive health services into primary care practices is increasingly recognized as critical to the advancement of patient-centered care and improving reproductive outcomes.