VA alters Veterans Choice 40-mile rule

The Department of Veterans Affairs announced this week that it will revise the way it calculates the distance between a veteran’s residence and the nearest VA medical facility in order to expand eligibility for its Veterans Choice program.

VA said it will change the 40-mile distance it uses to determine eligibility from a straight line distance to driving distance. The department said it anticipates that the change, which will be implemented through regulatory action in coming weeks, will roughly double the number of veterans eligible for the program.

The Veterans Choice Program—which was included in the Veterans Access, Choice, and Accountability Act of 2014—allows eligible vets who live more than 40 miles from a VA medical facility to access health care in their communities rather than wait for a VA appointment or travel to a VA health care facility.

“We’ve determined that changing the distance calculation will help ensure more veterans have access to care when and where they want it," said VA Secretary Robert McDonald. "VA looks forward to the ongoing support of our partners as we continue to make improvements to this new program.”

A fact sheet on the 40-mile-rule change can be found here.