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Veteran trust in the VA Finger Lakes Healthcare System has risen to 94.8% — up from 87.2% in 2018, which was the first year the VA began conducting a survey. Additionally, nationwide trust in VA outpatient care has increased to 91.8% — up from 85.6% in 2018.
This finding is based on a survey of Veteran patients who received VA health care in the past 90 days. Within one week of using VA services, these Veterans were asked whether they trusted VA for their health care needs across a variety of categories – including scheduling an appointment, health care visits, in-person pharmacy, mail-order pharmacy, labs/imaging, and Veteran safety.
This survey mirrors the findings of recent independent studies. According to Medicare’s latest nationwide survey of patients, VA hospitals outperformed non-VA hospitals on all 10 core patient satisfaction metrics — including overall hospital rating, communication with doctors, communication about medication, willingness to recommend the hospital, and more. VA health care has also consistently outperformed non-VA care in peer-reviewed studies, overall quality ratings, and affordability for Veterans.
“VA Finger Lakes is honored to be a trusted provider in our Veteran community,” said Bruce Tucker, VA Finger Lakes Healthcare System, Executive Director. “Our mission is to ensure Veterans receive the quality care they have earned and deserve, in a trusted, Veteran-centric environment.
“We at VA work to earn the trust of Veterans every day, in every part of the country, every time they come to us for their care,” said VA Secretary Denis McDonough. “We’re proud that more than 91% of Veterans now trust VA health care, but we still have work to do. By measuring Veteran trust, we can not only learn what we’re doing well at VA – we can also learn how to get better.”
VA recently expanded health care eligibility for millions of Veterans nationwide, years earlier than called for by the PACT Act. As of March 5th, all Veterans who were exposed to toxins and other hazards while serving in the military and meet certain requirements became eligible to enroll directly in VA health care. This means that all Veterans who served in the Vietnam War, the Gulf War, Iraq, Afghanistan, the Global War on Terror, or any other combat zone after 9/11 can enroll directly in VA health care without first applying for VA benefits. Additionally, Veterans who never deployed but were exposed to toxins or hazards while training or on active duty in the United States are also eligible to enroll. VA also recently expanded health care to all World War II Veterans.