Under the MISSON Act, the US Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) is expected to roll out proposed regulations relating to Veterans Care Agreements before the June 2019 implementation date. This legislation will allow the VA to enter into Veterans Care Agreements with qualified LTC providers, including nursing care centers. Key senators are working to ensure the VA’s new long term care (LTC) regulations remove duplicative layers of review and match the standards under the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS). Aligning with CMS rules would provide relief from onerous and often times costly federal contracting requirements and enable more LTC providers to accept veteran patients.

AHCA worked with Senator John Hoeven (R-ND) and other key Congressional champions on the Hill to get Veterans Care Agreements signed into law last year. At a recent Congressional hearing, Hoeven received commitment from the VA to hold a webinar in the near future for AHCA’s members and other LTC providers educating them and answering questions on these new agreements and the Community Care Network (CCN). If you have any questions relating to this matter, please contact AHCA’s Senior Director of Not for Profit & Constituent Services, Dana Halvorson, at dhalvorson@ahca.org.

Resources

Veteran Community Care—General Information Fact Sheet

VA MISSION Act and New Veterans Community Care Program Fact Sheet