VA announces pilot program for El Paso

Update: Congressman Beto O’Rourke introduced a new Veterans Affairs pilot program today.

It is expected to ensure veterans in need of medical care here are seen quickly by the best available provider in the region

The program, involving multiple providers from across the community and not just the VA providing care, can’t start soon enough for some of them.

Here’s how it will work:

The VA will prioritize service or combat-connected conditions like post traumatic stress disorder or traumatic brain injuries within the VA, allowing them to concentrate on those conditions.

Common conditions like diabetes or the flu will be prioritized to community referral for care.

“Private doctors in a community that is already stressed in terms of level of service are gonna step up, take on more patients, more veterans at a lower reimbursement rate because this community believes in its service members and it believes in its veterans and its putting its money where its mouth is literally,” O’Rourke said. “That’s really great for El Paso and a great story for us to tell nationally.”

Those providers have all agreed to provide care at the prevailing VA reimbursement rate which is lower than Medicare.

And VA navigators for veterans will be the key in all this, developing a patient management and navigation system to make it work.

“The big concession on the part of the providers in the community is they will accept the prevailing VA reimbursement rate, which is really low,” O’Rourke said. “It’s less than medicare in many cases. The VA is giving a little, the providers are giving a little and out of that comes a big win for veterans in El Paso.”

Today’s news conference featured several dignitaries, including the VA’s chief medical officer Wendell Jones, who pointed out the VA needs to partner with communities to deliver services to veterans.

“I think it’s great that they keep the issues of the veterans in the VA, because that’s where it should be, because other people don’t understand veteran’s concerns,” said veteran Olga Kalpakgian.

Watch Darren Hunt’s reports at 5, 6, and 10 p.m. for more details.

Original Story: Congressman Beto O’Rourke is expected to announce a plan that could improve access to health care for veterans in El Paso.

Details about the Veteran Affairs Pilot Program will be given at a news conference Tuesday afternoon at 1 p.m. at the El Paso VA Health Care System, located at 5001 N. Piedras St.

O’Rourke released a proposal over the summer in which he stated was created by the community and is supported by local politicians, business leaders, health care professionals and veterans’ organizations.

ABC-7 got a hold of the 50-page proposal released earlier this year.

In the proposal O’Rourke lays out the goals of the pilot program:

– Ensure that area veterans are seen quickly by the best available provider in the region.

– Develop deeper competencies at the VA for the highest demand injuries, conditions and disabilities unique to veterans.

– Leverage community providers and facilities to fully complement VA providers and facilities.

– Improve access to care immediately and bring improved facilities and focus to veterans within 24 months.

– Provide the VA with a working model that can be successfully implemented in other parts of the country – saving money, improving access and, most importantly, ensuring better outcomes for the veterans we serve.

The proposal reiterated how difficult it is for veterans to access health care, especially when it comes to mental health.

O’Rourke said the wait times veterans face in El Paso is a “crisis.”

His proposal stated the El Paso VA, as of June 1, 2015, is the second worse in the country for access to health care.

ABC-7 will live stream the news conference, log on to kvia.com to watch it in its entirety.