Trump Signs VA Law to Provide Veterans More Private Healthcare Choices

President Trump on Wednesday signed a law to revamp the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) and expand access for veterans to VA-funded care in the private sector, reports USA Today . Determining precisely how and when this will be realized is now the responsibility of agency officials tasked with drawing up regulations under the law. If confirmed, Trump's VA director nominee Robert Wilkie would spearhead that effort. Criteria to be taken under consideration include wait times for VA appointments, quality of VA care, and distance from a VA center. The VA MISSION Act instructs the VA to integrate a number of existing private-care programs, including the so-called Choice program. The new statute also sets up a commission to recommend which VA centers are worth repairing, where new ones should be constructed, and which ones should be closed and care provided in the private sector instead. The law includes some incentives to help the department hire more healthcare providers, enabling the agency to offer scholarships to medical students in return for VA stints. Moreover, the law provides pre-9/11 veterans with benefits to help cover the cost of in-home caregivers, as well as establish pilot programs to test how to deliver better care more efficiently, including with public-private alliances.