NewsBytes February 21, 2020
In this issue:
DoD Plan to Downsize 50 Hospitals and Clinics
HVAC Discuss Privacy Concerns at VA
CCN Payment Delays Discussed at Joint Meeting
Veterans History Project
The DoD Announces Plan to Downsize Nearly 50 Hospitals and Clinics
As noted in last week’s NewsBytes, the Pentagon released a plan that, if fully implemented, would significantly restructure the military health system’s responsibilities in the continental U.S. over the next several years. The list includes 50 existing Military Treatment Facilities whose services would change in some way. In the FY2021 Defense Health Program budget proposal, the Pentagon estimated a $36 million savings during the first transition year by moving some patients (retirees and families) from MTFs to private providers in the DoD’s TRICARE system. The focus of these changes is to improve readiness. The DoD wants to remove care that doesn’t contribute to the readiness mission and move it into the TRICARE civilian network. The Defense Health Agency estimates that 84,000 active duty family members and 110,000 military retiree beneficiaries will be impacted by military treatment facility downsizing proposed.
Many TRICARE beneficiaries are worried about the impact these changes will have on their pocketbook. Retirees and their family members who are switched from MTFs to the TRICARE network care would face out-of-pocket cost increases because they would have a co-pay fee for most of their covered services.
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A copy of the report is also available online .
HVAC Subcommittee Discuss Privacy Concerns at VA
The House Veterans’ Affairs Subcommittee on Technology Modernization held a hearing on data privacy for veterans who are using the Department of Veterans Affairs’ vendors. The VA explained during the hearing that they have a process for vetting third party vendors who are part of the Community Care Network. Committee members expressed concern that privacy data should be protected by these third-party vendors. The committee focused on the security of the integrated electronic health record, record sharing and data collection and permissions from apps the VA offers for smartphones. The VA health care information from veterans falls under the jurisdiction of the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) and their personal information falls under the Privacy ACT. A third party vendor must follow VA procedures when gaining access to veteran information. The VA often performs compliance audits to ensure their agreements and polices are upheld. The VA claims that they have policies in place to immediately rectify an incident during a data breach.
CCN Payment Delays Discussed at HVAC Joint Subcommittee Meeting
Assistant Director, Legislative Programs Theo Lawson recently attended a joint oversight hearing of the House Veterans’ Affairs Subcommittees on Health and Oversight and Investigations. The hearing was about the status of the Community Care Network program provider networks. Attention was paid to the backlog of claims—2.5 million claims out of 3.8 million are older than 30 days. The Department of Veterans Affairs testified that this will be remedied by the end of the fiscal year this September.
The VA is making changes to streamline the payment and referrals process. This includes reforming the purchase and authorization systems and improving effective communication with service providers using technology as opposed to telephone calls. The Community Care Network is responsible for monitoring feedback from the service providers. Currently, 30 percent of veterans obtain health care through the CCN.
Veterans History Project
The Library of Congress, Veterans History Project is an effort to preserve oral histories, memoirs and collections of historical documents of U.S. veterans from World War I to the present. The FRA wants to provide an opportunity for Shipmates to share and preserve their stories for future generations of Americans. The Veterans History Project no longer accepts online registrations. Please submit your historical materials along with the required forms found in our Veterans History Project Field Kit. Be sure to follow the provided guidelines. The kit and additional information on the project are online .
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