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VA health care guides

Enrolling, what is covered and what it costs, primary and mental health care, specialty referrals, and emergency and urgent care rules.

Enrollment, coverage and costs

VA Health Care Enrollment Guide: Who Qualifies and How to Apply

To enroll in VA health care, submit VA Form 10-10EZ online at va.gov, by phone at 877-222-8387, by mail, or at any VA medical center.

VA Health Care Coverage: What's Covered, What It Costs, and How It Works With Other Insurance

VA health care covers a standard medical benefits package: preventive and primary care, specialty care, inpatient hospital care, mental health, prescriptions, prosthetics, and emergency and urgent care, with limited dental, vision and hearing.

VA Benefits and Medicare: How They Work Together and Whether You Need Part B

Veterans can have VA health care and Medicare at the same time, but the two do not coordinate: VA pays only for care it authorizes and Medicare pays only for non-VA care.

VA Prescription Benefits: 2026 Copays, the $700 Cap and How to Refill

VA prescriptions are free for service-connected conditions and for priority group 1 veterans.

Primary and preventive care

Finding a VA Primary Care Provider: Getting Assigned, Your PACT Team, and Switching

After you enroll in VA health care, VA assigns you a Patient Aligned Care Team (PACT) at the VA facility you chose, led by a primary care provider with a nurse care manager, clinical pharmacist and clerk.

VA Preventive Care Schedule: Every Screening and Vaccine Veterans Should Get, by Age

VA preventive care includes an annual wellness visit, vaccines (flu, COVID-19, Tdap, shingles, pneumococcal), cancer screenings (mammograms from 40, colorectal from 45, lung CT for heavy smokers 50-80), cardiovascular and diabetes checks, and VA-specific screenings for PTSD, depression, MST, alcohol, tobacco and toxic exposure.

Your Yearly VA Health Assessment: What Happens, Whether It's Required, and How to Use It

VA does not require an annual physical, but your Patient Aligned Care Team offers a yearly primary care visit covering vitals, labs, medication review, and screenings for depression, PTSD, alcohol, tobacco and toxic exposure.

Mental health

VA Mental Health Services Guide: How to Get Care, Even If You've Never Used VA

VA provides mental health care for PTSD, depression, anxiety, substance use, military sexual trauma and more through VA medical centers, clinics, telehealth and 300+ Vet Centers.

VA PTSD Treatment Options: What Works, Where to Get It, and How It Affects Your Claim

VA offers the three PTSD therapies the VA/DoD guideline rates most effective - Cognitive Processing Therapy, Prolonged Exposure and EMDR - usually 8-16 sessions, plus medications such as sertraline, paroxetine and venlafaxine.

Veteran Crisis Support: Dial 988, Press 1 - Help Is Available Right Now

If you are a veteran in crisis, dial 988 and press 1, text 838255, or chat at VeteransCrisisLine.net - free, confidential, 24/7, and no VA enrollment needed.

VA Family and Couples Counseling: Who Qualifies and How to Get It

Yes.

Specialty care and telehealth

How the VA Referral Process Works (Including Community Care)

To get a VA referral, ask your VA primary care or mental health provider.

VA Specialty Clinics: What the VA Offers and How to Find the Right One

VA provides specialty care such as cardiology, oncology, orthopedics, neurology, gastroenterology, dermatology, women's health, prosthetics, spinal cord injury and polytrauma care, mostly at its roughly 170 VA medical centers.

VA Telehealth: How to See Your VA Provider by Video, Phone or App

VA telehealth lets enrolled veterans see VA providers by video, phone or secure message.

Emergency, urgent and after-hours care

VA Emergency Room Coverage: What VA Pays and the 72-Hour Rule

Yes, VA can cover emergency care at a non-VA hospital if you are enrolled in VA health care, a prudent layperson would consider the situation an emergency, and a VA facility was not feasibly available.

VA Urgent Care Benefit: How to Use It, What It Costs, Where to Go

Enrolled veterans who received VA or VA-authorized care in the past 24 months can walk into any in-network community urgent care or retail clinic without a referral.

VA After-Hours Care: Who to Call When Your VA Clinic Is Closed

After hours, enrolled veterans can call VA Health Connect, a 24/7 clinical contact center reached through their VA medical center's main phone number or MyVA411 at 800-698-2411, for nurse advice, prescription help and same-day virtual urgent care.

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