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WELCOME TO THE OFFICE OF GERIATRICS AND EXTENDED CARE
The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) offers a spectrum of geriatric and extended care services to Veterans enrolled in its health care system. This spectrum of services includes non-institutional and institutional options.
Non-Institutional Long-Term Care
All VA medical centers offer a range of outpatient home and community based long-term care options. These patient-centric approaches support the wishes of most Veterans with disabilities to remain home and in their own communities as long as possible. In fiscal year 2009, 59% of VA's total extended care patient population received care in non-institutional or enriched housing settings. Non-Institutional services available to Veterans include geriatric evaluation, geriatric primary care, home-based primary care, purchased skilled home care, adult day health care, homemaker and home health aide services, home respite care, home hospice care and community residential care
Who is Eligible for Non-Institutional Care?
All Veterans enrolled in the VA health care system are eligible for home and community based long-term care services. A series of clinical indicators and conditions help VA staff identify the need for these services.
Institutional Long-Term Care
On any given day more than 35,000 Veterans will receive institutional long-term care (also known as nursing home care) this year through one of three venues: VA Community Living Centers or "CLCs" (nursing homes located within or near VA medical centers); nursing homes within local communities; or State Veteran Homes.
Who is Eligible for Institutional Long-Term Care?
Under the Millennium Health Care Act of 1999, VA must provide or pay for nursing home care for Veterans who require it and meet the following criteria:
have a service-connected disability rating of 70 percent or more need nursing home care for a service-connected disability are rated 60 percent service-connected and are either unemployable or have an official rating of "permanent and totally disabled"
Veterans who are enrolled in the VA healthcare system and require nursing home care for any other reason must meet income and asset criteria to be eligible. Placement will be made on a resource available basis and the Veteran may be assessed a co-payment for such services. Specific eligibility and admission criteria are unique to each venue of institutional long term care.
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