Veterans' Health Care: Potential Effects of Health Financing Reforms on Demand for VA Services

GAO discussed the potential effects of health financing reforms on the Department of Veterans Affairs' (VA) health care system. GAO noted that: (1) the demand for VA inpatient services would decrease by 18 percent if employer-mandated health insurance was available to workers or employers paid a tax to obtain health insurance; (2) the demand for VA inpatient services would decrease by 47 percent under a nationwide universal health plan; (3) the availability of cost-free care from private-sector physicians through combined Medicare and Medicaid coverage could reduce elderly veterans' demand for care, since low-income veterans are more likely to seek VA health care services; (4) if future employer-mandated health insurance provides coverage for nursing home care, it will not have a significant effect on the demand for VA-supported nursing home care; (5) universal coverage could have a more significant effect on the demand for VA nursing home care, since the universal health plan provides for long-term care services; and (6) reforms of the VA eligibility system could have a significant effect on the future demand for VA health care services.