Modernizing Veterans Administration Health Connect to Improve Access and Patient Experience

Key Takeaways:

• Veterans Administration Health Connect (VAHC) was modernized through the implementation of centralized appointment scheduling and same-day virtual visits.
• VACH modernization was associated with modest improvements in appointment access and follow-up care among veterans.
• Modernization was not associated with significant changes in emergency department (ED) utilization, hospital admissions, or health care costs.

Between October 2018 and September 2024, VAHC modernization was implemented across 18 regions and included centralized appointment scheduling and same-day virtual visits.

Study Methods and Outcomes

Researchers assessed the impact of VAHC modernization on appointment timeliness, follow-up care, health care utilization, costs, and patient satisfaction.

The study utilized data from the Veterans Administration Corporate Data Warehouse, Telecare Record Manager, Customer Relationship Management platforms, and veteran surveys. Overall, 11 118 916 encounters were evaluated, including 4 560 677 pre-modernization and 6 558 239 post-modernization.

Impact of VACH Modernization

Implementation of centralized scheduling was associated with modest improvements in appointment access for veterans. Following modernization, same-day scheduling increased by 14.3%, and the time between call and scheduled appointment decreased by 0.37 days. However, the time from initial call to completed appointment increased by 2.9 days.

The time from nurse triage to follow-up care decreased by 0.28 days. The proportion of patients who did not receive follow-up care within 7 days decreased slightly.

VACH modernization was not associated with significant changes in ED utilization, hospital admissions, or health care costs.

Virtual visits and centralized scheduling were associated with high levels of veteran satisfaction.

Implications for Veterans Care

The findings suggest that VAHC modernization may improve care navigation, appointment access, and follow-up while having limited effects on health care utilization and costs.

The authors concluded, “VAHC modernization improved appointment access and follow-up after nurse triage but was not associated with short-term changes in ED use or costs, highlighting gains in navigation and experience without immediate shifts in downstream utilization.”

Reference

Vashi AA, Rose L, Urech T, Buggaveeti AB, Tran LD. Modernizing the front door to care: evaluation of Veterans Administration Health Connect’s impact on access, utilization, and patient experience. Health Serv Res. 2026;61(4):e70151. doi:10.1111/1475-6773.70151