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U.S. NEWS Saturday 18 November 2017
VA exploring idea of merging

health system with Pentagon

care,” said House Minority ager of care for veterans.” departments generally
Leader Nancy Pelosi, D-Ca- Health care experts also serve very different patient
lif. “House Democrats will expressed surprise that VA groups —older, sicker vet-
fight tooth and nail against would consider a TRICARE erans treated by VA and
any efforts to diminish or merger to provide private generally healthier service
destroy VA’s irreplaceable care for millions of active- members, retirees and
role as the chief coordina- duty troops, military retir- their families covered by
tor, advocate and man- ees and veterans. The two TRICARE.q

Veterans Affairs Secretary
David Shulkin speaks at
the National Press Club in
Washington, Monday, Nov. 6,
2017.
(AP Photo/Susan Walsh)

By HOPE YEN
Associated Press
WASHINGTON (AP) — As
part of its effort to expand
private health care, the
Department of Veterans
Affairs is exploring the pos-
sibility of merging its health
system with the Penta-
gon’s, a cost-saving mea-
sure that veterans groups
say could threaten the vi-
ability of VA hospitals and
clinics.
VA spokesman Curt
Cashour called the plan a
potential “game-changer”
that would “provide better
care for veterans at a low-
er cost to taxpayers,” but
he provided no specific
details.
Griffin Anderson, a spokes-
man for the Democrats on
the House Veterans Affairs
Committee, said the pro-
posal — developed with-
out input from Congress —
would amount to a merger
of the VA’s Choice and the
military’s TRICARE private
health care programs.
Committee Democrats in-
dependently confirmed
the discussions involved
TRICARE.
News of the plan stirred
alarm from veterans
groups, who said they had
not been consulted, and
sharp criticism from con-
gressional Democrats who
pledged to oppose any
VA privatization effort that
forces veterans “to pay
out of pocket for the ben-
efits they have earned with
their heroism.” VA is seek-
ing a long-term legislative
fix for Choice by year’s
end.
“Today, we see evidence
that the Trump administra-
tion is quietly planning to
dismantle veterans’ health