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You can help prevent Veteran suicide
This important message from Dr. Miguel LaPuz shares how you can
register for free training to help you identify the most common lethal means of suicide among Veterans and how to get help for Veterans in crisis.
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Reporting Veterans’ emergency care is easy
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Recovery audit –
for your awareness
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PACT Act claims
top half a million
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VA’s number one clinical priority is preventing Veteran suicide. As part of that, more Veterans than ever are now eligible for emergency care during an acute suicidal crisis.
When an eligible Veteran arrives in any emergency room seeking care related to an acute suicidal crisis, VA is authorized to pay for their ambulance, emergency care, related prescriptions, up to 30 days of inpatient or crisis residential care and up to 90 days of related outpatient care. Their clinical eligibility for this benefit is determined by any trained crisis responder or health care provider diagnosing them as being in acute suicidal crisis.
Reporting emergency care to VA
In most instances, eligible Veterans will receive VA-authorized emergency care at an in-network community facility if VA is notified within 72 hours of the start of care. Please include a valid email address for decision correspondence.
You will need to record the notification identification number assigned through the ECR portal or by phone to retrieve authorization decision information on emergency events. VA no longer includes Veterans’ personal identifying information (PII) in outgoing correspondence.
Timely reporting ensures administrative and clinical requirements are met allowing VA to pay for the care. It also helps reduce the Veteran’s stress and worry when they are most vulnerable and during their recovery.
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VA is conducting a recovery audit to review fiscal year 2018 inpatient claims. Coviti is under contract to review of claim reimbursement rates, reimbursement for non-covered or unauthorized services, incorrectly coded and duplicate services. The audit excludes claims paid to beneficiaries, claims where VA was a secondary payer, claims paid for pharmacy, bowel and bladder, dental and Community Care Network (CCN) payments.
Cotiviti is notifying providers of possible overpayments through review and results letters. These letters will contain essential information required to conduct the research necessary to comment on the audit results. Please respond to any correspondence by submitting all supporting documentation or requested information within 30 days of receipt of a letter.
VA’s Financial Services Center (FSC) will manage the collection process.
Questions regarding improper payment findings should be directed to Cotiviti Provider Services at 855-287-1667, Monday – Friday, 9 a.m. - 8 p.m. ET.
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VA announced last month that more than 500,000 PACT Act claims have been filed since the law was signed in August 2022. At the same time, more than $1 billion in earned benefits have been awarded to Veterans and survivors who filed those claims.
The PACT Act expands VA benefits for Veterans who have been exposed to burn pits, Agent Orange, and other toxic substances.
Your patients who may be eligible for PACT Act benefits should contact VA today
to file a claim.
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VA’s 2023 MHM campaign theme, Today I Am, focuses on the sense of triumph Veterans experience when they develop a better life or outlook after addressing mental health challenges. All month, VA is highlighting Veterans on Today I Am who describe how their lives and perspectives have improved since starting mental health treatment.
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E D U C A T I O N & T R A I N I N G
Preventing Suicide Through Lethal Means Safety
and Safety Planning
This course provides updated lethal means training and resources for VHA facility Suicide Prevention Coordinators and other MH/SP clinicians.
Accreditations offered: APA, ACCME, ACCME-NP, ANCC, APA, NBCC, ASWB, NYSED SW
Location: VHA TRAIN
ID#: 1075258
Time: One (1) hour
Opioid Safety Initiative
This course discusses evidence-based management of Veterans with chronic pain to improve patient outcomes and decrease incidences of complications related to opioid prescribing. No accreditation offered.
Location: VHA TRAIN
ID#: 1086479
Time: One (1) hour
Geriatric Care - Primary Care and Community Living Centers (CLCs): Health Impacts of Toxic Exposure: Lessons from the Open Burn Pit Registry
This live training session will provide health care teams with knowledge and skills to appropriately manage common geriatric conditions and syndromes in older Veterans. This session will review pertinent elements of the cognitive assessment and current available treatments for cognitive impairment as it pertains to toxic exposure. The target audience for this session includes physicians, nurses, psychologists, physical therapists, pharmacists, occupational therapists, social workers and dietitians.
Date: June 13, 12:00PM ET
ID#: 1110163
Location: VHA TRAIN
Access Links: Non-VA employees click here. VA employees click here.
Credit/hours: One (1)
Many Veterans have problems with the use of alcohol, tobacco, street drugs or prescription medicines. You can learn more about substance use treatment for Veterans here.
Consider taking any or all of the free, accredited courses below. All the courses are recorded and can be taken at your convenience.
This webinar provides information on clinical presentation and management of alcohol withdrawal and identifies strategies for opioid withdrawal management and Extended Release (XR)-naltrexone induction. You will gain knowledge on the settings in which detoxification can occur, pharmacological agent options, and gain familiarity with the evolution of protocols to manage opioid withdrawal during detoxification.
ID#: 1098752
Accreditation(s): ACCME, ACCME-NP, APA, NBCC, ASWB, ACPE, AAPA, NYSED SW, JA IPCE
This webinar presents evidence on the efficacy of various psychosocial treatments for alcohol and drug use disorders. This will include a discussion of the latest VA/DoD substance use disorder clinical practice guidelines based on a comprehensive systematic review of recent research literature. Information will also be presented on what we know about which treatments are effective with specific groups of patients and how to address lack of response to effective interventions.
ID#: 1098736
Accreditations: ACCME, ACCME-NP, ANCC, APA, NBCC, ASWB, ACPE, AAPA, NYSED SW, JA IPCE
Pharmacotherapies for substance use disorders are evidence-based and FDA approved, yet most patients with these disorders do not receive pharmacotherapy. This presentation provides awareness to clinicians and staff of the existence of the pharmacotherapies and how to use them to provide optimal patient care to Veterans.
ID#: 1098806
Accreditation(s): ACCME, ACCME-NP, APA, NBCC, ASWB, ACPE, AAPA, NYSED SW
This presentation describes some of the unique aspects of substance use disorders in women. This training will review the nature of substance use disorders, unique issues based on sex and gender, and review the consequences of opioid and alcohol use disorders in detail.
ID#: 1095178
Accreditation(s): ACCME, ACCME-NP, ANCC, APA, NBCC, ASWB, ACPE, NYSED SW, JA IPCE
Trainings available through Optum and TriWest
Numerous live and on-demand webinars and trainings are offered by Optum and TriWest to fit your schedule. Check them out!
If you are a community provider in CCN regions 4 or 5, we invite you to sign up for TriWest’s eNews. A great way to get more updates!
Questions? If you require assistance, please contact the VHA TRAIN Help Desk by email at vhatrain@va.gov.
How to obtain your credit completion certificate:
Once you complete a credited training, you can obtain your credential certificate(s) in four easy steps:
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Log in to VHA Train - https://vha.train.org/vha/login
- Go to “Your Learning”
- Go to “Your Certificates”
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Download your certificate
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W E B I N A R S
Long COVID Webinar Series
Coming in June!
The June webinar is entitled, Long COVID: A Thrombotic Endothelialitis. The presenter is Resia Pretorius, Head of Department and a distinguished research professor in the Physiological Sciences Department, Faculty of Science, Stellenbosch University, South Africa.
The presentation includes a question-and-answer session. Attendees can register at this TMS link to receive credit for the webinar. Select the correct class start date when registering.
Webinar password: A8JeSwwg*85 (28537994 from phones)
To join by phone: 404-397-1596, access code: 276 340 13157
Accreditations: JA IPCE, ACCME, ANCC, ACCME-NP, ACPE, APA, NYSED, NYSED-P, NBCC, APTA
About the series
The Long COVID lecture series highlights research on post-acute and long-term outcomes of COVID-19. The series began in summer 2022 within the St. Louis VA Health Care System and was conceived and developed by Uly Labilles, Ph.D, research-health science specialist, Office of Research and Development, and Ziyad A-Aly, MD, research and development service chief.To be added to the Long COVID Lecture Series distribution list, please email Dr. Uly Labilles.
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V E T E R A N S P O T L I G H T |
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Carol Mutter - Carol Mutter served for nearly 32 years in the Marine Corps attaining the rank of Lieutenant General, the first female in all the services to be nominated for three-star rank.
Learn more about Carol’s story and accomplishments here.
We honor their service.
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 Paul Anthony Velazquez - Army Veteran Paul Anthony “Tony” Velazquez was killed in Iraq while serving in Operation Iraqi Freedom. A fellow service member said Velazquez, “lived [freedom]… breathed it… and died for it.” His wife, Mary, received his Purple Heart, a Bronze Star and the flag covering his casket. Velazquez was also remembered on Memorial Day 2021, when NASCAR driver Bubba Wallace raced a car with a design specifically honoring him.
Learn more about Paul’s life and military service here.
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I N O T H E R N E W S
Between now and May 29, VA is supporting a 20,000-mile march with more than 214,000 volunteers in honor of Veterans and service members.
The annual collaboration between VA’s National Cemetery Administration and Carry The Load will host rallies at 38 national cemeteries along five separate routes covering 48 states. All five routes converge on Memorial Day weekend for a final rally in Dallas, Texas.
Visit here for more information about the event and how you can support and participate.
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COMMUNITY PROVIDERS: Thank you for all you do to support our Veterans.
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