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Veterans Day 2024: Thank you to Veterans and community providers
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EPS expansion for fiscal
year 2025
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Enroll in EFT for CHAMPVA Claims Reimbursement
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Important: Returning medical documentation to VA
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Disaster assistance and resources for Veterans
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V A "G O O D N E W S" S T O R I E S
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This Veterans Day, on November 11, we proudly recognize each of you who have served and sacrificed for our country in uniform. We also recognize all VA community providers for your commitment and dedication to delivering timely, high-value care to Veterans.
Many of our 9 million enrolled Veterans get VA care from providers like you. You serve an important role in supporting our mission—honoring America’s Veterans by providing exceptional health care that improves their health and wellbeing.
Thank you all for your partnership with VA and your continued support in caring for the Nation’s Veterans.
Each year, the Veterans Day National Committee publishes a Veterans Day poster. The 2024 theme is “A Legacy of Loyalty and Service.” This year’s poster was designed by Myisha Godette, an Army Veteran from New York.
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Have you thought about opting into External Provider Scheduling (EPS)? Since beginning its rollout in January 2024, EPS has increased daily efficiency for VA schedulers by allowing them to book over 7,000 appointments directly into community providers’ scheduling systems, ultimately helping Veterans receive faster care.
For you, opting in to EPS means:
- VA schedulers get live access to your scheduling grids for immediate booking.
- You maintain control over your scheduling grids and availability.
- Reduced phone calls and faxes with VA and Veterans.
- Pre-authorized consults so you don’t have to worry about payment.
Right now, you can opt in if you are local to Columbia, S.C., Charleston, S.C., Orlando, Fla., Altoona, Pa., Nashville, Tenn., New Orleans, La., Marion, Ill., or Wichita, Kan.
In 2025, EPS will undergo a region-based expansion that will target five regional VA Veterans Integrated Services Networks (VISNs): 6, 7, 19, 20, and 22. This means you can join more than 1,300 providers who have opted in if you are local to these areas.
Provider Profile Management System Integration
When you opt in, your EPS profile will have a digital badge thanks to the platform’s integration with the Provider Profile Management System. Now, all VA-approved community care providers are listed in EPS, and your badge will let VA schedulers know you’ve opted in.
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If you see patients under the Civilian Health and Medical Program of VA (CHAMPVA), you must enroll in direct deposit (electronic funds transfer (EFT)) to receive your payments. Getting paid by EFT is a federal requirement.
Enrolling in EFT helps keep CHAMPVA claim payments secure and efficient, and it helps protect Veterans’ family members’ access to benefits.
Two steps to enroll in EFT:
CHAMPVA is a health care program for qualified spouses, widows(ers), and children of eligible Veterans. Through CHAMPVA, VA shares the cost of certain health care services and supplies with beneficiaries.
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Want to be reimbursed faster? Sending Veterans’ medical documentation to VA in a timely manner can speed up the reimbursement process and help ensure Veterans experience seamless continuity of care.
Because VA is both a payor and provider, receiving Veterans’ medical documentation—such as pathology and oncology reports, digital imaging, and clinical notes—ensures timely reimbursements and claim payments. It also enables our health care teams to continue Veterans’ critical follow-on care. Additional screenings, appointment follow-ups, and even surgeries can depend on your timely return of your Veteran patients’ medical documentation.
When to return medical documents to VA
- Outpatient care: return within 30 days of the Veteran’s initial appointment and/or completion of care included on a VA-approved referral.
- Inpatient care: return within 30 days of the Veteran’s discharge, including the discharge summary.
- Urgent care: return within 30 days to the Veteran’s home VA medical center.
- Return any medical documentation requested by VA for urgent follow-up.
You should submit both initial and final medical documentation associated with the full standardized episode of care.
How to return medical documents to VA
Documentation must include:
- VA Community Care Network (CCN) provider authentication with your name, phone number, and signature.
- Veteran’s unique identifier (social security number, patient control number, etc.).
- Veteran’s full name and date of birth.
- Referral number.
- Tribal Health Program facility name, where applicable.
Medical documentation can be sent via:
- HealthShare Referral Manager.
- Electronic fax.
- Azure Rights Management Services.
- Veterans Health Information Exchange.
Consult guidance given by your region’s CCN third-party administrator or your Veterans
Care Agreement for more detailed information. You can visit Optum’s website or view TriWest’s CCN Provider Handbook.
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This year’s hurricane season brought high winds and flooding to areas farther inland than predictable, impacting millions of Americans. VA is here to help Veterans and their families. Here are some disaster-related resources you can share with your Veteran patients:
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Dial 988, then press 1.
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Send a text to 838255.
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Chat online.
- National Call Center for Homeless Veterans
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If you know a Veteran who needs immediate housing assistance after a natural disaster, they can call 877-4AID VETS (877-424-3838), available 24/7.
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Veterans can use this tool to find the VA facility closest to them.
- VA Health Connect and VA Health Chat
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VA offers immediate access to administrative and clinical services—including virtual appointments and tele-emergency care—for Veterans unable to access their usual VA health care. Veterans can call VA Health Connect or download the app to schedule appointments, order prescriptions, communicate with a registered nurse or provider, and more.
- Benefits and compensation
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If Veterans are unable to get a benefit payment after a disaster, they can call the VA National Call Center at 800-827-1000 to learn how to request a special one-time benefit payment.
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Veteran caregivers can call the Caregiver’s Support Line at 1-855-260-3274. They can also use this toolkit to plan for natural disasters.
More VA disaster-related resources can be found on VA’s website. Please share these resources with your Veteran patients.
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E D U C A T I O N & T R A I N I N G
Program description: This training will give you and your team tools to advocate for your patients, improve mental health services, and provide high-quality care that supports the LGBTQ+ community. This training is provided through a partnership with the Durham VA Healthcare System and the Duke University School of Nursing.
Date: Nov. 7 at 8 a.m. ET
Location: VHA TRAIN
Credit/hours: 7.5
Accreditations: AAPA, ACCME, ACCME-NP, ACPE, ANCC
Chronic cough evaluation and care in Veterans with military exposure concerns
Program description: This training will discuss Veterans’ post-deployment and exposure-related health concerns and educate you and your staff on Veterans’ unique health care needs. A panel of health care professionals will join Nicole Sullivan, clinical psychologist, to discuss how to evaluate and care for chronic cough among Veterans with military exposure concerns.
Date: Nov. 19 at 12:00 p.m. ET
Location: VHA TRAIN
Credit/hours: One (1)
Accreditations: AAPA, ACCME, ACCME-NP, ACPE, ANCC, JA IPCE, NBCC
Transgender Day of Remembrance
Program Description: This special observance training offers an accessible introduction to affirmative language for the transgender and gender diverse community, delivered in a nonjudgmental manner. You will receive foundational knowledge on key terminology, inclusive language best practices, and insights into the historical relevance of Transgender Day of Remembrance.
Date: Nov. 20 at 12:00 p.m. ET
Location: VHA TRAIN
Credit/hours: One (1)
Accreditations: ACCME, ACCME-NP, ACPE, ANCC, AOTA, APA, APTA, ASWB, CDR, JA IPCE, NYSED-P, NYSED-SW
Cholesterol-lowering medicine reduces risk of Alzheimer’s and related dementias
Program description: This training will highlight new geriatric research findings and teach you how to review research articles to inform clinical practice. This month's topic will discuss how Ezetimibe, a cholesterol-lowering medicine, helps reduce the risk of Alzheimer's and related dementias. This training is hosted by the VISN 16 Geriatric Research, Education and Clinical Center (GRECC) Journal Club.
Date: Nov. 21 at 12:30 p.m. ET
Location: VHA TRAIN
Credit/hours: One (1)
Accreditations: AAPA, ACCME, ACCME-NP, ACPE, ANCC, AOTA, APA, APTA, ASWB, CDR, JA IPCE, NBCC, NYSED-P, NYSED-SW
Dental pain management in substance
use disorder
Program description: This webinar will review pharmacologically-sound pain control strategies for patients with substance use disorder (SUD). It will also focus on alternatives to narcotic pain medications and the dangers associated with prescription opioid misuse. Dental professionals must carefully manage perioperative pain, especially in patients suffering SUD. This is accomplished by understanding preemptive pain management strategies, intelligent use of local anesthetic and/or anesthetic combinations, careful use of opioids, and proper communication with patients.
Location: VHA TRAIN
Credit/hours: One (1)
Accreditations: IACET, ADA/CERP
Opioid Safety Initiative
This course promotes evidence-based management of Veterans with chronic pain to improve patient outcomes and decrease incidence of complications associated with opioid prescribing.
Location: VHA TRAIN
Credit/hours: One (1)
Training 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!
Interested in more Optum and TriWest news and information? Click here for access to Optum newsletters. TriWest’s Provider Pulse newsletter can be found here.
Preventing Suicide Through Lethal Means Safety and Safety Planning
This course provides updated lethal means safety training and resources for VHA facility suicide prevention coordinators and other mental-health/suicide-prevention clinicians.
Location: VHA TRAIN
Credit/hours: One (1)
Accreditations: APA, ACCME, ACCME-NP, ANCC, APA, NBCC, ASWB, NYSED SW
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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P O D C A S T
Osseointegrated prosthetics—a groundbreaking implantation procedure that connects Veterans’ prosthetics to their remaining skeletal structure—is the latest topic of discussion on New Horizons in Health: Bringing Veteran Health Care into the Future, a podcast hosted by Under Secretary for Health Dr. Shareef Elnahal.
In this episode, Dr. Elnahal speaks with two Veterans who have undergone the procedure, as well as the leader of VA’s Amputation System of Care. Listen to the full episode to hear about how this procedure is changing Veterans’ lives and learn more about who may qualify.
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V E T E R A N S P O T L I G H T
Brady Cervantes, often called “Totanka,” became interested in the Marine Corps at a very young age, taking inspiration from his father, who served in the Marines during the Vietnam War.
He went on to serve as an infantryman and scout sniper, conducting combat operations and deploying worldwide, including two tours in both Afghanistan and the Al Anbar Province of Iraq. He talked about the toll of taking a life on the battlefield and losing fellow Marines. “I would still give my life to have my two guys back, even to this day. That is something I have to live with for the rest of my life,” he shared.
After nearly 10 years of service, Totanka left the Corps and focused on being a father and starting his own backcountry outdoors and critical skills training company, Level West Integral. He remains committed to those in the service by doing Veteran backcountry excursions. Totanka has also been an instructor with several tactical training companies, and he rides bulls in the Professional Bull Riders organization. He currently resides in San Antonio.
You can read Totanka’s full story on the VA News website.
We honor his service.
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V A "G O O D N E W S" S T O R I E S
VA tele-emergency care (tele-EC), a virtual care option for Veterans, is now available nationwide through VA Health Connect and VA Health Chat. This service allows Veterans to be evaluated over the phone or on video by emergency providers who can recommend treatment or follow-up, including in-person care if needed.
While tele-EC does not replace the need for in-person emergency care, tele-EC helps increase Veterans’ access to timely care, especially for those living in rural areas or those with mobility or transportation challenges.
“Veterans can now be evaluated for possible emergencies from the comfort of their home,” said VA Under Secretary for Health Shereef Elnahal, M.D. “Sometimes, you’re not sure whether you’re experiencing a minor emergency, and tele-emergency care can help you resolve those questions.”
Tele-EC is a part of VA Health Connect, a nationally available phone service Veterans can call to speak with a clinical triage nurse, who will connect them to tele-EC when clinically appropriate. Tele-EC has already seen more than 60,000 callers, with most cases being resolved without Veterans needing to leave their homes.
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VA has awarded nearly $16 million in grants to fund adaptive sports, recreational activities, and equine therapy for Veterans and service members living with functional limitations.
VA’s Adaptive Sports Grant Program will provide grants to 91 programs across the country, and in Guam and Puerto Rico. The programs will collectively provide life-changing opportunities to more than 15,000 Veterans and members of the Armed Forces.
Adaptive sports are competitive or recreational sports and activities customized to fit the needs of those with functional limitations, including paralympic sports, archery, cycling, sky diving, and more. These activities allow Veterans to improve their physical health, boost their mental well-being, gain independence, and foster a strong sense of community.
Marine Corps Veteran Jataya Taylor—who competed in wheelchair fencing at the 2024 Paralympics—struggled with mental health issues until she began participating in adaptive sports with an organization supported by the VA Adaptive Sports Grant Program. She touts adaptive sports as a gateway to a new community and essential to her mental health.
“Getting involved in adaptive sports was a saving grace for me,” Taylor said.
In the last nine years, VA has awarded over $119 million in grants through the Adaptive Sports Grant Program. This program is one of VA’s many initiatives dedicated to improving the lives of those who have served.
Information about grant awardees and details are available on VA’s webpage for adaptive sports and @Sports4Vets. You can read this full story on the VA News website.
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COMMUNITY PROVIDERS: Thank you for all you do to support Veterans.
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