The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs takes care of about 9 million veterans at 1,255 amenities. It is the nation’s largest built-in well being care system.

Charles Dharapak/AP

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Charles Dharapak/AP

The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs takes care of about 9 million veterans at 1,255 amenities. It is the nation’s largest built-in well being care system.

Charles Dharapak/AP

A nationwide Medicare survey launched at the moment discovered that veterans rated Veterans Affairs hospitals larger than non-public well being care amenities in all 10 classes of affected person satisfaction.

The VA takes care of about 9 million veterans at 1,255 amenities — the nation’s largest built-in well being care system. Despite many broadly publicized scandals, VA well being care has been constantly rated as aggressive with non-public care in dozens of peer-reviewed articles.

“I strongly believe that the VA is the best option for veteran care. Study after study shows that quality and patient safety is at least as good if not better than our private sector counterparts,” mentioned Dr. Shereef Elnahal, VA undersecretary for well being.

This most up-to-date survey, generally known as HCAHPS (Hospital Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems), confirmed that the VA beat out non-public amenities in all of the classes surveyed, equivalent to affected person satisfaction, hospital cleanliness and communication with nurses and medical doctors.

“This offers among the first opportunities to directly compare us with our private sector counterparts, and we’re really happy with the results but we won’t be content until 100% of hospitals are pinging in the right ratings,” Elnahal instructed NPR.

Favorably evaluating with the non-public sector is necessary for the VA, as a result of Congress has expanded the VA’s use of personal care as an possibility when vets have to attend too lengthy or journey too far for a VA appointment. Private care is way more costly for the VA.

Republicans in Congress, who typically help larger use of personal care, have even accused the VA of obstructing it. Most just lately, House Committee on Veterans’ Affairs Chairman Mike Bost wrote to VA Secretary Denis McDonough about what he known as his “complete frustration with the Veterans Health Administration’s lack of timely action to provide community care to veterans that … are in dire need of timely care.”

“I hope you share my frustration. These roadblocks do not serve veterans well and we must do better,” Bost wrote.