Restrictive payment policies included in the interim final rule of the Veterans Access, Choice and Accountability Act could limit physician participation, according to an American Academy of Family Physicians report.
The act was signed into law in August 2014 with the intent to increase healthcare access for veterans. The law mandates the cost of care provided to veterans outside of VA facilities cannot exceed Medicare rates, but it did not establish a minimum. Third-party administrators contracted by the VA handle the Veterans Choice Program, and have been offering physicians much lower payments than expected.
This week, the AAFP sent a comment letter to the Department of Veterans Affairs Secretary Robert McDonald urging the agency to at least meet Medicare reimbursement rates, according to the report.
Although the AAFP had previously urged Congress to include prompt payment regulations in the legislation to ensure claims are paid within 30 days, no provisions address payment deadlines, which could lead to outstanding claims for prolonged periods.
Additionally, as the act currently stands, physicians participating in the Veterans Choice Program are not allowed to collect co-payments from veterans at the time of the care delivery. According to the report, practices can only bill veterans after the VA processes claims.
These various provisions could discourage physicians from participating in the program and preclude the act's primary goal — to provide veterans greater access to primary care, according to the AAFP.