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Will They Make a Difference?

Arch Ophthalmol. 1999;117:106-107.

	Since this article does not have an abstract, we have provided the first 150 words of the full text and any section headings.

THE VETERANS Health Administration (VHA) of the Department of Veterans Affairs operates the largest integrated health care system in the country, serving more than 3 million veterans annually.¹ Most veterans in the VHA are disabled or impoverished; 59% have no private or Medigap insurance. Users have a higher level of illness than the general population, particularly hypertension, diabetes mellitus, psychiatric illness, and ischemic heart disease. In principle, only veterans who have service-connected disabilities or are poor are eligible for care, however, the VHA is legislated to treat veterans with special disabilities of blindness, amputation, catastrophic disability, substance abuse, spinal cord dysfunction, traumatic brain injury, serious mental illness, and posttraumatic stress disorders. In 1996 the VHA provided care for 22,392 blind veterans at a cost of $327 million.²

In October 1995 the VHA created the Veterans Integrated Service Network (VISN), which organized its 173 hospitals, 401 outpatient clinics, 133 nursing homes, . . . [Full Text of this Article]

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ABSTRACT