Veterans health care: senior medical insurance

VAmay bill a Veteran's healthinsurance carrier for medicalservices, supplies, andprescriptions for care relatedto a nonservice-connectedcondition. Funds VA receivesfrom a Veteran's healthinsurance go directly back tothe VA medical center to providemedical treatment,prescriptions,supplies and equipment.

For billing purposes, aVeteran's health insurancemay be provided by an employeror other non-federal source,and includes health insurancethat a Veteran receivesthrough their spouse.There are several benefits for aVeteran having health insurance:It may reduce or eliminate VAcopayments; does not affecteligibility for VA care; allowsVA to directly bill theinsurance company fornonservice-connected care; andcharges associated with VAhealth care may apply toward anannual deductible, depending onthe insurance plan.Some Veterans use a HighDeductible Health Plan (HDHP)for medical care and servicesfor nonservice-connectedconditions. 

HDHPs are oftenlinked to a Health SavingsAccount or Health ReimbursementArrangement. A Health SavingsAccount is a tax-advantagedpersonal savings account forindividuals enrolled in a HDHPthat can be used to pay forqualified health care expenses.Funds from an HSA can be used topay a Veteran’s VA copayment. AHealth Reimbursement Arrangement(HRA) is a tax-advantagedfinancial account that is fundedsolely by an employer to pay foran employee’s qualified medicalexpenses. 

Funds from an HRA canbe used to pay a Veteran’s VAcopayment. Veterans are requiredto provide their healthinsurance information to VA sothat VA can bill their healthinsurance carrier fornonservice-connected care.Veterans should always bringtheir insurance cards toVA appointments.VA can bill a Veteran’s healthinsurance when thenonservice-connected care theyreceive is provided directlythrough VA or through aVA-authorized communityprovider. 

VA can send the billdirectly to the health insurancecarrier to be reimbursedelectronically or be reimbursedby a linked Health ReimbursementArrangement (HRA).In addition, please note thefollowing: Veterans aren’tresponsible for any unpaidbalance that their insurancedoes not pay; VA cannot billMedicaid or Medicare, but canbill Medicare supplementalhealth insurance for coveredservices related tononservice-connected care; andVA health care is not considereda health insurance plan.For care related to a sensitivediagnosis, VA is not required toobtain permission from theVeteran to bill their healthinsurance carrier. 

A sensitivediagnosis may include drug oralcohol use, alcoholism, HIV/HIVtesting, and sickle cell anemia.Veterans may submit a request toVA to not disclose their healthinformation when billing theirhealth insurance for carerelated to a sensitivediagnosis. However, by law, VAmay deny the request. To submita request, Veterans shouldcontact the privacy officer attheir local VA medical facility.Veterans can also contact theirlocal VA medical facility’sbilling office for moreinformation.To learn more, please visit usonline at this address, call usdirectly at this phone number,or contact the Facility RevenueOffice at your local VA medicalfacility.

Sources of article:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rSo7AqE3UQ4