Protecting Care for our Veterans at Home

Each Memorial Day, we honor the brave servicemen and women who have lost their lives in the line of duty to defend our country and protect the liberty we cherish. Today we thank all veterans who have served and remember the nearly 1.2 million U.S. soldiers who have made the ultimate sacrifice since our country was founded.

Our heroes deserve the highest quality healthcare as they age. From sea to shining sea, thousands of our veterans have had the opportunity to age in the comfort of their own homes through the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs’ Home Based Primary Care (HBPC) program. 

By offering comprehensive, interdisciplinary, primary care in the home, the HBPC program has helped servicemen and women with complex or chronic diseases get the treatment they need in a setting they prefer. The program offers a wide variety of services depending on the individual needs of each veteran, including skilled home health care, home health aides, and care coordination/home telehealth using remote monitoring equipment. Since it was introduced, the HBPC program has helped reduce preventable emergency room visits and inpatient hospital stays.

And not only has the HBPC program improved access to patient-preferred care, it has also saved money. In fact, the U.S. Department Veterans Affairs has experienced a 24% decrease in costs per patient per year thanks to this program.

With more and more veterans choosing to take advantage of home health, it is important to ensure that our servicemen and women continue to receive their care in a setting they prefer so they can enjoy the highest quality-of-life as they age. The Partnership salutes all veterans this Memorial Day and will continue to advocate for policies that help and heal the heroes who have so bravely fought for us.