Veterans’ Health

By

RAND Corporation

Funding Area

Veterans’ Health

Date

September 14, 2017

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This report by the RAND Corporation, co-funded by the New York Health Foundation and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, found that the uninsured rate among non-elderly veterans fell by 36% after the implementation of the Affordable Care Act (ACA).

Prior to ACA implementation, nearly 1 in 10 non-elderly veterans were uninsured, lacking access to both coverage through the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) and non-VA health insurance.

The research also found that the ACA likely led to a decrease in demand for VA care. Without the ACA coverage expansions, veterans would have used more VA health care: an estimated 125,000 more office visits, 1,500 more inpatient surgeries, and 375,000 more prescriptions through an already taxed VA system.

Proposals to repeal the ACA would likely increase the demand for VA services while increasing the number of veterans who are uninsured.

View the full report

View the appendixes and state-specific findings

View a New York-specific data brief