According to a recent study, the Department of Veterans Affairs spent an estimated $13 billion to care for veterans whose health coverage was already paid for by Medicare. About 1.2 million veterans are covered under the Veterans Affairs health care system and the Medicare Advantage (MA) plan. The study has found that because these care programs are managed separately, the federal government spends a substantial and increasing amount of potentially duplicated funds in caring for the same individuals. The study included a retrospective analysis of 1,245,657 veterans who were simultaneously enrolled in the VA and an MA plan between 2004-2009. An abstract of the study is available on the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) website.
For complete guides to all veterans benefits, visit the Military.com Benefits Center.
