VA health care
Understand enrollment, appointments and different routes to care.
Enrollment, appointments and ongoing care
Enrollment, appointments and communication with the care team are separate parts of access. Community care has its own requirements.
Health care enrollment
VA health care enrollment has its own eligibility requirements and application.
Application methods
Enrollment application methods include online, mail, phone and in person. VA Form 10-10EZ is the health care enrollment form.
Finding a facility is a separate task
A location listing does not confirm enrollment, coverage of a service or appointment availability. The facility or care team can confirm access.
Community care
Community care means care through approved non-VA providers under VA’s program rules. It is not the same as choosing any private provider and assuming VA will pay.
Referral and authorization
The VA care team and official community-care instructions explain the referral and authorization required for the particular service. Emergency and urgent care have distinct rules.
What the facility directory covers
VetCore’s dated location list covers published VA facilities. It does not list community-care or urgent-care network providers and does not establish authorization.
Example
Fictional example: Terry receives a VA health care enrollment confirmation, then calls the facility to arrange a first visit. The scheduling team confirms a visit date. Terry now has two different records: an enrollment response and an appointment confirmation. The first did not set the appointment.