{"id":72840,"date":"2018-12-13T21:19:21","date_gmt":"2018-12-13T21:19:21","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/armytimes\/uncategorized\/2018\/12\/13\/va-hospitals-often-the-best-option-for-medical-care-study-finds\/"},"modified":"2026-08-08T14:10:33","modified_gmt":"2026-08-08T14:10:33","slug":"va-hospitals-often-the-best-option-for-medical-care-study-finds","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/armytimes\/veterans\/2018\/12\/13\/va-hospitals-often-the-best-option-for-medical-care-study-finds\/","title":{"rendered":"VA hospitals often the best option for medical care, study finds"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">WASHINGTON \u2014 Veterans Affairs officials are touting <a href=\"http:\/\/annals.org\/aim\/article-abstract\/2718687\/veterans-health-administration-hospitals-outperform-non-veterans-health-administration-hospitals\" target=_blank>a new study praising VA hospitals<\/a> for outperforming most private-sector medical options, but rejecting the authors\u2019 conclusions that the findings undermine the administration\u2019s support for <a href=\"https:\/\/www.militarytimes.com\/veterans\/2017\/10\/17\/federal-union-slams-va-health-reforms-as-dangerous-for-vets\/\" target=_blank>shifting more veterans care into the private sector<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The study, conducted by Dartmouth College researchers and published in the Annals of Internal Medicine this week, looked at 121 regional markets with at least one VA facility and found the department-run medical center <a href=\"https:\/\/www.militarytimes.com\/news\/2018\/10\/02\/triwest-takes-over-va-community-care-programs-nationwide\/\" target=_blank>provided better care than private options<\/a> in most cases. In only a few cases, VA was the least desirable option for most patients.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">VA hospitals were frequently the best option for patients in treating heart ailments and pneumonia. They study also rated more than half of the VA hospitals reviewed as the best local option for death rates among patients with surgery complications and treatment of bloodstream infections after surgery.<\/p>\n\n\n\t<aside class=\"smg-interstitial-link wp-block-smg-interstitial-link\">\n\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/militarytimes\/veterans\/2018\/04\/11\/vets-groups-and-lawmakers-say-theyre-against-it-but-what-does-privatization-of-veterans-affairs-really-mean\/\" class=\"smg-interstitial-link__inner\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"smg-interstitial-link__media\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"300\" height=\"215\" src=\"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/AP_13102205629.jpg.jpg?w=300\" class=\"smg-interstitial-link__image wp-post-image\" alt=\"\" \/>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"smg-interstitial-link__content\">\n\t\t\t\t<span class=\"smg-interstitial-link__kicker\">Related<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t<h3 class=\"smg-interstitial-link__title\">Vets groups and lawmakers say they\u2019re against it \u2014 but what does \u2018privatization\u2019 of Veterans Affairs really mean?<\/h3>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p class=\"smg-interstitial-link__excerpt\">The term will command much of the debate at the new VA secretary&#039;s confirmation hearing, but different groups have different definitions.<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/a>\n\t<\/aside>\n\t\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In a statement, VA Secretary Robert Wilkie hailed the findings as proof the VA system is delivering \u201cthe very best quality of care that (veterans) have earned through their faithful service to our country.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">But in a press release lauding the study, VA officials also attacked authors\u2019 analysis that questions whether expanding more access to private-sector physicians for veterans will produce better health care for the population.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">President Donald Trump has repeatedly promised to make accessing outside medical care easier for veterans, a prospect that critics have called the gradual privatization of VA\u2019s mission.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Last summer, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.militarytimes.com\/news\/2018\/09\/21\/trump-oks-the-largest-va-budget-ever\/\" target=_blank>lawmakers passed the VA Mission Act<\/a>, which among other initiatives mandates an overhaul of the department\u2019s community care programs. Department officials are in the process of rewriting rules for veterans to receive medical treatments outside the Veterans Health Administration while still using taxpayer funds.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Wilkie is expected to testify on that work so far at a joint House and Senate Veterans\u2019 Affairs Committees hearing Wednesday. On Thursday, department officials argued that VA hospitals providing exemplary care does not mean that community care options are less important to the larger department health care plans.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201c(The study) ignores the fact that for decades (community care) has served as a vital tool for ensuring VA has the ability to provide veterans the best, most timely health care possible, and that it enjoys strong bipartisan support,\u201d the release stated.<\/p>\n\n\n\t<aside class=\"smg-interstitial-link wp-block-smg-interstitial-link\">\n\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/militarytimes\/veterans\/2018\/05\/23\/massive-veterans-policy-bill-heads-to-trumps-desk-but-results-will-take-time\/\" class=\"smg-interstitial-link__inner\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"smg-interstitial-link__media\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"300\" height=\"203\" src=\"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/AP_821518132423.jpg.jpg?w=300\" class=\"smg-interstitial-link__image wp-post-image\" alt=\"\" \/>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"smg-interstitial-link__content\">\n\t\t\t\t<span class=\"smg-interstitial-link__kicker\">Related<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t<h3 class=\"smg-interstitial-link__title\">Massive veterans policy bill heads to Trump\u2019s desk, but results will take time<\/h3>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p class=\"smg-interstitial-link__excerpt\">Provisions for new community care rules and caregiver stipend expansion won&#039;t happen overnight.<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/a>\n\t<\/aside>\n\t\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><a href=\"https:\/\/rebootcamp.militarytimes.com\/news\/transition\/2018\/12\/04\/more-veterans-are-becoming-obese-are-stressful-military-transitions-to-blame\/\" target=\"_blank\">A Wounded Warrior Project membership survey<\/a> released earlier this month noted that more than two-thirds of responded preferred VA as their primary health care provider, citing in part more confidence in those physician\u2019s expertise in handling military-specific wounds.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">That group has also seen an increased reliance on the VA system for serious health needs. More than 70 percent of those polled used VA mental health services in the last year, up from 63 percent four years ago.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Democrats in the House have promised close scrutiny of the new community care rules \u2014 due this spring \u2014 to ensure that VA funding isn\u2019t being shifted outside the department\u2019s system to private-sector physicians who provide a lesser quality of care.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><i>Reporter Natalie Gross contributed to this story. <\/i><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>But VA officials insist the research does not undermine their efforts to expand vets&#8217; access to private-sector medical options.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":73581,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_yoast_wpseo_meta-robots-noindex":"","_yoast_wpseo_meta-robots-nofollow":"","_yoast_wpseo_canonical":"","_acf":"","_yoast_wpseo_primary_category":19,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","_smg_distribution_targets":[]},"categories":[100,23,93,12,25,68,19],"tags":[],"coauthors":[3334],"class_list":["post-72840","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-daily-news-roundup","category-home","category-middle-column","category-news","category-newsletters","category-pentagon-congress","category-veterans"],"acf":{"subheadline":"","legacy_arc_id":"ESYEBQEMMRDEXJBCGU6SDSDXEA","arc_canonical_url":"\/news\/2018\/12\/13\/va-hospitals-often-the-best-option-for-medical-care-study-finds\/","remove_feature_photo":false,"is_sponsored":false,"subtype":"","redirect_url":"","disable_inline_ads":false,"native_logo_pretext":"Presented By:"},"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v26.0 (Yoast SEO v28.1) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-premium-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>VA hospitals often the best option for medical care, study finds - Army Times<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"But VA officials insist the research does not undermine their efforts to expand vets&#039; access to private-sector medical options.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"noindex, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"VA hospitals often the best option for medical care, study finds\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"But VA officials insist the research does not undermine their efforts to expand vets&#039; access to private-sector medical options.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/armytimes\/veterans\/2018\/12\/13\/va-hospitals-often-the-best-option-for-medical-care-study-finds\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Army Times\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2018-12-13T21:19:21+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2026-08-08T14:10:33+00:00\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Leo Shane III\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Leo Shane III\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\n\t    \"@context\": \"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\n\t    \"@graph\": [\n\t        {\n\t            \"@type\": \"Article\",\n\t            \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/armytimes\\\/veterans\\\/2018\\\/12\\\/13\\\/va-hospitals-often-the-best-option-for-medical-care-study-finds\\\/#article\",\n\t            \"isPartOf\": {\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/armytimes\\\/veterans\\\/2018\\\/12\\\/13\\\/va-hospitals-often-the-best-option-for-medical-care-study-finds\\\/\"\n\t            },\n\t            \"author\": {\n\t                \"name\": \"migration\",\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/armytimes\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/cc76c831bb37a926738c8391fca7a3b1\"\n\t            },\n\t            \"headline\": \"VA hospitals often the best option for medical care, study finds\",\n\t            \"datePublished\": \"2018-12-13T21:19:21+00:00\",\n\t            \"dateModified\": \"2026-08-08T14:10:33+00:00\",\n\t            \"mainEntityOfPage\": {\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/armytimes\\\/veterans\\\/2018\\\/12\\\/13\\\/va-hospitals-often-the-best-option-for-medical-care-study-finds\\\/\"\n\t            },\n\t            \"wordCount\": 511,\n\t            \"commentCount\": 0,\n\t            \"publisher\": {\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/armytimes\\\/#organization\"\n\t            },\n\t            \"image\": {\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/armytimes\\\/veterans\\\/2018\\\/12\\\/13\\\/va-hospitals-often-the-best-option-for-medical-care-study-finds\\\/#primaryimage\"\n\t            },\n\t            \"thumbnailUrl\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/08\\\/AP_821518132423.jpg.jpg\",\n\t            \"articleSection\": [\n\t                \"Daily News Roundup\",\n\t                \"Home\",\n\t                \"Middle Column\",\n\t                \"News\",\n\t                \"Newsletters\",\n\t                \"Pentagon &amp; Congress\",\n\t                \"Veterans\"\n\t            ],\n\t            \"inLanguage\": \"en-US\",\n\t            \"potentialAction\": [\n\t                {\n\t                    \"@type\": \"CommentAction\",\n\t                    \"name\": \"Comment\",\n\t                    \"target\": [\n\t                        \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/armytimes\\\/veterans\\\/2018\\\/12\\\/13\\\/va-hospitals-often-the-best-option-for-medical-care-study-finds\\\/#respond\"\n\t                    ]\n\t                }\n\t            ]\n\t        },\n\t        {\n\t            \"@type\": \"WebPage\",\n\t            \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/armytimes\\\/veterans\\\/2018\\\/12\\\/13\\\/va-hospitals-often-the-best-option-for-medical-care-study-finds\\\/\",\n\t            \"url\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/armytimes\\\/veterans\\\/2018\\\/12\\\/13\\\/va-hospitals-often-the-best-option-for-medical-care-study-finds\\\/\",\n\t            \"name\": \"VA hospitals often the best option for medical care, study finds - Army Times\",\n\t            \"isPartOf\": {\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/armytimes\\\/#website\"\n\t            },\n\t            \"primaryImageOfPage\": {\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/armytimes\\\/veterans\\\/2018\\\/12\\\/13\\\/va-hospitals-often-the-best-option-for-medical-care-study-finds\\\/#primaryimage\"\n\t            },\n\t            \"image\": {\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/armytimes\\\/veterans\\\/2018\\\/12\\\/13\\\/va-hospitals-often-the-best-option-for-medical-care-study-finds\\\/#primaryimage\"\n\t            },\n\t            \"thumbnailUrl\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/08\\\/AP_821518132423.jpg.jpg\",\n\t            \"datePublished\": \"2018-12-13T21:19:21+00:00\",\n\t            \"dateModified\": \"2026-08-08T14:10:33+00:00\",\n\t            \"description\": \"But VA officials insist the research does not undermine their efforts to expand vets' access to private-sector medical options.\",\n\t            \"breadcrumb\": {\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/armytimes\\\/veterans\\\/2018\\\/12\\\/13\\\/va-hospitals-often-the-best-option-for-medical-care-study-finds\\\/#breadcrumb\"\n\t            },\n\t            \"inLanguage\": \"en-US\",\n\t            \"potentialAction\": [\n\t                {\n\t                    \"@type\": \"ReadAction\",\n\t                    \"target\": [\n\t                        \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/armytimes\\\/veterans\\\/2018\\\/12\\\/13\\\/va-hospitals-often-the-best-option-for-medical-care-study-finds\\\/\"\n\t                    ]\n\t                }\n\t            ]\n\t        },\n\t        {\n\t            \"@type\": \"ImageObject\",\n\t            \"inLanguage\": \"en-US\",\n\t            \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/armytimes\\\/veterans\\\/2018\\\/12\\\/13\\\/va-hospitals-often-the-best-option-for-medical-care-study-finds\\\/#primaryimage\",\n\t            \"url\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/08\\\/AP_821518132423.jpg.jpg\",\n\t            \"contentUrl\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/08\\\/AP_821518132423.jpg.jpg\"\n\t        },\n\t        {\n\t            \"@type\": \"BreadcrumbList\",\n\t            \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/armytimes\\\/veterans\\\/2018\\\/12\\\/13\\\/va-hospitals-often-the-best-option-for-medical-care-study-finds\\\/#breadcrumb\",\n\t            \"itemListElement\": [\n\t                {\n\t                    \"@type\": \"ListItem\",\n\t                    \"position\": 1,\n\t                    \"name\": \"Home\",\n\t                    \"item\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/armytimes\\\/\",\n\t                    \"ad_zone\": \"home\"\n\t                },\n\t                {\n\t                    \"@type\": \"ListItem\",\n\t                    \"position\": 2,\n\t                    \"name\": \"Veterans\",\n\t                    \"item\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/armytimes\\\/veterans\\\/\",\n\t                    \"ad_zone\": \"veterans\"\n\t                },\n\t                {\n\t                    \"@type\": \"ListItem\",\n\t                    \"position\": 3,\n\t                    \"name\": \"VA hospitals often the best option for medical care, study finds\"\n\t                }\n\t            ]\n\t        },\n\t        {\n\t            \"@type\": \"WebSite\",\n\t            \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/armytimes\\\/#website\",\n\t            \"url\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/armytimes\\\/\",\n\t            \"name\": \"Army Times\",\n\t            \"description\": \"Independent News For Soldiers | Army Times\",\n\t            \"publisher\": {\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/armytimes\\\/#organization\"\n\t            },\n\t            \"potentialAction\": [\n\t                {\n\t                    \"@type\": \"SearchAction\",\n\t                    \"target\": {\n\t                        \"@type\": \"EntryPoint\",\n\t                        \"urlTemplate\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/armytimes\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"\n\t                    },\n\t                    \"query-input\": {\n\t                        \"@type\": \"PropertyValueSpecification\",\n\t                        \"valueRequired\": true,\n\t                        \"valueName\": \"search_term_string\"\n\t                    }\n\t                }\n\t            ],\n\t            \"inLanguage\": \"en-US\"\n\t        },\n\t        {\n\t            \"@type\": \"Organization\",\n\t            \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/armytimes\\\/#organization\",\n\t            \"name\": \"Army Times\",\n\t            \"url\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/armytimes\\\/\",\n\t            \"logo\": {\n\t                \"@type\": \"ImageObject\",\n\t                \"inLanguage\": \"en-US\",\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/armytimes\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\",\n\t                \"url\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/06\\\/army-logo-white.png\",\n\t                \"contentUrl\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/06\\\/army-logo-white.png\",\n\t                \"caption\": \"Army Times\"\n\t            },\n\t            \"image\": {\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/armytimes\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\"\n\t            }\n\t        },\n\t        {\n\t            \"@type\": \"Person\",\n\t            \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/armytimes\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/cc76c831bb37a926738c8391fca7a3b1\",\n\t            \"name\": \"migration\",\n\t            \"image\": {\n\t                \"@type\": \"ImageObject\",\n\t                \"inLanguage\": \"en-US\",\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/9e8d47be443ce94ce7fc357677b5f9c70235bb1f59e7267a102a74af58c04f59?s=96&d=mm&r=gcf4cb6ee0ec29e49e7a963234e4340ec\",\n\t                \"url\": \"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/9e8d47be443ce94ce7fc357677b5f9c70235bb1f59e7267a102a74af58c04f59?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\n\t                \"contentUrl\": \"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/9e8d47be443ce94ce7fc357677b5f9c70235bb1f59e7267a102a74af58c04f59?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\n\t                \"caption\": \"migration\"\n\t            },\n\t            \"url\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/armytimes\\\/author\\\/migration\\\/\"\n\t        }\n\t    ]\n\t}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO Premium plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"VA hospitals often the best option for medical care, study finds - Army Times","description":"But VA officials insist the research does not undermine their efforts to expand vets' access to private-sector medical options.","robots":{"index":"noindex","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"VA hospitals often the best option for medical care, study finds","og_description":"But VA officials insist the research does not undermine their efforts to expand vets' access to private-sector medical options.","og_url":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/armytimes\/veterans\/2018\/12\/13\/va-hospitals-often-the-best-option-for-medical-care-study-finds\/","og_site_name":"Army Times","article_published_time":"2018-12-13T21:19:21+00:00","article_modified_time":"2026-08-08T14:10:33+00:00","author":"Leo Shane III","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Leo Shane III","Est. reading time":"3 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/armytimes\/veterans\/2018\/12\/13\/va-hospitals-often-the-best-option-for-medical-care-study-finds\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/armytimes\/veterans\/2018\/12\/13\/va-hospitals-often-the-best-option-for-medical-care-study-finds\/"},"author":{"name":"migration","@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/armytimes\/#\/schema\/person\/cc76c831bb37a926738c8391fca7a3b1"},"headline":"VA hospitals often the best option for medical care, study finds","datePublished":"2018-12-13T21:19:21+00:00","dateModified":"2026-08-08T14:10:33+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/armytimes\/veterans\/2018\/12\/13\/va-hospitals-often-the-best-option-for-medical-care-study-finds\/"},"wordCount":511,"commentCount":0,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/armytimes\/#organization"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/armytimes\/veterans\/2018\/12\/13\/va-hospitals-often-the-best-option-for-medical-care-study-finds\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/AP_821518132423.jpg.jpg","articleSection":["Daily News Roundup","Home","Middle Column","News","Newsletters","Pentagon &amp; Congress","Veterans"],"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/armytimes\/veterans\/2018\/12\/13\/va-hospitals-often-the-best-option-for-medical-care-study-finds\/#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/armytimes\/veterans\/2018\/12\/13\/va-hospitals-often-the-best-option-for-medical-care-study-finds\/","url":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/armytimes\/veterans\/2018\/12\/13\/va-hospitals-often-the-best-option-for-medical-care-study-finds\/","name":"VA hospitals often the best option for medical care, study finds - Army Times","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/armytimes\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/armytimes\/veterans\/2018\/12\/13\/va-hospitals-often-the-best-option-for-medical-care-study-finds\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/armytimes\/veterans\/2018\/12\/13\/va-hospitals-often-the-best-option-for-medical-care-study-finds\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/AP_821518132423.jpg.jpg","datePublished":"2018-12-13T21:19:21+00:00","dateModified":"2026-08-08T14:10:33+00:00","description":"But VA officials insist the research does not undermine their efforts to expand vets' access to private-sector medical options.","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/armytimes\/veterans\/2018\/12\/13\/va-hospitals-often-the-best-option-for-medical-care-study-finds\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/armytimes\/veterans\/2018\/12\/13\/va-hospitals-often-the-best-option-for-medical-care-study-finds\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/armytimes\/veterans\/2018\/12\/13\/va-hospitals-often-the-best-option-for-medical-care-study-finds\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/AP_821518132423.jpg.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/AP_821518132423.jpg.jpg"},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/armytimes\/veterans\/2018\/12\/13\/va-hospitals-often-the-best-option-for-medical-care-study-finds\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/armytimes\/","ad_zone":"home"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Veterans","item":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/armytimes\/veterans\/","ad_zone":"veterans"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"name":"VA hospitals often the best option for medical care, study finds"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/armytimes\/#website","url":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/armytimes\/","name":"Army Times","description":"Independent News For Soldiers | Army Times","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/armytimes\/#organization"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/armytimes\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/armytimes\/#organization","name":"Army Times","url":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/armytimes\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/armytimes\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/army-logo-white.png","contentUrl":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/army-logo-white.png","caption":"Army Times"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/armytimes\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"}},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/armytimes\/#\/schema\/person\/cc76c831bb37a926738c8391fca7a3b1","name":"migration","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/9e8d47be443ce94ce7fc357677b5f9c70235bb1f59e7267a102a74af58c04f59?s=96&d=mm&r=gcf4cb6ee0ec29e49e7a963234e4340ec","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/9e8d47be443ce94ce7fc357677b5f9c70235bb1f59e7267a102a74af58c04f59?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/9e8d47be443ce94ce7fc357677b5f9c70235bb1f59e7267a102a74af58c04f59?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"migration"},"url":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/armytimes\/author\/migration\/"}]}},"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"distributor_meta":false,"distributor_terms":false,"distributor_media":false,"distributor_original_site_name":"Army Times","distributor_original_site_url":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/armytimes","push-errors":false,"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/AP_821518132423.jpg.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/armytimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/72840","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/armytimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/armytimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/armytimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/7"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/armytimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=72840"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/armytimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/72840\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":72852,"href":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/armytimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/72840\/revisions\/72852"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/armytimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/73581"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/armytimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=72840"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/armytimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=72840"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/armytimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=72840"},{"taxonomy":"author","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/armytimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/coauthors?post=72840"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}