Navy veteran Amanda Wirtz looks through her correspondence with the Veteran’s Choice program. After the VA couldn’t get her an appointment with a specialist, it sent her to the Choice program. But it still took several months for her to get an appointment. - Courtesy of KPBS
“NPR — together with member stations from across the country — has been reporting on troubles with the Veterans Choice program, a $10 billion plan created by Congress two years ago to squash long wait times veterans were encountering when going to see a doctor. But as we reported in March, this fix needs a fix.
“Around the nation, our joint reporting project — called Back at Base — has found examples of these problems. Emily Siner of Nashville Public Radio reported on troubles with overcrowding in Tennessee. And Monday, we reported on hospitals and doctors not getting paid in Montana and veterans getting snarled in the phone systems trying to make appointments in North Carolina.
“Congress and Department of Veterans Affairs officials are in the middle of overhauling the program. Here are some reasons:”
