Minneapolis VA Health Care System on the road in rural Wisconsin to Support Local Veterans

“All Veterans deserve timely access to world-class health care and earned benefits,” said Minneapolis VA Health Care System Director Pat Kelly. “This is an opportunity for us to meet Veterans where they live and get them enrolled.”

Last March VA announced that all Veterans who were exposed to toxins and other hazards while serving in the military – at home or abroad – will be eligible to enroll directly in VA health care. Known as the PACT Act, this expansion of care covers Vietnam Veterans, Gulf War Veterans, Iraq War Veterans, Afghanistan War Veterans, Veterans who deployed in support of contingency operations for the Global War on Terror. 

“We serve over 100,000 Veterans in the Minneapolis VA Health Care System, which includes 13 Community Based Outpatient Clinics (CBOCs) like the Chippewa Valley CBOC. That’s a lot of Veterans, but we know with the expansion of PACT Act even more are eligible,” said Kelly.  

Today 68% of Veterans in Eau Claire County who are eligible for VA health care are enrolled. In Chippewa County 76% who are eligible are enrolled. The VA will be enrolling Veterans for care at the Veteran Benefits Resource Fair on Thursday to improve that percentage. 

The team from the Minneapolis Heath Care System that will be at the event tomorrow includes subject matter experts from the VA Caregiver Support Program, VA Community in the Care, Post 9/11 Military 2 VA programs as well as case managers, and toxic exposure screening experts.

The Minneapolis VA Health Care System recently received a 5 of 5 star rating in an independent health care quality review. These findings come at a time when Veteran trust in VA outpatient care has reached an all-time record high of 92%, based on a survey of more than 440,000 Veterans. Additionally, these findings are consistent with a recent systematic review that found that VA health care is consistently as good as — or better than — non-VA health care.

 The Veteran Benefits Resource Fair is free and open to all veterans, active-duty and reserve component service members, and their families. 

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About Minneapolis VA Health Care System

Minneapolis VA Health Care System provides over 100,000 Veterans with a full range of health services at 15 locations. Facilities include the Minneapolis VA Medical Center, 13 Community Based Outpatient Clinics in Albert Lea, Ely, Hibbing, Mankato, Maplewood, Ramsey, Rochester, Shakopee, and St. James, Minn.; and Chippewa Falls, Hayward, Rice Lake and Superior, Wis., and the Community Resource and Referral Center for Veterans experiencing homelessness in Minneapolis. 

We are an academic health system with state-of-the-art technology and home to four major research centers. We maintain over 90 active affiliations with health professions schools and have been working closely with the University of Minnesota since 1947. To learn more visit VA Minneapolis Health Care | Veterans Affairs.

Melanie Nelson, Public Affairs Officer

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