VA Telehealth: Care From Home for Veterans

VA telehealth lets enrolled veterans see their VA care team without driving to a medical center. For an older veteran who is homebound, lives far from the nearest VA facility, or simply finds travel exhausting, that can be the difference between getting care and going without it. A video visit from the kitchen table, a monitoring device that sends vitals to the care team, or a private appointment room a few minutes down the road all do the same job: bring VA care closer.

This guide walks through how VA telehealth works, the three main ways veterans use it, what care is available this way, and how to get started.

In This Guide

• Key Takeaways
• VA Video Connect
• Home Telehealth and Remote Monitoring
• ATLAS: Telehealth Close to Home
• What Care Is Available by VA Telehealth
• How to Get Started With VA Telehealth
• Frequently Asked Questions
• Learn More

VA Video Connect

VA Video Connect is VA's secure videoconferencing app, and it is the most common way veterans use telehealth. It lets veterans, and their caregivers, meet with their VA care team through live video on nearly any internet-connected device that has a camera, microphone, speakers, and a web browser. That includes smartphones, tablets, laptops, and desktop computers. Its virtual medical rooms allow multiple participants, so a family member or caregiver can join. To use it you must be enrolled in VA health care and speak with your VA care team about whether to use it for a medical appointment.1

How you join depends on the device, and installing an app is not a precondition to joining. On a Windows or macOS computer there is nothing to download, because VA Video Connect opens automatically in a web browser after you click the link in your email invitation. On an iOS or Android device, VA's FAQ says you must install the VA Video Connect app from the Apple App Store or Google Play before joining your session, but VA's own setup instructions qualify that in two ways. On an Apple device, for VA Video Connect sessions that do not include the use of VA peripherals, the app is "recommended but not required." On both Apple and Android, a device that does not have the app installed will launch VA Video Connect Web when joining a video session. So a veteran who cannot install apps can still join by clicking the link in the email invitation.1

For an older veteran, this often means a daughter or spouse can sit alongside during the visit, help with the device, and hear the care team's instructions firsthand. The appointment runs much like an in-person visit: you talk with your provider, they can see you, and you can ask questions and review your plan together.

Home Telehealth and Remote Monitoring

Home Telehealth remote monitoring is for veterans VA has assessed as appropriate for it, where steady tracking between visits matters. VA provides a device to fit the veteran's needs and training on how to use it, and telehealth technologies can then collect and send health data such as vital signs to the care team.1

VA also assigns a Home Telehealth remote monitoring care coordinator to work with the veteran.1 That ongoing visibility can catch a problem early, before it turns into an emergency room trip.

Health data is never collected without the veteran's informed consent, so the veteran stays in control of what is shared and when.1

ATLAS: Telehealth Close to Home

Not every veteran has reliable internet at home, and that is especially true in rural areas. The VA ATLAS program, short for Accessing Telehealth through Local Area Stations, is built for exactly that situation.1

ATLAS offers comfortable, private spaces in the community, equipped with internet access and the technology needed to meet with a VA provider over VA Video Connect. An on-site attendant greets the veteran, guides them through connecting, and troubleshoots basic technical issues. Those attendants are not VA employees, they are not present once the appointment begins, and they have no access to veterans' medical or personal information. VA has teamed up with The American Legion, Veterans of Foreign Wars, and other organizations to offer ATLAS locations nationwide.1

To use an ATLAS site, the site must be associated with the VA medical center where you are enrolled in care, and that medical center determines which clinical services are offered there. Those may include primary care, mental health, and specialty services.1 For a veteran who would otherwise drive hours to a VA medical center, a short trip to a nearby site can replace a long, tiring day on the road.

What Care Is Available by VA Telehealth

VA delivers telehealth from home, from the clinic, and in the hospital, connecting veterans with their care teams and with specialists no matter the distance. At an ATLAS site, the VA medical center where you are enrolled determines which clinical services are offered, and those may include primary care, mental health, and specialty services.1

That covers a lot of what an older veteran needs day to day: routine check-ins, medication questions, counseling, and help managing a chronic condition. What it does not cover is anything requiring a hands-on physical exam or in-person procedure.

The key point to hold onto is that telehealth is suited to care that does not require a hands-on physical examination, so it is worth asking your VA care team which of your appointments fit.1 It is one more way to reach your care team, alongside the visits that have to happen face to face.

How to Get Started With VA Telehealth

The simplest first step is to talk with your VA care team about whether telehealth fits your needs.1 They can tell you which of your appointments are good candidates for a video visit, whether Home Telehealth monitoring makes sense for a chronic condition, and where the nearest ATLAS site is if home internet is a barrier.

You can also use the VA Health Chat app to chat with VA staff about a non-life-threatening health issue, schedule a VA appointment, or refill a VA prescription without traveling to a VA facility.1 It is a low-pressure way to start the conversation without waiting for your next scheduled visit.

If you are comfortable online, VA Video Connect lets you join appointments directly from a smartphone, tablet, laptop, or desktop computer.1 When in doubt, your VA care team is the right place to begin.

Learn More

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