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 in the community all do the same job: bring VA care closer.

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. 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. VA lists two requirements 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, and you must have an email account where you can receive your appointment link, because every session is joined from a link VA sends by email.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. One caveat on Apple devices: some iOS email apps, such as Gmail and Yahoo, need to be set to open the Safari browser for VA Video Connect to open.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, who contacts VA hospitals and providers and helps the veteran arrange treatment changes, clinic appointments, and hospital admissions. The monitoring equipment may be used to track blood pressure, blood sugar, pulse, weight, blood oxygen, heart and lung sounds, or other chronic diseases.1

Health data will not be collected without the veteran's informed consent.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 high-speed internet, visual and audio technology, and on-site assistance for a video telehealth appointment. 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 several ATLAS locations nationwide. "Several" is VA's own word: it is a count, not a promise of a site in every community.1

What limits ATLAS is availability, not eligibility. GAO reported in August 2024 that 14 of 24 ATLAS sites active at the time had no veteran visits in fiscal years 2022 and 2023, and that VHA was moving the program from a pilot to a grant program. So check that a site actually exists near you and is tied to your own VA medical center before planning around one.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 Where a site does exist near a veteran who would otherwise drive hours to a VA medical center, a short trip there can replace a long, tiring day on the road.

What Care Is Available by VA Telehealth

VA says telehealth lets veterans reach its nationwide network of care from home, while away from home, or from their local clinic or hospital, connecting them with their care teams and with specialists no matter the distance. Because telehealth is part of the VHA Standard Medical Benefits Package, all enrolled veterans are eligible, though services may vary by location. There is no copay for telehealth services, with one qualifier VA attaches: there may be a copay when in-home video visits are provided in addition to standard telehealth services. 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 whether an ATLAS site tied to your medical center exists near you 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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