Quick Facts:
- VA coverage is considered creditable coverage for Medicare Part D
- VA coverage is considered creditable coverage for Medicare Part B
- VA does not recommend Veterans cancel or decline coverage in Medicare (or other health care or insurance programs) solely because they are enrolled in VA health care.
- Veterans are assigned a priority group. Not all priority groups are guaranteed health benefits. In the future Congress may not provide funding to care for all priority groups.
- Medicare can provide veterans with more options for their care
- Second opinions
- Major surgeries at civilian hospitals (joint replacement, back, etc)
- Urgent care
- off hours prescription coverage
What does the VA Say
Enrollment in the VA health care system is considered creditable coverage for Medicare Part D purposes. This means VA prescription drug coverage is at least as good as the Medicare Part D coverage. Since only Veterans can enroll in the VA health care system, dependents and family members do not receive credible coverage under the Veteran’s enrollment.
Under Medicare Part B, VA health care is NOT creditable coverage. Creditable coverage under Medicare Part B can only be provided through an employer. Although a Veteran may avoid the late enrollment penalty for Medicare Part D by citing VA health care enrollment, that enrollment would not help the Veteran avoid the late enrollment penalty for Part B.
VA does not recommend Veterans cancel or decline coverage in Medicare (or other health care or insurance programs) solely because they are enrolled in VA health care. Unlike Medicare, which offers the same benefits for all enrollees, VA assigns enrollees to enrollment priority groups based on a variety of eligibility factors, such as service-connection and income. There is no guarantee that in future years Congress will appropriate sufficient medical care funds for VA to provide care for all enrollment priority groups. This could leave Veterans, especially those enrolled in one of the lower-priority groups, with no access to VA health care coverage. For this reason, having a secondary source of coverage may be in Veterans’ best interest.
Enrolling in both VA and Medicare can provide Veterans flexibility. For example, Veterans enrolled in both programs would have access to community physicians (under Medicare Part A or Part B) and can obtain prescription drugs not on the VA formulary if prescribed by community physicians and filled at their local retail pharmacies (under Medicare Part D).
https://www.va.gov/healthbenefits/resources/publications/hbco/hbco_va_other_insurance.asp