Sponsors (4)
The bill aims to make VA appointment scheduling faster, more transparent, and more accessible (including by phone), but does so at the cost of new spending and implementation risks that could temporarily disrupt access or disadvantage digitally vulnerable veterans if not carefully managed.
Veterans will have improved access to care and shorter waits because a unified scheduling system lets staff and patients view and schedule primary, mental‑health, and specialty appointments.
Veterans who are uncomfortable with or lack internet access can still book appointments by phone with a scheduler who can fully schedule their care, preserving access for digitally excluded groups.
Taxpayers and veterans benefit from greater transparency and accountability because VA must report progress, costs, timelines, and performance to Congressional committees.
Taxpayers and veterans may face higher costs because implementing new scheduling technology and staff training will increase VA expenditures and could require additional appropriations or budget shifts.
Veterans with limited digital literacy risk being disadvantaged if the system relies too heavily on self‑service platforms and adequate phone alternatives or training are not maintained.
Veterans and VA facilities could see delays or higher costs if integrating the new scheduling tools with the VA’s Electronic Health Record Modernization proves complex.
Based on analysis of 2 sections of legislative text.
Requires the VA to plan and implement modernized scheduling (self-service, staff/patient views, full phone booking) and report progress to Congress.
Official title: Require the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to establish and implement a plan to improve the process for scheduling appointments for health care from the Department of Veterans Affairs, and for other purposes.
Introduced February 18, 2025 by Margaret Wood Hassan · Last progress December 19, 2025
Requires the VA Secretary to produce, within one year, a detailed plan to improve how veterans schedule health care appointments and how VA staff manage scheduling. The plan must cover technology, processes, staffing, training, oversight, metrics, and timelines to enable staff- and patient-viewable schedules, patient self-service booking (where allowed), full telephonic scheduling, and related supports. The VA must fully implement the plan within two years after submitting it, coordinate with the VA Electronic Health Record Modernization, and provide progress reports to House and Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committees at one and two years after plan submission that detail costs, schedules, metrics achieved, problems encountered, and lessons learned. Veterans retain the ability to schedule by non-online means.