Surveyed Enrollees in Veterans Affairs Health Care: How They Differ From Eligible Veterans Surveyed by BRFSS.

OBJECTIVES

We described differences in demographic and socioeconomic characteristics between Veterans enrolled in the Veterans Health Administration (VHA) and Veterans eligible to enroll for Veterans Affairs health care. Knowledge of these differences is important in planning better services for Veterans who enroll and in encouraging additional enrollment.

METHODS

We compared characteristics of enrollees and eligible Veterans in 2012. To describe enrollees, we used aggregate data from administrative records and results from VHA's Survey of Veteran Enrollees' Health and Reliance Upon VA. To describe eligible Veterans, we analyzed individual-level data from the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System.

RESULTS

Elderly individuals are more heavily represented among enrollees than eligible Veterans, and elderly enrollees are less likely to describe their health as good to excellent. Enrollees are more than twice as likely as eligible Veterans to have annual household incomes below $16,000. Representation of minorities is roughly the same among enrollees as eligible Veterans.

CONCLUSIONS

Our results are consistent with VHA as a safety net provider with respect to income, age, and disease burden.