Comparing emergency care for Veterans inside VA and at non-VA hospitals
Official title: Evaluating the VA Make-or-Buy Decision in Emergency Care
Funded at Veterans Admin Palo Alto Health Care Sys · NIH-11337241 · Data updated 2026-11-12
This project compares emergency care Veterans get at VA hospitals versus non-VA hospitals to learn which options provide better quality and value.
Quick facts
| Grant type | NIH-funded research |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | Veterans Admin Palo Alto Health Care Sys NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Palo Alto, United States) |
| Project start | January 1, 2020 |
| Project end | June 30, 2026 |
| Funding year | 2026 |
| NIH project number | 5I01HX002631-07 |
| Project ID | NIH-11337241 on NIH RePORTER |
Who could benefit from this research
✓Could help
Veterans who have used or may need emergency department care at VA or non-VA hospitals are the people whose records and outcomes this work focuses on.
✕Less likely to help
Non-Veterans and people who never use emergency services are unlikely to receive direct benefit from this research.
What this research studies
You will learn how emergency care outcomes and costs differ when Veterans are treated inside the VA versus at outside hospitals. The team analyzes VA and non-VA care records and billing data, then uses quasi-experimental methods to reduce bias from differences between patients. They will compare measures like survival, complications, and costs while accounting for patients' health and access factors. The goal is to understand how care location affects results so the VA can make better policy choices for Veterans.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, the findings could help the VA steer Veterans to emergency care locations that produce better health outcomes and lower costs.
How similar studies have gone: Previous studies comparing VA and non-VA care have had mixed results, and this project applies stronger quasi-experimental methods to provide clearer answers.
Where this research is happening
-
Veterans Admin Palo Alto Health Care Sys
Palo Alto, United States Active
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Chan, David Chimin — Veterans Admin Palo Alto Health Care Sys
- Study coordinator: Chan, David Chimin
About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page.