Talk to the Veterans Crisis Line now
U.S. flag
An official website of the United States government

Office of Research & Development

print icon sign up for VA Research updates

New VA Initiative Helps Veterans Travel to Medical Appointments

VA Research News Briefs

New VA Initiative Helps Veterans Travel to Medical AppointmentsPhoto: ©iStock/andresr

(04/17/2025) The VHA–Uber Health Connect (VUHC) Initiative, a collaboration to provide ridesharing for Veterans’ facing transportation barriers, has proven quite successful. VA researchers showed the initiative facilitated 263,294 rides, covering a total distance of nearly 4 million miles, from January 2022 to March 2024. The most common uses were travel to specialty care, dialysis, and primary care appointments. The VUHC program began because a previous analysis found almost 2 million VA medical appointments were missed yearly due to lack of transportation, at an estimated cost of nearly $4.4 billion per year. For the approximately 30% of Veterans living in rural areas, transportation barriers are more significant due to social isolation, multiple chronic conditions, and a greater need for frequent medical visits. The VUHC Initiative aims to continue reducing missed appointments, improving the Veteran experience, and enabling cost savings. (NEJM Catalyst, Apr. 16, 2025)



Questions about the R&D website? Email the Web Team

Any health information on this website is strictly for informational purposes and is not intended as medical advice. It should not be used to diagnose or treat any condition.