Military and Veterans' Health Care

The Department of Defense provides health care to service members, retirees, and their eligible family members through the TRICARE program, and the Department of Veterans Affairs provides health care at little or no charge to veterans. CBO examines the budgetary and other effects of the current programs and proposals to change them.

Report
Options for Reducing the Deficit: 2025 to 2034
December 12, 2024
CBO periodically issues a compendium of policy options and their estimated effects on the federal budget. This report presents 76 options for altering spending or revenues to reduce federal budget deficits over the next decade.
Report
Options for Reducing the Deficit, 2023 to 2032--Volume II: Smaller Reductions
December 7, 2022
CBO issues a volume that contains short descriptions of 59 policy options that would each reduce the federal budget deficit by less than $300 billion over the next 10 years.
Report
The Veterans Community Care Program: Background and Early Effects
October 26, 2021
CBO describes how the Department of Veterans Affairs provides health care to many veterans through the Veterans Community Care Program and how that program has affected veterans’ access to care and other outcomes.
Report
Approaches to Changing Military Health Care
October 11, 2017
CBO examined possible changes to the Department of Defense’s Military Health System, analyzing the effects of those changes on the federal budget, the quality of military health care, and preparedness for wartime missions.
Report
Comparing the Costs of the Veterans' Health Care System with Private-Sector Costs
December 10, 2014
Recent legislation calls for the Veterans Health Administration to expand the availability of health care to veterans. Research suggests that VHA-provided care has been cheaper than private-sector care, but future costs are uncertain.