Veteran care navigation

Find the next step in your care.

Start with your VA health care team. Tell them what symptoms are affecting daily life and ask which VA services fit. If care in the community may be appropriate, ask the team to check eligibility and issue a referral before you schedule. Use the guides below to track the provider, authorization, records, and follow-up.

Reviewed September 29, 2026Independent guide by Valor

Choose the path that fits your question

01 / NavigationHow does VA Community Care work?Eligibility, referral, provider search, scheduling, and authorization.02 / Chronic painWhere can Veterans find chronic pain care?Start with your VA team, then consider available specialty and community options.03 / mTBIWhat if symptoms persist after a concussion?Evaluation, Polytrauma/TBI services, pain, and coordination.04 / ChecklistWhat should I confirm before an outside appointment?Six questions to reduce referral and billing surprises.

What Veterans and providers told us

In three public discussions, people described difficulty finding an office that currently accepts VA Community Care, uncertainty about who contacts whom, delays when an authorization expires, and records that do not reach the next clinician. Others reported smooth access and valued their community clinicians. These are individual experiences, not official rules or a survey. We used them to choose questions this site should answer; the steps themselves come from VA guidance. Read our source and review method.

Where Valor fits

Valor is a home-based, guided virtual-reality and coaching program for selected people living with chronic pain. Your treating team decides whether it fits your plan. These resources do not imply that Valor is part of VA Community Care, is covered by VA, or treats mTBI. For a program question, use the Valor contact page and leave medical details out of the form.

Quick answers

Frequently asked questions

Can I book any community provider and ask VA to pay later?

For routine community care, VA says your health care team must approve a referral before you schedule. Urgent and emergency care follow different rules.

Does a provider listing guarantee the office is accepting referrals?

No. Confirm the exact clinician, service, location, and appointment availability with the office and your VA community care team.

Evidence and context

Sources used on this page

VA pages are the authority for care and referral steps. Reddit discussions are cited as individual experiences and questions, never as VA rules.

Read our source and review method →