On Friday, the Department of Veterans’ Affairs (VA) announced it is postponing a rule change affecting reimbursement rates for special mode transportation, such as air and ground ambulances, until 2029. U.S. Senators Jerry Moran and Jon Tester, the ranking member and chairman of the Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committee, had repeatedly advocated for this delay to ensure rural veterans maintain access to essential emergency medical transportation services.

“While there is still significant work to do, I am pleased VA has decided to delay the implementation of a rule that would negatively affect veterans’ ability to receive emergency transportation to lifesaving care,” said Sen. Moran. “My colleagues and I recommended this delay to allow VA to establish sensible parameters when setting air ambulance reimbursement rates. It is critical that rural operators are able to offer their services to the VA and veterans are receiving lifesaving care when they need it most.”

The VA had previously postponed the implementation of this rule from February 2024 to February 2025. The new delay until 2029 will allow the VA additional time to collaborate with Congress to ensure that the rule is implemented in a way that guarantees feasible and affordable access to life-saving emergency transportation for veterans in rural areas.