Community providers: How to submit medical documentation to VA

VA offers several options for community providers to submit Veteran medical documentation.

VA strives to provide Veterans with seamless care and encourages community providers to support these efforts by the timely submission of medical documentation within 30 days of providing services.

One of the best ways for community providers to submit medical documentation is to use HealthShare Referral Manager (HSRM), the main system VA uses for managing referrals, authorizations and medical documentation exchange.

Dr. Megan Stauffer, a community provider at In-Home Care Connection in Sterling, Ill., shares her positive experience with HSRM. “It has drastically cut down phone calls and faxes that I’m having to receive daily, because now all the information I need is there at my fingertips.”

In addition to HSRM, VA offers more options for community providers to submit Veteran medical documentation. Community providers can:

• Join the Veterans Health Information Exchange (VHIE) which enables bi-directional sharing of Veteran Health Information. If you would like to participate in VHIE, see our VA Exchange Onboarding Flyer and contact VAExchangeInformation@va.gov.

• Use HealthShare Referral Manager (HSRM) for referrals, authorizations, and documentation exchange.
• Use the Azure Rights Management Services (Azure RMS) for encrypted email. It is important to remember that community providers can securely reply to VA-initiated emails. Recipients may need to install other software and acquire licenses to send unsolicited emails to VA to ensure cybersecurity. For more information on AZURE RMS, view our RMS Encryption Software Fact Sheet or contact VHARMSTeam@va.gov.
• Send an e-fax by sending email to the Veterans Affairs Medical Center (VAMC) fax machine. For an e-fax number, contact the referring VAMC or consult this directory: VA Facility Care Coordination Contacts.

Using convenient electronic options to send medical documents to VA enables you to comply with the 30-day requirement for medical documentation submission.

Visit our care coordination page and review our Medical Submission Requirements Fact Sheet for details on what documentation should be submitted for care coordination purposes based on the type of service provided.

Thank you for your commitment to caring for our nation’s Veterans.

Resources

• Veteran Community Care – Request and Coordinate Care

C. Barbara Plantt is the outreach coordinator for the VHA Office of Community Care.