On April 13,
2015, The Department of Veterans Affairs announced the award of 20 contracts
for the Assisted Living Pilot Program for Veterans with Traumatic Brain Injury.
The program was originally supposed to end in 2014, but with these 20
contracts, the program has been extended through October 2017. During the announcement of the program’s extension,
Dr. Carolyn Clancy, VA’s Interim under Secretary for Health, said that “We are
pleased to extend this valuable program and provide specialized assisted living
services to eligible Veterans with traumatic brain injury that will enhance
their rehabilitation, quality of life, and community integration.” The Assisted
Living Pilot Program for Veterans with Traumatic Brain Injury, AL-TBI for
short, that meet the eligibility criteria are placed in private sector TBI
residential care facilities and are offered team based care with assistance in
areas that include speech, memory, and mobility, among others. In October 2014, the VA issued a request for
proposal for vendors wishing to participate in the pilot program as VA
continues to accept new eligible patients.
According to
www.cdc.gov, the total number of TBI related
deaths have declined between the years of 2005-2010, yet the total number of
TBI Emergency Department visits have increased during that same time span. More TBI survivors need programs that can
help them regain a normal life and discover new skills and possibilities that
they didn’t know existed.
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