Public Health

Veterans Exposure Team - Health Outcomes Military Exposures (VET-HOME)

The Veterans Exposure Team - Health Outcomes Military Exposures (VET-HOME) program provides military environmental exposure assessments and environmental health registry evaluations for Veterans via telehealth.

VET-HOME consists of an intake center and a geographically distributed network of clinicians specially trained in military environmental exposures. VET-HOME provides free environmental health evaluations via telehealth for enrolled Veterans anywhere in the United States or U.S. territories. VET-HOME clinicians can even do early morning or late afternoon telehealth appointments to best meet your needs. 

You can contact VET-HOME by calling 833-633-VTHM (833-633-8846) or by chatting with a live VET-HOME agent on our portal. If you prefer an in-person evaluation instead, you can call an environmental health coordinator to schedule an evaluation at your local VA facility.

Telehealth Appointment

As long as you have a mobile device or computer and an internet connection, you can meet with the VET-HOME clinician from the comfort of your own home.

Learn more about how to use VA telehealth services. If you need internet access or a connected device for VA telehealth, read this fact sheet to learn about your options.

About VA’s Environmental Health Registry Programs

VA’s environmental health registries offer free, voluntary medical evaluations for eligible Veterans. These evaluations are:

• Available regardless of your enrollment in VA’s health care system.
• A one-time clinical assessment of symptoms or concerns potentially related to military environmental exposures. Veterans needing prescriptions or treatment should follow up with their primary care provider for care.
• These registries and evaluations do not impact the individual health care or benefits of Veterans who participate in the program, but instead help VA surveillance the affected Veteran and service member population as a whole – and then improve nationwide health care and benefits options as a result of that surveillance. Health data is used anonymously for VA researchers to improve exposure-informed care for Veterans throughout the nation.
• Toxic exposure screening is a screen, not an evaluation. I also think it probably deserves its own section instead of being lumped under registry programs.

VA's environmental health registry programs:

• Agent Orange Registry
• Airborne Hazards and Open Burn Pit Registry
• Gulf War Registry
• Ionizing Radiation Registry
• Depleted Uranium Follow-Up Program
• Toxic Embedded Fragment Surveillance Center

Diagnostic Testing and Follow Up

If you need any diagnostic testing—such as labs, imaging, breathing tests, or specialty consultations—VET-HOME clinicians will advise you accordingly. All Veterans who complete a clinical evaluation with VET-HOME will be sent a letter that includes copies of their test results, interpretation, and any follow-up recommendations.”

Most Veterans do not need to be tested for depleted uranium (DU). However, VET-HOME can help if you:

• Entered vehicles struck by DU weapons immediately after impact
• Were near fires or explosions involving DU weapons or armor
• Were deployed to Karshi Khanabad (K-2) Air Base in Uzbekistan

To learn more, call VET-HOME at 833-633-8846 and ask to speak to a nurse about DU urine testing. Additional information about DU exposure and urine testing is also available at:

• DU exposure: https://www.publichealth.va.gov/PUBLICHEALTH/exposures/depleted_uranium/DU_Exposure.asp
• DU urine testing: https://www.publichealth.va.gov/exposures/depleted_uranium/DU_Screening.asp

Fact Sheets

For Veterans, find the fact sheet What Veterans should know about VET-HOME. Find this fact sheet in different languages:

For Providers, find the fact sheet What providers should know about VET-HOME. Find this fact sheet in different languages:

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