Improving Access to Care for Rural Veterans Act

The Improving Access to Care for Rural Veterans Act (S.3033) was introduced on October 22, 2025 by Senator Duckworth (D-IL) with one cosponsor, Senator Blackburn (R-TN). On March 18, 2026, the Senate Veterans' Affairs Committee ordered it reported favorably with an amendment. The bill currently awaits floor action in the Senate. It is early-stage legislation with clear bipartisan sponsorship but only one cosponsor, indicating moderate rather than high momentum. The bill's mechanism is a direct mandate: each VA medical facility must enter into a partnership with a rural medical facility for services including telehealth, co-location of space or equipment, training, care coordination, emergency services (including transportation), or other services. The Secretary may waive the requirement for up to five years with Congressional notification. Notably, the bill contains no explicit authorization of new funding — it reallocates existing VA resources to establish these partnerships. This means the economic impact is structural (compelled demand for rural healthcare services) rather than a new injection of federal dollars. The key beneficiaries are companies with established rural healthcare footprints. HCA Healthcare operates over 180 hospitals nationally, many in exurban and rural communities. UHS runs ~30 acute care hospitals in rural and suburban markets. Both will see incremental VA patient volume and procedure revenue as local VA facilities seek partnership agreements. AMN Healthcare is the dominant medical staffing company, and the mandate to expand services in underserved rural areas will increase demand for travel nurses, locum tenens physicians, and allied health professionals. Healthcare REITs Ventas and Sabra Health Care REIT own medical office buildings and facilities in rural markets — the co-location provisions drive leasing demand. Real market data shows a mixed sector picture over the past 7-30 days. HCA is down 8.36% in 7 days and 8.46% in 30 days, closing at $431.92 on April 28 from a recent high of $488.58 on April 15. UHS fell 10.06% in 7 days and 11.68% in 30 days, closing at $162.54. These declines appear driven by broader market or sector headwinds (possibly policy uncertainty or reimbursement concerns) rather than this specific bill, which is a net positive. In contrast, VTR is up 9.33% in 7 days (+6.91% in 30 days) and SBRA up 4.8% in 7 days (+4.59% in 30 days), trading near their 52-week highs. AMN is flat (+0.1% in 7 days) but up 10.68% in 30 days, at $20.93. The legislative timeline: the bill must pass the Senate floor, then be referred to the House (no House companion bill currently identified), pass the House, and be signed by the President. Given the bipartisan sponsorship, moderate momentum, and non-controversial nature (improving veterans' rural care), the bill has a reasonable chance of passage in the 119th Congress, though probably not until late 2026 or 2027.