Last fiscal year, the VA surpassed more than one million annual video telehealth patient visits. More than 393,000 Veterans are using video technology to monitor their prescriptions at home, check in with their primary-care teams, and consult with specialists hundreds of miles away.

In August 2017, the VA announced its Anywhere to Anywhere initiative, pledging to give Veterans unprecedented access to care, no matter where they are in the United States. The announcement was paired with the launch of the VA Video Connect app, which allows patients to participate in virtual appointments remotely with their providers.

But telehealth's success is about more than numbers. It's about the delivery of better medical services to our Veterans – like Jim Doray, who suffered a spinal injury in 2013, and whose condition requires regular checkups with his VA provider. Prior to receiving telehealth care, he and his wife, Paulina, had to drive 65 miles each way from their home in the mountains outside San Diego to their closest VA facility in La Jolla, multiple times week.

Read more of Dr. Richard Stone's article about video telehealth's impact at Military.com.