Book excerpt: The Veterans Health Care Eligibility Reform Act of 1996 significantly expanded the mission of the VA. The reform act vastly increased the types of services offered to VA patients and extended medical coverage to all veterans through a priority-based enrollment system. The VA now operates the largest integrated health care system in the United State. In 2007, the VA had 78 million enrollees, served 5.5 million patients, and had a total operating budget of 37.3 billion.