Geographic Disparities in US Veterans' Access to Cochlear Implant Care Within the Veterans Health Administration System.

Importance: Veterans are at high risk for developing sensorineural hearing loss leading to cochlear implant (CI) candidacy; however, the ability to care for these patients is limited by the number and location of Veterans Health Administration (VHA) facilities that provide specialized CI services.

Objective: To investigate geographic disparities in access to CI care within the VHA system for US veterans.

Design, Setting, And Participants: An analysis of census tract-level data including US veterans was conducted using the nationwide American Community Survey data collected by the US Census Bureau from January to December 2016, which were accessed in 2017.