Hope Yen, The Associated Press

WASHINGTON (AP) " Congress is set to deliver a victory to President Donald Trump by expanding private care for veterans as an alternative to the troubled Veterans Affairs health system, despite concerns from some Democrats that this will prove too costly.

The Senate is expected to approve a wide-ranging bill Wednesday that would allow veterans to see private doctors when they do not receive the treatment they expected, with the approval of a VA health provider. Veterans could access private care when they endure lengthy wait times or VA medical centers do not offer the services they need.

The measure also would avert a devastating shutdown of the VA's troubled Choice private-sector program. That program will run out of money as early as May 31, causing disruptions in care to tens of thousands of patients.

The House passed the bill last week.

Trump says the plan will be "game changing" in improving the troubled VA.

During the 2016 campaign, Trump repeatedly pledged to fix the VA by bringing accountability and expanding access to private doctors, criticizing the department as the "most corrupt." In July, he promised to triple the number of veterans "seeing the doctor of their choice." Currently, more than 30 percent of VA appointments are made in the private sector.

A broad array of veterans' groups back the bill, saying it will boost the quality of veterans care.

The VA secretary will have wide leeway in implementing the legislation, which leaves it up to VA to determine what is inadequate care. Trump is nominating acting VA secretary Robert Wilkie to permanently lead the government's second largest department serving 9 million veterans.

The bill would create a presidentially-appointed commission to review the closure of underperforming VA facilities. House Democrats had sought restrictions on the commission but were rebuffed by House Republicans and the White House.

It would also expand a VA caregivers program to cover families of veterans of all eras, not just the families of veterans who were seriously injured in the line of duty since Sept. 11, 2001.

The $51 billion bill would create a newly combined "community care" program that includes Choice and other VA programs of outside care. It could face escalating costs due to growing demand from veterans seeking the convenience of seeing private physicians.

Some House Democrats warn the VA won't be able to handle a growing price tag, putting the VA at risk of unexpected budget shortfalls next year. Rep. Tim Walz, the top Democrat on the House Veterans Affairs Committee, cautions that outsourcing more care to the private sector would lead to devastating cuts to VA hospitals, which many veterans see as best-suited to treat battlefield injury such as traumatic brain injury.

The bill builds on legislation passed in 2014 in response to a wait-time scandal at the Phoenix VA medical center, where some veterans died while waiting months for appointments.

It aims to steer more patients to the private sector to relieve pressure at VA hospitals, thus improving veterans care at VA facilities and with private providers alike. Patients could also access private walk-in clinics, such as MinuteClinics, to treat minor illnesses or injury if they used VA health care in the last two years.

The legislation would loosen Choice's restrictions that limit outside care only when a veteran must wait 30 days for an appointment or drive more than 40 miles to a VA facility.

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