This bill provides that the annual determination of the Veterans Health Administration (VHA) staff shortages shall include shortages for five clinical and five non-clinical occupations for each network. (Such determination currently includes the five occupations for which there are the largest Department of Veterans Affairs [VA]-wide shortages.)

The bill establishes in the VA an executive management fellowship program to provide eligible employees of: (1) the Veterans Benefits Administration (VBA) and the VHA with private sector training and experience, and (2) a private-sector entity with VA training and experience.

The VA shall:

• conduct an annual performance plan for each political appointee that is similar to the plan conducted for VA career senior executive employees;
• establish a single database that lists each vacant VA position that is critical, difficult to fill, or both, and each vacant mental health position;
• prescribe regulations to allow for excepted service appointments of qualifying students and recent graduates;
• provide VHA human resources with training on employee recruitment and retention;
• establish a promotional track system for employees who are technical experts to advance without being required to transition to management positions;
• develop a program to transition military medical people into VHA employment;
• develop a plan to hire qualified directors for each medical center without a permanent director;
• develop a standardized VA exit survey; and
• ensure that a recruiter for each Veterans Integrated Service Network visits, at least annually, each allopathic and osteopathic teaching institution with a graduate medical education program within the network to recruit individuals to be appointed to VHA positions.

The VA may non-competitively appoint a qualified former career or career conditional employee to any VA position within the competitive service that is one grade higher than the position most recently occupied by the employee.