[Congressional Bills 105th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 3948 Introduced in House (IH)]







105th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 3948

  To maintain health care coverage for veterans by the Department of 
  Veterans Affairs for tobacco related illnesses, and to provide for 
     additional authorization of appropriations for the Department.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                              May 22, 1998

  Mr. Klink (for himself, Mr. Murtha, Mr. Fattah, Mr. Kanjorski, Mr. 
 Doyle, Mr. Etheridge, Mrs. Emerson, Mr. Hall of Ohio, Mr. Traficant, 
Mr. Mascara, Mr. Holden, Mrs. Thurman, Mr. Gejdenson, Ms. Stabenow, Mr. 
     Stupak, Mr. Rush, Mr. McDermott, Mr. Smith of New Jersey, Mr. 
  Strickland, Mr. Fox of Pennsylvania, Mr. Rodriguez, Mr. English of 
  Pennsylvania, Mr. Brady of Pennsylvania, Mr. Manton, Mr. Kennedy of 
 Massachusetts, Mr. Hinchey, Mrs. McCarthy of New York, Mr. Green, Mr. 
    Nadler, and Mr. Goode) introduced the following bill; which was 
             referred to the Committee on Veterans' Affairs

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
  To maintain health care coverage for veterans by the Department of 
  Veterans Affairs for tobacco related illnesses, and to provide for 
     additional authorization of appropriations for the Department.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. FINDING.

    The Congress finds that the United States has both directly and 
indirectly facilitated tobacco use by members of the Armed Forces in 
that--
            (1) from the time of the Civil War until 1956, the Army was 
        required by law ``to cause tobacco to be furnished to the 
        enlisted men of the army at cost prices, exclusive of the cost 
        of transportation, in such quantities as they may require, not 
        exceeding sixteen ounces per month'' with the cost deducted 
        from their pay;
            (2) the Air Force is still required by law to make tobacco 
        available for sale to enlisted members;
            (3) cigarettes have been distributed free of charge to 
        members of the Armed Forces as part of the food and sundries 
        packets referred to as ``C-rations'';
            (4) tobacco products have been and continue to be sold by 
        military exchanges at substantially discounted rates, thus 
        actively encouraging tobacco usage by military personnel, and 
        as late as 1996 commissary tobacco prices were as much as 76 
        percent lower than commercial retail prices;
            (5) the military culture historically has recognized, 
        encouraged, and supported cigarette smoking by servicemembers 
        (``Smoke 'em if you've got 'em.'');
            (6) a significant number of veterans were nonsmokers upon 
        entering military service and began smoking during military 
        service, and reliable studies indicate that 75 percent of World 
        War II veterans began smoking tobacco products as young adults 
        during the course of their military service;
            (7) labeling requirements warning of the addictive nature 
        of nicotine and the dangers of tobacco-related products, which 
        were applicable to tobacco products sold in the commercial 
        market, were not mandated for products distributed through the 
        military system until 1970, five years after the requirement 
        was applied to products sold in the civilian market; and
            (8) the Department of Veterans Affairs has been authorized 
        by law to provide tobacco to veterans receiving hospital or 
        domiciliary care since 1957 and was authorized to do so by 
        regulation since at least 1933.

SEC. 2. SERVICE-CONNECTED COMPENSATION FOR TOBACCO-RELATED ILLNESSES OF 
              VETERANS.

    Notwithstanding any other provision of law, for purposes of 
sections 1110 or 1131 of title 38, United States Code, in the case of a 
disability of a veteran from a disease or injury that may be 
attributable, in whole or in part, to that veteran's use of tobacco 
products, the veteran shall be entitled to payment of compensation 
under chapter 11 of such title.

SEC. 3. INCREASE IN AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS FOR THE DEPARTMENT 
              OF VETERANS AFFAIRS.

    In addition to amounts otherwise authorized to be appropriated for 
the Department of Veterans Affairs for fiscal year 1999, there is 
hereby authorized to be appropriated for the Department $1,000,000,000 
for such fiscal year.
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