[Congressional Bills 108th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 2874 Introduced in House (IH)]






108th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 2874

To amend title 38, United States Code, to provide improved prescription 
                      drug benefits for veterans.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             July 24, 2003

Ms. Hooley of Oregon introduced the following bill; which was referred 
                 to the Committee on Veterans' Affairs

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
To amend title 38, United States Code, to provide improved prescription 
                      drug benefits for veterans.

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

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Improving Access to Prescription 
Drug Benefits for Veterans Act of 2003''.

SEC. 2. PRESCRIPTION DRUG BENEFIT FOR VETERANS.

    (a) In General.--(1) Chapter 17 of title 38, United States Code, is 
amended by inserting after section 1722A the following new section:
``Sec. 1722B. Prescription drug benefit
    ``(a) Benefit.--The Secretary shall establish a prescription drug 
benefit program in accordance with this section. Under the program, the 
Secretary shall furnish to veterans described in subsection (b) drugs 
and medicines ordered on prescription of a duly licensed physician or 
other authorized health care professional who is not an employee of the 
Department, subject to the payment of any applicable premium and 
copayment under this section.
    ``(b) Veterans Eligible for Benefit.--A veteran is eligible to 
participate in the prescription drug benefit program under this section 
if the veteran--
            ``(1) is enrolled in the Department health care system 
        under section 1705 of this title;
            ``(2) seeks an initial appointment with a physician or 
        other health-care provider of the Department to obtain a 
        prescription for drugs or medicines; and
            ``(3) either--
                    ``(A) is informed that such an appointment may be 
                made only for a date that is more than 30 days after 
                the date on which the veteran makes the contact seeking 
                the appointment; or
                    ``(B) otherwise, through no responsibility of the 
                veteran, does not actually have such an appointment 
                within 30 days of the date on which the veteran makes 
                the contact seeking the appointment.
    ``(c) Annual Premium and Copayments.--(1) The Secretary shall by 
regulation establish an annual premium amount that must be paid to the 
United States by a veteran for drugs and medicines furnished under this 
section each year before such drugs and medicines are furnished to that 
veteran at the expense of the United States that year.
    ``(2) The Secretary shall by regulation establish an amount (known 
as a `copayment') that must be paid to the United States by a veteran 
for each 30-day supply of drugs and medicines furnished under this 
section. If the quantity of such drugs and medicines furnished is less 
than a 30-day supply, the amount of the copayment charge may not be 
reduced.
    ``(3) The Secretary may establish different copayment amounts for 
prescriptions depending on--
            ``(A) whether they are filled under a generic drug name or 
        by brand name;
            ``(B) whether or not they are available by mail; and
            ``(C) whether or not they are on the Department's National 
        Prescription Drug Formulary.
    ``(4) The amount of the copayment charged for any particular 
prescription--
            ``(A) may not be less than the amount in effect under 
        section 1722A of this title for the copayment for medications 
        furnished by the Department on prescription of Department 
        health-care professionals; and
            ``(B) subject to subparagraph (A), may not exceed the cost 
        to the Secretary of furnishing the drugs or medicine.
    ``(d) Disposition of Receipts.--Any amount received under 
subsection (c) shall be deposited in the Department of Veterans Affairs 
Medical Care Collections Fund.
    ``(e) Nonliability.--A health care professional may not be 
considered to be an agent or employee of the United States by reason of 
a prescription of that health care professional being furnished by the 
Secretary under this section.
    ``(f) Information Resources.--(1) The Secretary shall maintain 
records of the costs of the program under this section.
    ``(2) Not later than six years after the date of the enactment of 
this section, the Secretary shall implement a computerized patient 
profile system for participants in the prescription drug benefit 
program under this section. The patient profile system shall have the 
capability, for each participant in the program, of identifying--
            ``(A) known drug interactions;
            ``(B) contraindicated drugs;
            ``(C) available `best value' treatment alternatives for 
        prescribed medications; and
            ``(D) patient safety issues.
    ``(g) Annual Report to Congress.--The Secretary shall submit to 
Congress an annual report on the operation of this section for each of 
the first five years this section is in effect. Each such report shall 
include the following:
            ``(1) The number of participants in the program during the 
        year covered by the report and, of that number, the number who 
        were new enrollees during that year.
            ``(2) The cost to the Department of the program under this 
        section during the year covered by the report.
            ``(3) The amount of resources added during the year covered 
        by the report to accommodate increased workloads by reason of 
        this section.
    ``(h) Regulations.--The Secretary shall prescribe regulations to 
carry out this section.''.
    (2) The table of sections at the beginning of such chapter is 
amended by inserting after the item relating to section 1722A the 
following new item:

``1722B. Prescription drug benefit.''.
    (b) Effective Date.--Section 1722B of title 38, United States Code, 
as added by subsection (a), shall take effect on the first day of the 
first month beginning more than six months after the date of the 
enactment of this Act.
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