[Congressional Bills 108th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 1694 Introduced in Senate (IS)]






108th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                S. 1694

 To amend title 38, United States Code, to authorize the Secretary of 
   Veterans Affairs to provide veterans who participated in certain 
  Department of Defense chemical and biological warfare testing to be 
   provided health care for illness without requirement for proof of 
                          service-connection.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                            October 1, 2003

 Mr. Brownback introduced the following bill; which was read twice and 
             referred to the Committee on Veterans' Affairs

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
 To amend title 38, United States Code, to authorize the Secretary of 
   Veterans Affairs to provide veterans who participated in certain 
  Department of Defense chemical and biological warfare testing to be 
   provided health care for illness without requirement for proof of 
                          service-connection.

    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 ``Health Care for Veterans of Project 
112/Project SHAD Act of 2003''.

SEC. 2. PROVISION OF HEALTH CARE TO VETERANS WHO PARTICIPATED IN 
              CERTAIN DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE CHEMICAL AND BIOLOGICAL 
              WARFARE TESTING.

    Section 1710(e) of title 38, United States Code, is amended--
            (1) in paragraph (1), by adding at the end the following 
        new subparagraph:
    ``(E) Subject to paragraphs (2) and (3), a veteran who participated 
in a test conducted by the Department of Defense Deseret Test Center as 
part of a program for chemical and biological warfare testing from 1962 
through 1973 (including the program designated as `Project Shipboard 
Hazard and Defense (SHAD)' and related land-based tests) is eligible 
for hospital care, medical services, and nursing home care under 
subsection (a)(2)(F) for any illness, notwithstanding that there is 
insufficient medical evidence to conclude that such illness is 
attributable to such testing.'';
            (2) in paragraph (2)(B), by striking ``paragraph (1)(C) or 
        (1)(D)'' and inserting ``subparagraph (C), (D), or (E) of 
        paragraph (1)''; and
            (3) in paragraph (3)--
                    (A) by striking ``and'' at the end of subparagraph 
                (B);
                    (B) by striking the period at the end of 
                subparagraph (C) and inserting ``; and''; and
                    (C) by adding at the end the following new 
                subparagraph:
            ``(D) in the case of care for a veteran described in 
        paragraph (1)(E), after December 31, 2005.''.
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