[Congressional Bills 109th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 2959 Introduced in House (IH)]






109th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 2959

To amend title 38, United States Code, to provide for the establishment 
 of Parkinson's Disease Research Education and Clinical Centers in the 
 Veterans Health Administration of the Department of Veterans Affairs.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             June 17, 2005

Mr. Evans (for himself, Mr. Baker, Mr. Boehlert, Mr. Udall of Colorado, 
Mrs. Maloney, Mr. Pickering, Ms. Hooley, Mr. King of New York, and Mr. 
 Blumenauer) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
                     Committee on Veterans' Affairs

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
To amend title 38, United States Code, to provide for the establishment 
 of Parkinson's Disease Research Education and Clinical Centers in the 
 Veterans Health Administration of the Department of Veterans Affairs.

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

SECTION 1. PARKINSON'S DISEASE RESEARCH, EDUCATION, AND CLINICAL 
              CENTERS.

    (a) Requirement for Establishment of Centers.--
            (1) In general.--Subchapter II of chapter 73 of title 38, 
        United States Code, is amended by adding at the end the 
        following new section:
``Sec. 7329. Parkinson's disease research, education, and clinical 
              centers
    ``(a) The Secretary, upon the recommendation of the Under Secretary 
for Health and pursuant to the provisions of this section, shall 
designate six Department health-care facilities as the locations for 
centers of Parkinson's Disease research, education, and clinical 
activities and (subject to the appropriation of sufficient funds for 
such purpose) shall establish and operate such centers at such 
locations in accordance with this section.
    ``(b) In designating locations for centers under subsection (a), 
the Secretary, upon the recommendation of the Under Secretary for 
Health, shall--
            ``(1) designate each Department health-care facility that 
        as of January 1, 2005, was operating a Parkinson's Disease 
        research, education, and clinical center unless (on the 
        recommendation of the Under Secretary for Health) the Secretary 
        determines that such facility does not meet the requirements of 
        subsection (c) or has not demonstrated effectiveness in 
        carrying out the established purposes of such center or the 
        potential to carry out such purposes effectively in the 
        reasonably foreseeable future; and
            ``(2) assure appropriate geographic distribution of such 
        facilities.
    ``(c) The Secretary may not designate a health-care facility as a 
location for a center under subsection (a) unless the peer review panel 
established under subsection (d) has determined under that subsection 
that the proposal submitted by such facility as a location for a new 
center under subsection (a) is among those proposals which have met the 
highest competitive standards of scientific and clinical merit, and the 
Secretary (upon the recommendation of the Under Secretary for Health) 
determines that the facility has (or may reasonably be anticipated to 
develop) each of the following:
            ``(1) An arrangement with an accredited medical school 
        which provides education and training in neurology and with 
        which such facility is affiliated under which residents receive 
        education and training in innovative diagnosis and treatment of 
        chronic neurodegenerative diseases and movement disorders, 
        including Parkinson's disease.
            ``(2) The ability to attract the participation of 
        scientists who are capable of ingenuity and creativity in 
        health-care research efforts.
            ``(3) A policymaking advisory committee composed of 
        appropriate health-care and research representatives of the 
        facility and of the affiliated school or schools to advise the 
        directors of such facility and such center on policy matters 
        pertaining to the activities of such center during the period 
        of the operation of such center.
            ``(4) The capability to conduct effectively evaluations of 
        the activities of such center.
            ``(5) The capability to coordinate, as part of an 
        integrated national system, education, clinical, and research 
        activities within all facilities with such centers.
            ``(6) The capability to jointly develop a consortium of 
        providers with interest in treating neurodegenerative diseases, 
        including Parkinson's Disease, and other movement disorders, at 
        facilities without such centers in order to ensure better 
        access to state-of-the-art diagnosis, care, and education for 
        neurodegenerative disorders throughout the health care system.
            ``(7) The capability to develop a national repository for 
        the collection of data on health services delivered to veterans 
        seeking care for neurodegenerative diseases, including 
        Parkinson's Disease, and other movement disorders in the health 
        care system.
    ``(d)(1) The Under Secretary for Health shall establish a panel to 
assess the scientific and clinical merit of proposals that are 
submitted to the Secretary for the establishment of new centers under 
this section.
    ``(2)(A) The membership of the panel shall consist of experts in 
neurodegenerative diseases, including Parkinson's Disease, and other 
movement disorders.
    ``(B) Members of the panel shall serve as consultants to the 
Department for a period of no longer than two years except in the case 
of panelists asked to serve on the initial panel as specified in 
subparagraph (C).
    ``(C) In order to ensure panel continuity, half of the members of 
the first panel shall be appointed for a period of three years and half 
for a period of two years.
    ``(3) The panel shall review each proposal submitted to the panel 
by the Under Secretary and shall submit its views on the relative 
scientific and clinical merit of each such proposal to the Under 
Secretary.
    ``(4) The panel shall not be subject to the Federal Advisory 
Committee Act.
    ``(e) Before providing funds for the operation of any such center 
at a health-care facility other than a health-care facility designated 
under subsection (b)(1), the Secretary shall assure that the center at 
each facility designated under such subsection is receiving adequate 
funding to enable such center to function effectively in the areas of 
Parkinson's Disease research, education, and clinical activities.
    ``(f) There are authorized to be appropriated such sums as may be 
necessary for the support of the research and education activities of 
the centers established pursuant to subsection (a). The Under Secretary 
for Health shall allocate to such centers from other funds appropriated 
generally for the Department medical services account and medical and 
prosthetics research account, as appropriate, such amounts as the Under 
Secretary for Health determines appropriate.
    ``(g) Activities of clinical and scientific investigation at each 
center established under subsection (a) shall be eligible to compete 
for the award of funding from funds appropriated for the Department 
medical and prosthetics research account and shall receive priority in 
the award of funding from such account insofar as funds are awarded to 
projects for research in Parkinson's disease and other movement 
disorders.''.
            (2) Clerical amendment.--The table of sections at the 
        beginning of such chapter is amended by inserting after the 
        item relating to section 7328 the following new item:

``7329. Parkinson's disease research, education, and clinical 
                            centers.''.
    (b) Effective Date.--Section 7329 of title 38, United States Code, 
as added by subsection (a), shall take effect on October 1, 2005.
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