[Congressional Bills 109th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 4277 Introduced in House (IH)]







109th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 4277

To amend title 38, United States Code, to provide veterans enrolled in 
 the health system of the Department of Veterans Affairs the option of 
 receiving covered health services through facilities other than those 
                           of the Department.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                            November 9, 2005

   Mr. Latham (for himself, Mr. Peterson of Minnesota, Mr. McCaul of 
Texas, Mr. Goode, and Mr. Fortuno) introduced the following bill; which 
           was referred to the Committee on Veterans' Affairs

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
To amend title 38, United States Code, to provide veterans enrolled in 
 the health system of the Department of Veterans Affairs the option of 
 receiving covered health services through facilities other than those 
                           of the Department.

    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 ``Veterans' Access to Local Health 
Care Options and Resources Act''.

SEC. 2. REQUIREMENT FOR PAYMENTS TO FACILITIES OTHER THAN THE 
              DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS FOR COVERED HEALTH 
              SERVICES.

    (a) Requirement to Authorize Receipt of Covered Health Services at 
Non-Department Facilities Pursuant to Contracts With Such Facilities.--
Subsection (a) of section 1703 of title 38, United States Code, is 
amended to read as follows:
    ``(a) An enrolled veteran may elect to receive covered health 
services through a non-Department facility. Such an election shall be 
made by submission to the Secretary of an application in accordance 
with such regulations as the Secretary prescribes. The Secretary shall 
authorize such services to be furnished to such veteran pursuant to 
contracting with such a facility to furnish such services to such a 
veteran, as authorized in section 1710 of this title.''.
    (b) Descriptions of Covered Health Services and Enrolled 
Veterans.--Such section is further amended by adding at the end the 
following new subsection:
    ``(e) For purposes of subsection (a)--
            ``(1) a covered health service is any hospital care, 
        medical service, rehabilitative service, or preventative health 
        service for which the veteran described in such subsection is 
        eligible under this title; and
            ``(2) an enrolled veteran is a veteran who is enrolled in 
        the system of patient enrollment established under section 
        1705(a) of this title.''.

SEC. 3. EFFECTIVE DATE.

    The Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall implement the amendments 
made by section 2 in order for enrolled veterans described in section 
1703(e)(2) of title 38, United States Code, as added by section 2(b), 
to receive covered health services in accordance with section 1703(a) 
of such title, as amended by section 2(a), starting on January 1, 2007.
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