[Congressional Bills 110th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 1578 Introduced in House (IH)]







110th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 1578

    To establish and monitor medical holdover performance standards.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             March 20, 2007

 Mr. Shays (for himself, Mr. Tom Davis of Virginia, Mr. Buchanan, and 
Mr. Bilirakis) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
                      Committee on Armed Services

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
    To establish and monitor medical holdover performance standards.

    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 ``Wounded Warriors Joint Health Care 
Performance Metrics and Transparency Act''.

SEC. 2. ESTABLISHMENT AND MONITORING OF MEDICAL HOLDOVER PERFORMANCE 
              STANDARDS.

    (a) Requirement for Performance Standards for Medical Holdover 
Process.--The Secretary of Defense shall assign the Assistant Secretary 
of Defense for Health Affairs the responsibility for establishing 
performance standards for each step of the medical holdover process, 
including the following:
            (1) Mobilization.
            (2) Medical condition.
            (3) MNO decision.
            (4) Disposition plan.
            (5) Execution plan.
            (6) Final disposition decision of a medical evaluation 
        board or physical evaluation board.
            (7) Transition.
    (b) Quarterly Inspections.--
            (1) Requirement for inspections.--The Secretary of Defense, 
        acting through the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Health 
        Affairs, shall require each military medical installation to 
        perform a quarterly inspection based on the performance 
        standards established under subsection (a) of the following: 
        command and control responsibilities, billeting, staffing, 
        soldier administration, staff training, in and out processing, 
        transition and separation processing, dining facilities and 
        other non-medical patient services, transportation, medical 
        case management, medical care, access and documentation, and 
        medical database and medical records quality. Inspections teams 
        should include representatives from all commands with 
        jurisdiction over medical and administrative services provided 
        to injured and wounded soldiers, and shall include 
        representatives from the Department of Defense and the 
        Inspector General of the Department of Defense.
            (2) Inspection reports.--The Assistant Secretary shall 
        require a report on each inspection carried out under paragraph 
        (1) to be submitted to the Secretary of Defense, the Inspector 
        General of the Department of Defense, each command or agency 
        with jurisdiction, the Secretary of each military department, 
        the chief of staff of each Armed Force, and the inspector 
        general of each military department.
    (c) Additional Specific Standards.--
            (1) Security and medical personnel.--The Assistant 
        Secretary of Defense for Health Affairs shall develop and 
        enforce standards for security personnel and medical personnel 
        to perform daily rounds of each medical inpatient and 
        outpatient facility. The standards shall include a requirement 
        for access to help 24 hours a day for patients with medical 
        emergencies or needs.
            (2) Timeliness.--The Assistant Secretary also shall develop 
        and enforce standards for setting time standards for responding 
        to patient questions and scheduling appointments for medical 
        evaluation board and physical evaluation board evaluations.
            (3) Processing.--The Assistant Secretary also shall develop 
        and enforce in-processing and out-processing standards, patient 
        counseling standards, and information standards to address 
        patient and family members on all aspects of care, including 
        medical and administrative evaluation procedures and 
        requirements.
    (d) Monthly Reports.--
            (1) Requirement.--The Assistant Secretary of Defense for 
        Health Affairs shall submit to the Secretary of Defense and the 
        Inspector General of the Department of Defense a monthly report 
        on military service performance in all categories of medical 
        holdover patient care including, at a minimum, inspections, 
        individual patient information, trends and problems, 
        statistical information on time of patients in medical holdover 
        status, performance of service commands, and other service 
        personnel serving patients and families in medical holder 
        status.
            (2) Additional matters covered.--The report also shall 
        contain--
                    (A) information on all individual patient 
                complaints and action taken to mediate the patient 
                concern;
                    (B) information on all concerns raised by patient 
                advocates to military service installation commanders 
                and report on actions taken; and
                    (C) statistical information on the incidence, 
                treatments, and outcomes of traumatic brain injury 
                patients among the medical holdover patient population.
    (e) Semi-Annual Meetings.--The Assistant Secretary of Defense for 
Health Affairs shall meet semi-annually with the Secretaries of the 
military departments to address medical holdover program execution, 
including all medical and administrative issues, force structure, 
manning, training, and resource requirements.
    (f) Inspector General Responsibilities.--The Inspector General of 
the Department of Defense shall audit and review the medical holdover 
system and the performance standards developed under this section and 
shall submit quarterly reports to the Assistant Secretary of Defense 
for Health Affairs, the Secretaries of the military departments, and 
the following congressional committees:
            (1) The Committees on Armed Services of the Senate and the 
        House of Representatives.
            (2) The Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental 
        Affairs of the Senate.
            (3) The Committee on Oversight and Government Reform of the 
        House of Representatives.
    (g) Medical Holdover Patient.--In this Act, the term ``medical 
holdover patient'' means a member of the Armed Forces, including a 
member of the National Guard or other reserve component, who is 
undergoing medical treatment, recuperation, or therapy, or is otherwise 
in medical hold or holdover status, for an injury, illness, or disease 
incurred or aggravated while on active duty in the Armed Forces.
    (h) Authorization.--There is authorized to be appropriated to carry 
out--
            (1) subsections (a) through (e) of this Act, $1,000,000 for 
        fiscal year 2007; and
            (2) subsection (f) of this Act, $2,000,000 for fiscal year 
        2007 and $3,000,000 for fiscal year 2008.
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