1.
(a)In order to continue and expand the study
of urotrauma conducted by the Secretary of Defense in 2011, subject to the
availability of appropriations for such purpose, the Secretary shall establish
a commission to be known as the Commission on Urotrauma
(in this
section referred to as the Commission
).
(b)In
carrying out this section, the Secretary of Defense shall consult with the
Secretary of Veterans Affairs and the Secretary of Health and Human
Services.
(c)The Commission shall conduct a study on
urotrauma among members of the Armed Forces and veterans, including—
(1)an analysis of the
incidence, duration, morbidity rate, and mortality rate of urotrauma;
(2)an analysis of the social and economic
costs and effects of urotrauma;
(3)with respect to
the Department of Defense and Department of Veterans Affairs, an evaluation of
the facilities, access to private facilities, resources, personnel, and
research activities that are related to the diagnosis, prevention, and
treatment of urotrauma;
(4)an evaluation of
programs (including such biological, behavioral, environmental, and social
programs) that improve the prevention or treatment of urotrauma;
(5)a
long-term plan for the use and organization of the resources of the Federal
Government to improve the prevention and treatment of urotrauma; and
(6)updates to any
study on urotrauma conducted by the Secretary of Defense in 2011.
(d)
(1)In addition to the ex officio members described in
paragraph (2), the Committee shall be composed of 19 members as follows:
(A)Sixteen members
appointed by the Secretary of Defense.
(B)One member appointed by the Secretary of
Health and Human Services from among officers or employees of the National
Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases whose primary interest
is in the field of urotrauma.
(C)The Chief of the
Department of Surgery of Walter Reed National Military Medical Center.
(D)The Chief Medical
Director of the Department of Veterans Affairs.
(2)The nonvoting, ex officio members of the Commission are
as follows:
(A)The Surgeon
General of the Navy.
(B)The Surgeon
General of the Army.
(C)The Surgeon
General of the Air Force.
(D)The Medical
Officer of the Marine Corps.
(E)The Director of
the National Institutes of Health.
(F)The Director of
the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases.
(G)The Director of
the Division of Kidney, Urologic, and Hematologic Diseases of the National
Institute of Diabetes and Digestive Kidney Diseases.
(H)The Director of
the National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering.
(3)In
appointing members under paragraph (1)(A), the Secretary of Defense shall
appoint individuals with experience related to—
(A)studying or
researching urotrauma;
(B)preventing or
treating urotrauma; or
(C)suffering from
urotrauma.
(4)Each member shall be appointed for the life
of the Commission.
(5)A vacancy in the Commission shall be filled
in the manner in which the original appointment was made.
(6)
(A)Except as provided
in subparagraph (C), members of the Commission shall serve without pay.
(B)Except as provided in subparagraph (C),
members of the Commission who are full-time officers or employees of the United
States may not receive additional pay, allowances, or benefits by reason of
their service on the Commission.
(C)Each member shall receive travel expenses,
including per diem in lieu of subsistence, in accordance with applicable
provisions under subchapter I of chapter 57 of title 5, United States
Code.
(7)A majority of members of the Commission
shall constitute a quorum but a lesser number may hold hearings.
(8)The
Secretary of Defense shall designate a member as the chairperson of the
Committee.
(9)The
Commission shall meet at the call of the chairperson.
(e)
(1)The
Commission shall have a director who shall be appointed by the
chairperson.
(2)Subject
to rules prescribed by the Commission, the chairperson may appoint additional
personnel as the chairperson considers appropriate.
(3)Applicability of
certain civil service lawsThe director and staff of the
Commission shall be appointed subject to the provisions of title 5, United
States Code, governing appointments in the competitive service, and shall be
paid in accordance with the provisions of chapter 51 and subchapter III of
chapter 53 of that title relating to classification and General Schedule pay
rates.
(4)Subject to rules prescribed by the Commission, the
chairperson may procure temporary and intermittent services under section
3109(b) of title 5, United States Code.
(5)Staff to federal
agenciesUpon request of the chairperson, the head of any Federal
department or agency may detail, on a reimbursable basis, any of the personnel
of that department or agency to the Commission to assist it in carrying out its
duties under this section.
(f)
(1)The Commission may, for the purpose of carrying out this
section, hold hearings, sit and act at times and places, take testimony, and
receive evidence as the Commission considers appropriate. The Commission may
administer oaths or affirmations to witnesses appearing before it.
(2)Powers of
Members and agentsAny member or agent of the Commission may, if
authorized by the Commission, take any action which the Commission is
authorized to take by this section.
(3)The Commission
may secure directly from any department or agency of the United States
information necessary to enable it to carry out this section. Upon request of
the chairperson of the Commission, the head of that department or agency shall
furnish that information to the Commission.
(4)The Commission may use the United States
mails in the same manner and under the same conditions as other departments and
agencies of the United States.
(5)Administrative
support servicesUpon the
request of the Commission, the Administrator of General Services shall provide
to the Commission, on a reimbursable basis, the administrative support services
necessary for the Commission to carry out its responsibilities under this
section.
(g)
(1)Not later than one
year after the date on which the members are appointed under subsection (d)(1),
the Commission shall submit to the appropriate congressional committees an
interim report on the study conducted under subsection (c).
(2)Not later than two
years after the date on which the members are appointed under subsection
(d)(1), the Commission shall submit to the appropriate congressional committees
a final report on the study conducted under subsection (c), including any
recommendations the Commission considers appropriate to improve the prevention
and treatment of urotrauma among members of the Armed Forces and
veterans.
(h)The
Commission shall terminate on the date that is 60 days after the date on which
the Commission submits the final report under subsection (g)(2).
(i)In this section:
(1)The term
appropriate congressional committees means—
(A)the Committees on
Armed Services of the House of Representatives and Senate; and
(B)the Committees on Veterans’ Affairs of the
House of Representatives and Senate.
(2)The term
urotrauma means injury to the urinary tract (including the
kidneys, ureters, urinary bladder, urethra, and female and male genitalia) from
a penetrating, blunt, blast, thermal, chemical, or biological cause.
(j)Authorization of
Appropriations
(1)There
is authorized to be appropriated to carry out this section $1,000,000 for each
of fiscal years 2012 through 2015.
(2)The
amount otherwise authorized to be appropriated for operation and maintenance,
Defense-wide, for the Office of the Secretary of Defense for each of fiscal
years 2012 through 2015 is reduced by $1,000,000.