1.This Act may be cited as the
Veterans Rural Health Improvement Act
of 2011
.
2.Centers of excellence for rural health
research, education, and clinical activities
(a)Subchapter II of chapter 73 of title 38,
United States Code, is amended by adding at the end the following new
section:
7330B.Centers of excellence for rural health
research, education, and clinical activities
(a)The Secretary shall, through the Director
of the Office of Rural Health, establish and operate at least one and not more
than five centers of excellence for rural health research, education, and
clinical activities, which shall—
(1)conduct research on the furnishing of
health services in rural areas;
(2)develop specific models to be used by the
Department in furnishing health services to veterans in rural areas;
(3)provide education and training for health
care professionals of the Department on the furnishing of health services to
veterans in rural areas; and
(4)develop and implement innovative clinical
activities and systems of care for the Department for the furnishing of health
services to veterans in rural areas.
(b)Use of rural
health resource centersIn
selecting locations for the establishment of centers of excellence under
subsection (a), the Secretary may select a rural health resource center that
meets the requirements of subsection (a).
(c)The Secretary shall ensure that the centers
established under this section are located at health care facilities that are
geographically dispersed throughout the United States.
(d)(1)There are authorized to be appropriated to
the Medical Care Account and the Medical and Prosthetics Research Account of
the Department of Veterans Affairs such sums as may be necessary for the
support of the research and education activities of the centers operated under
this section.
(2)There shall be allocated to the centers
operated under this section, from amounts authorized to be appropriated to the
Medical Care Account and the Medical and Prosthetics Research Account by
paragraph (1), such amounts as the Under Secretary of Health considers
appropriate for such centers. Such amounts shall be allocated through the
Director of the Office of Rural Health.
(3)Activities of clinical and scientific
investigation at each center operated under this section—
(A)shall be eligible to compete for the award
of funding from funds appropriated for the Medical and Prosthetics Research
Account; and
(B)shall receive priority in the award of
funding from such account to the extent that funds are awarded to projects for
research in the care of rural
veterans.
.
(b)The table of sections at the beginning of
chapter 73 of such title is amended by inserting after the item relating to
section 7330A the following new item:
7330B. Centers of excellence
for rural health research, education, and clinical
activities.
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(c)Recognition of
rural health resource centers in Office of Rural HealthSection
7308 of such title is amended by adding at the end the following new
subsection:
(d)Rural health
resource centers(1)There are in the Office veterans rural
health resource centers that serve as satellite offices for the Office.
(2)The veterans rural health resource centers
have purposes as follows:
(A)To
improve the understanding of the Office of the challenges faced by veterans
living in rural areas.
(B)To
identify disparities in the availability of health care to veterans living in
rural areas.
(C)To
formulate practices or programs to enhance the delivery of health care to
veterans living in rural areas.
(D)To
develop special practices and products for the benefit of veterans living in
rural areas and for implementation of such practices and products in the
Department
systemwide.
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