[Congressional Bills 115th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 5920 Introduced in House (IH)]

<DOC>






115th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 5920

   To direct the Secretary of Veterans Affairs and the Secretary of 
 Defense to submit to Congress an annual report on open burn pits, and 
                          for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                              May 22, 2018

 Ms. Shea-Porter introduced the following bill; which was referred to 
the Committee on Veterans' Affairs, and in addition to the Committee on 
   Armed Services, for a period to be subsequently determined by the 
  Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall 
           within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
   To direct the Secretary of Veterans Affairs and the Secretary of 
 Defense to submit to Congress an annual report on open burn pits, and 
                          for other purposes.

    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 ``Airborne Hazards and Open Burn Pit 
Registry Improvement Act''.

SEC. 2. BURN PITS.

    (a) 2018 NDAA.--Section 738 of the National Defense Authorization 
Act for Fiscal Year 2018 (Public Law 115-91) is amended by inserting 
``in consultation with the War Related Illness and Injury Study 
Center,'' before ``shall coordinate efforts''.
    (b) Reports.--
            (1) Secretary of veterans affairs.--Not later than January 
        1, 2019, and annually thereafter, the Secretary of Veterans 
        Affairs shall submit reports to the Committees on Armed 
        Services and on Veterans' Affairs of the House of 
        Representatives and Senate regarding the following:
                    (A) New research and proposed policy changes of the 
                Department of Veterans Affairs regarding efforts to 
                identify, investigate, diagnose, treat, and heal 
                medical conditions suffered by veterans related to 
                exposure to open burn pits.
                    (B) The number of veterans who received hospital 
                care or medical services furnished by the Secretary 
                during the preceding year for medical conditions 
                related to exposure to open burn pits, including--
                            (i) the medical conditions related to 
                        exposure to open burn pits; and
                            (ii) when and where the veterans were 
                        exposed to open burn pits.
                    (C) Plans of the Secretary to utilize and improve 
                the Airborne Hazards and Open Burn Pit Registry 
                (referred to in this section as ``the Registry''), 
                including--
                            (i) outreach to veterans who have already 
                        registered responded to the Registry 
                        questionnaire regarding new information learned 
                        about medical conditions related to exposure to 
                        open burn pits;
                            (ii) outreach to members of the Armed 
                        Forces and veterans who were exposed to open 
                        burn pits to encourage such persons to respond 
                        to the Registry questionnaire;
                            (iii) partnerships between the Secretary 
                        and the Secretary of Defense to identify and 
                        inform members of the Armed Forces and veterans 
                        who were exposed to open burn pits;
                            (iv) actions taken to simplify the Registry 
                        questionnaire, including allowing members of 
                        the Armed Forces and veterans to input 
                        pertinent information automatically from the 
                        Departments of Veterans Affairs and Defense;
                            (v) actions taken to allow members of the 
                        Armed Forces and veterans to update answers to 
                        the Registry questionnaire;
                            (vi) actions taken to allow the matching of 
                        information in the Registry to data in the 
                        possession of the Health Administration and 
                        Benefits Administration of the Department;
                            (vii) actions taken to make data described 
                        in clause (vi) available for longitudinal 
                        studies;
                            (viii) privacy issues related to the 
                        Registry that the Secretary has identified and 
                        actions taken to mitigate such issues; and
                            (ix) actions taken to model the Registry on 
                        other successful registries, including 
                        registries operated by the Centers for Disease 
                        Control and Prevention.
                    (D) An overview of initial claims and approved 
                claims for compensation or health care related to open 
                burn pit exposures.
                    (E) Coordination between the Department and any 
                other Federal agency or non-governmental entity related 
                to the research and treatment of medical conditions 
                related to exposure to open burn pits.
                    (F) Actions taken by the Secretary to update the 
                2011 Institute of Medicine report titled ``Long-Term 
                Health Consequences of Exposure to Burn Pits in Iraq 
                and Afghanistan''.
                    (G) Any plan of the Secretary to conduct research 
                to address areas that the National Academy of Medicine 
                identifies as having limited, suggestive, inadequate, 
                or insufficient evidence to determine whether an 
                association exists between exposure to open burn pits 
                and an illness, symptom, or disease.
                    (H) The strategy of the Secretary to educate health 
                care providers (including non-Department providers) who 
                treat veterans regarding the assessment, diagnosis, and 
                treatment of medical conditions related to exposure to 
                open burn pits, including the following:
                            (i) How the Secretary measures whether 
                        providers are aware of and versed in the 
                        environmental exposure knowledge base.
                            (ii) Whether and how providers screen 
                        veterans for medical conditions related to 
                        exposure to open burn pits.
                            (iii) Methods (including direct questions) 
                        that providers use to identify veterans who 
                        were likely exposed to open burn pits.
                            (iv) Whether and how providers refer 
                        veterans who were exposed to open burn pits to 
                        appropriate specialists.
                            (v) Whether and how the Secretary tracks 
                        referrals described in clause (v) and related 
                        outcomes.
                            (vi) Whether the Secretary is conducting 
                        any ongoing research regarding veterans who 
                        were exposed to open burn pits and related 
                        health outcomes.
                            (vii) What training the Secretary provides 
                        for providers regarding the assessment, 
                        diagnosis, and treatment of medical conditions 
                        related to exposure to open burn pits.
                            (viii) How many providers have received 
                        training described in clause (viii).
                    (I) Coordination with the Department of Defense and 
                related information regarding veterans exposed to open 
                burn pits.
                    (J) Resources and legislation the Secretary 
                determines to be necessary to identify, mitigate, 
                investigate, diagnose, treat, and heal medical 
                conditions related to open burn pit exposures.
            (2) Secretary of defense.--Not later than January 1, 2019, 
        and annually thereafter, the Secretary of Defense shall submit 
        reports to the Committees on Armed Services and on Veterans' 
        Affairs of the House of Representatives and Senate regarding 
        the following:
                    (A) Actions taken to identify and inform members of 
                the Armed Forces and veterans exposed to open burn 
                pits, including--
                            (i) the formation of any partnership 
                        between the Departments of Defense and Veterans 
                        Affairs to identify such individuals;
                            (ii) actions taken to ensure such 
                        individuals are screened for medical conditions 
                        related to open burn pit exposures; and
                            (iii) actions taken to ensure that, before 
                        such members of the Armed Forces separate from 
                        active service, the members--
                                    (I) receive education about 
                                services available from the Departments 
                                of Defense and Veterans Affairs 
                                regarding medical conditions related to 
                                open burn pit exposures; and
                                    (II) respond to the Registry 
                                questionnaire.
                    (B) Actions taken and plans to mitigate future 
                exposures of members of the Armed Forces to open burn 
                pits.
                    (C) Alternatives to open burn pits and evaluations 
                of such alternatives.
                    (D) Any exposures of members of the Armed Forces to 
                open burn pits operated by an entity other than the 
                Department of Defense.
                    (E) Data shared with the Secretary of Veterans 
                Affairs regarding--
                            (i) members of the Armed Forces and 
                        veterans exposed to open burn pits;
                            (ii) when and where members of the Armed 
                        Forces and veterans were exposed to open burn 
                        pits;
                            (iii) the contents of burn pits identified 
                        under clause (ii);
                            (iv) the duration of exposures identified 
                        under clause (ii);
                            (v) data collected by industrial hygienists 
                        regarding exposures of members of the Armed 
                        Forces to open burn pits;
                            (vi) data collected from members of the 
                        Armed Forces in post-deployment health 
                        assessments that the Secretary determines are 
                        related to open burn pit exposures.
                    (F) Plans and actions of the Secretary to collect 
                surveillance data to enhance accuracy regarding the 
                number of service members exposed, characteristics of 
                those exposed, and patterns or linkages identified in 
                those exposed.
                    (G) Plans and actions of the Secretary to link data 
                collected under subparagraph (F) to health data 
                regarding veterans that is in the possession of the 
                Secretary of Veterans Affairs.
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