[Congressional Record Volume 150, Number 69 (Monday, May 17, 2004)]
[Senate]
[Pages S5537-S5541]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

      By Mr. FEINGOLD:
  S. 2427. A bill to amend title 10, United States Code, to improve 
transition assistance provided for members of the armed forces being 
discharged, release from active duty, or retired, and for other 
purposes; to the Committee on Armed Services.
  Mr. FEINGOLD. Mr. President, today I am introducing legislation that 
will enhance and strengthen transition services that are provided to 
our military personnel.
  This past weekend, people around our country honored our military 
personnel by marking Armed Forces Day. That day was even more poignant 
this year as we recognize the service and sacrifice of the thousands of 
brave men and women who are currently in harm's way in Iraq, 
Afghanistan, and elsewhere around the globe. These men and women serve 
with distinction and honor, and we owe them our heartfelt gratitude.
  We also owe them our best effort to ensure that they receive the 
benefits to which their service in our Armed Forces has entitled them. 
I have heard time and again from military personnel and veterans who 
are frustrated with the system by which they apply for benefits or 
appeal claims for benefits. I have long been concerned that tens of 
thousands of our veterans are unaware of Federal health care and other 
benefits for which they may be eligible, and I have undertaken numerous 
legislative and oversight efforts to ensure that the Department of 
Veterans Affairs makes outreach to our veterans and their families a 
priority. Our brave veterans have earned these benefits, and VA 
outreach regarding health care and other benefits is especially 
important as we welcome home a new generation of veterans who are 
serving in Iraq and in the fight against terrorism. Our veterans and 
their families have made great personal sacrifices to protect our 
freedoms. We owe them a great debt of gratitude. Making sure that our 
veterans know about the benefits that they have earned is an important 
first step in starting to repay this debt.
  While we should do more to support our veterans, we must also ensure 
that the men and women who are currently serving in our Armed Forces 
receive adequate pay and benefits, as well as services that help them 
to make the transition from active duty to civilian life. I am 
concerned that we are not doing enough to support our men and women in 
uniform as they prepare to retire or otherwise separate from the 
service or, in the case of members of our National Guard and Reserve, 
to demobilize from active duty assignments and return to their civilian 
lives while staying in the military or preparing to separate from the 
military. We must ensure that their service and sacrifice, which is 
much lauded during times of conflict, is not forgotten once the battles 
have ended and our troops have come home.
  My bill, the Veterans Enhanced Transition Services Act (VETS Act), 
will help to ensure that all military personnel have access to the same 
transition services as they prepare to leave the military to reenter 
civilian life, or, in the case of members of the National Guard and 
Reserve, as they prepare to demobilize from active duty assignments and 
return to their civilian lives and jobs or education while remaining in 
the military.

  I have heard from a number of Wisconsinites and military and veterans 
service organizations that our men and women in uniform do not all have 
access to the same transition counseling and medical services as they 
are demobilizing from service in Iraq, Afghanistan, and elsewhere. I 
have long been concerned about reports of uneven provision of services 
from base to base and from service to service. All of our men and women 
in uniform have pledged to serve our country, and all of them, at the 
very least, deserve to have access to the same services in return.
  My bill will help to ensure that all military personnel receive the 
same services by making a number of improvements to the existing 
Transition Assistance Program/Disabled Transition Assistance Program 
(TAP/DTAP) and to the Benefits Delivery at Discharge program, by 
improving the process by which military personnel who are being 
demobilized or discharged receive medical examinations and mental 
health assessments, and by ensuring that military and veterans service 
organizations and state departments of veterans affairs are able to 
play an active role in assisting military personnel with the difficult 
decisions that are often involved in the process of discharging or 
demobilizing.
  Under current law, the Department of Defense, together with the 
Departments of Veterans Affairs (VA) and Labor, provide pre-separation 
counseling for military personnel who are preparing to leave the 
service. This counseling provides service members with valuable 
information about benefits that they have earned through their service 
to our country such as education benefits through the GI Bill and 
health care and other benefits through the VA. Personnel also learn 
about programs such as Troops to Teachers and have access to employment 
assistance for themselves and, where appropriate, their spouses.
  My bill would ensure that members of demobilizing National Guard and 
Reserve personnel are able to participate in this important counseling 
prior to being demobilized. In addition, my bill would require state-
based follow-up within 180 of demobilization to give demobilized 
personnel the opportunity to follow up on any questions or concerns 
that they may have during a regular unit training period. Currently, 
most of the responsibility for getting information about benefits and 
programs falls on the military personnel. The Department of Defense 
should make every effort to ensure that all members participate in this 
important program, and that is what my bill would do.
  My bill would help to improve the uniformity of services provided to 
personnel by directing the Secretary of Defense to ensure that 
consistent Transition Assistance Program/Disabled Transition Assistance 
Program briefings occur across the services and at all demobilization/
discharge locations and to ensure that there are programs that are 
directed to the specific needs of active duty and National Guard and 
Reserve personnel as appropriate. It also includes a provision to 
ensure that personnel who are on the temporary disability retired list 
and who are being retired or discharged

[[Page S5538]]

from alternate locations will have access to transition services at a 
location that is reasonably convenient to them.
  In addition, my bill would enhance the information that is presented 
to members by requiring that pre-separation counseling include the 
provision of information regarding certification and licensing 
requirements in civilian occupations and information on identifying 
military occupations that have civilian counterparts.
  In response to concerns I have heard from a number of my 
constituents, the bill also directs the Secretaries of Defense and 
Labor to jointly explore ways in which DoD training and certification 
standards could be coordinated with state laws relating to the training 
and certification standards for corresponding civilian occupations.
  Participation in pre-separation counseling through a TAP/DTAP program 
is a valuable tool for personnel as they transition back to civilian 
life. My bill is in no way intended to lengthen the time that military 
personnel spend away from their families or to provide them with 
information that is not relevant to their civilian lives or that they 
otherwise do not need. In order to ensure that this information remains 
a valuable tool and does not become a burden to demobilizing members of 
the National Guard and Reserve who experience multiple deployments for 
active duty assignments, my bill clarifies that participation in the 
Department of Labor's transitional services employment will not be 
required if a member has previously participated in the program or if a 
member will be returning to school or to a job that he or she held 
before being called to active duty.
  My bill would make similar improvements to the joint DoD-VA Benefits 
Delivery at Discharge program, which assists personnel in applying for 
VA disability benefits before they are discharged from the military, to 
cover all discharging military installations and military hospitals to 
ensure that all personnel with service-connected disabilities have the 
same opportunity to receive this important service. This very 
successful program has helped to cut the red tape and to speed the 
processing time for many veterans who are entitled to VA disability 
benefits.
  I have long been concerned about the immediate and long-term health 
effects that military deployments have on our men and women in uniform. 
I regret that, too often, the burden of responsibility for proving that 
a condition is related to military service falls on the personnel 
themselves. Our men and women in uniform deserve the benefit of the 
doubt, and should not have to fight the Department of Defense or the VA 
for benefits that they have earned through their service to our nation.
  For example, since coming to the Senate in 1993, I have worked to 
focus attention on the health effects that are being experienced by 
military personnel who served in the Persian Gulf War. More than ten 
years after the end of the Gulf War, we still don't know why so many 
veterans of that conflict are experiencing medical problems. Of the 
nearly 700,000 U.S. military personnel who served in the Persian Gulf 
War in 1990 and 1991, more than 100,000 have suffered from an array of 
symptoms that have become known as Gulf War Syndrome. Military 
personnel who are currently deployed to the region face many of the 
same conditions that existed in the early 1990s. I have repeatedly 
pressed the Departments of Defense and Veterans Affairs to work to 
unlock the mystery of this illness and to study the role that exposure 
to depleted uranium may play in this condition. We owe it to these 
personnel to find these answers, and to ensure that those who are 
currently serving in the Persian Gulf region are adequately protected 
from the many possible causes of Gulf War Syndrome.
  Part of this process is to ensure that the Department of Defense 
carries out its responsibility to provide post-deployment physicals for 
military personnel. I am deeply concerned about stories of personnel 
who are experiencing long delays as they wait for their post-deployment 
physicals and who end up choosing not to have these important physicals 
in order to get home to their families that much sooner. I am equally 
concerned about reports that some personnel who did not receive such a 
physical--either by their own choice or because such a physical was not 
available--are now having trouble as they apply for benefits for a 
service-connected condition.
  For these reasons, my bill would require that the Department of 
Defense abide by current law and provide post-demobilization physicals 
to all military personnel, and would prohibit any waiver of these 
physicals. I firmly believe, as do the military and veterans groups 
that support my bill, that our men and women in uniform are entitled to 
a prompt, high quality physical examination as part of the 
demobilization process. These individuals have voluntarily put 
themselves into harm's way for our benefit. We should ensure that the 
Department of Defense makes every effort to determine whether they have 
experienced--or could experience--any health effects as a result of 
their service.
  In light of concerns raised by many that each service and each 
installation uses a different process for demobilization physicals, my 
bill would require the Secretary of Defense to set minimum standards 
for these important medical examinations and to ensure that these 
standards are applied uniformly at all installations and by all 
branches of the Armed Forces.
  My bill also would strengthen current law by ensuring that these 
medical examinations also include a mental health screening and 
assessment. Our men and women in uniform serve in difficult 
circumstances far from home, and too many of them witness or experience 
violence and horrific situations that most of us cannot even begin to 
imagine. These men and women, many of whom are just out of high school 
or college when they sign up, may suffer long-term mental and physical 
fallout from their experiences and may feel reluctant to seek 
counseling or other assistance to deal with their experiences.
  My bill would improve mental health services for demobilizing 
military personnel by requiring that the content and standards for the 
mental health screening and assessment that are developed by the 
Secretary include content and standards for screening acute and delayed 
onset post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), and, specifically, 
questions to identify all stressors experienced by military personnel 
that have the potential to lead to PTSD. Some Wisconsinites have told 
me that they are concerned that the multiple deployments of our 
National Guard and Reserve could lead to chronic PTSD, which could have 
its roots in an experience from a previous deployment and which could 
come to the surface by a triggering event that is experienced on a 
current deployment. The same is true for full-time military personnel 
who have served in a variety of places over their careers.
  We can and should do more to ensure that the mental health of our men 
and women in uniform is a top priority, and that the stigma that is too 
often attached to seeking assistance is ended. One step in this process 
is to ensure that personnel who have symptoms of PTSD and related 
illnesses have access to appropriate clinical services, either through 
DoD or through the VA, which is required in my bill.
  My legislation also requires the Secretaries of Defense and Veterans 
Affairs to report to Congress on planning for identification, 
intervention, and treatment of personnel with PTSD and related 
conditions and for appropriate training of DoD, military, and VA 
personnel with respect to PTSD and related conditions.
  My bill will also ensure that the DoD and the VA take appropriate 
actions to ensure that personnel receive appropriate follow-up care for 
any other physical or mental conditions that are found--or suspected to 
have been found--as a result of a post-deployment medical examination, 
including care and treatment at a DoD or VA facility and any other 
care, treatment, or services that are required.

  In addition, in order to ensure that all military personnel who are 
eligible for medical benefits for the VA learn about and receive them, 
my bill requires that, as part of the demobilization process, 
assistance be provided to eligible members to enroll in the VA health 
care system.
  My bill also requires that the medical records of all separating 
service members be transmitted to the VA and that DoD and the VA 
conduct a study

[[Page S5539]]

on how to improve coordination and cooperation between the two 
Departments to support the provision of benefits to members and 
veterans, including: compatibility of health care filing systems, 
consistency of claims forms, consistency of medical examination forms, 
and creating shared electronic database with appropriate privacy 
protections.
  My bill would also make improvements to the DoD demobilization and 
discharge processes by ensuring that members of military and veterans 
service organizations (MSOs and VSOs) are able to counsel personnel on 
options for benefits and other important questions. The demobilization 
and discharge process presents our service members with a sometimes 
confusing and often overwhelming amount of information and paperwork 
that must be digested and sometimes signed in a very short period of 
time. My bill would authorize a ``veteran to veteran'' counseling 
program that will give military personnel the opportunity to speak with 
fellow veterans who have been through this process and who may be able 
to offer important advice about benefits and other choices that 
military personnel have to make.
  Under current law, the Secretary of Defense may make use of the 
services provided by MSOs and VSOs as part of the transition process. 
But these groups tell me that they are not always allowed access to 
transition briefings that are conducted for our personnel. In order to 
help facilitate the new veteran-to-veteran program, my bill would 
require the Secretary to ensure that representatives of MSOs, VSOs, and 
state departments of veterans affairs are invited to participate in all 
TAP/DTAP and BDD programs. In addition, my bill requires that these 
dedicated veterans, who give so much of their time and of themselves to 
serving their fellow veterans and their families, are able to gain 
access to military installations, military hospitals, and VA hospitals 
in order to provide this important service. By and large, Mr. 
President, these groups are able to speak with our military personnel 
at hospitals and other facilities. But I am disturbed by reports that 
some of these groups were having a hard time gaining access to 
these facilities in order to visit with our troops. For that reason, I 
have included this access requirement in my bill.

  I want to stress that my bill in no way requires military personnel 
to speak with members of MSOs or VSOs if they do not wish to do so. It 
merely ensures that our men and women in uniform have this option.
  Finally, my bill would authorize the Secretary of Defense to create a 
program to help military personnel get college credit for applicable 
military training. The Wisconsin State Department of Veterans Affairs 
has such a program, called the Academic Credit for Military Experience 
(ACME) program. The National Veterans Training Institute cites ACME as 
a national model for helping veterans to obtain college credit for 
training that they received while in the military. Such a program would 
help our veterans to maximize their GI Bill benefits, to avoid taking 
classes that repeat their military training, and to earn their degrees 
that much faster.
  I am pleased that this legislation is supported by a wide range of 
groups that are dedicated to serving our men and women in uniform and 
veterans and their families. These groups include: the American Legion, 
the Enlisted Association of the National Guard of the United States; 
the Paralyzed Veterans of America; the Reserve Officers Association; 
the Veterans of Foreign Wars; the Wisconsin Department of Veterans 
Affairs, the Wisconsin National Guard; the American Legion, Department 
of Wisconsin; Disabled American Veterans, Department of Wisconsin; the 
Wisconsin Paralyzed Veterans of America; the Veterans of Foreign Wars, 
Department of Wisconsin; and the Wisconsin State Council, Vietnam 
Veterans of America.
  I ask unanimous consent that the full text of my bill be printed in 
the Record.
  There being no objection, the text of the bill was ordered to be 
printed in the Record, as follows:

                                S. 2427

       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' Enhanced 
     Transition Services Act of 2004''.

     SEC. 2. IMPROVED ADMINISTRATION OF TRANSITIONAL ASSISTANCE 
                   PROGRAMS.

       (a) Transmittal of Medical Records of All Members 
     Separating From Active Duty to Department of Veterans 
     Affairs.--Chapter 58 of title 10, United States Code, is 
     amended--
       (1) by inserting before subsection (c) of section 1142 the 
     following:

     ``Sec. 1142a. Members separating from active duty: 
       transmittal of medical records to Department of Veterans 
       Affairs'';

       (2) by striking ``(c) Transmittal of Medical Information to 
     Department of Veterans Affairs.--''; and
       (3) by striking ``a member being medically separated or 
     being retired under chapter 61 of this title'' and inserting 
     ``each member who is entitled to counseling and other 
     services under section 1142 of this title''.
       (b) Preseparation Counseling.--(1) Subsection (a) of 
     section 1142 of title 10, United States Code, is amended--
       (A) in paragraph (1), by striking ``shall provide for 
     individual separation counseling'' and inserting ``shall 
     provide individual separation counseling'';
       (B) by redesignating paragraph (4) as paragraph (6); and
       (C) by inserting after paragraph (3) the following new 
     paragraphs:
       ``(4) For members of the reserve components being separated 
     from service on active duty for a period of more than 30 
     days, the Secretary concerned shall require that 
     preseparation counseling under this section be provided to 
     all such members (including officers) before the members are 
     separated.
       ``(5) The Secretary concerned shall ensure that commanders 
     of members entitled to services under this section authorize 
     the members to obtain such services during duty time.''.
       (2) Subsection (b)(4) of such section 1142 is amended by 
     striking ``(4) Information concerning'' and inserting the 
     following:
       ``(4) Provide information on civilian occupations and 
     related assistance programs, including information about--
       ``(A) certification and licensure requirements that are 
     applicable to civilian occupations;
       ``(B) civilian occupations that correspond to military 
     occupational specialties; and
       ``(C)''.
       (3) Section 1142 of such title is further amended by adding 
     at the end the following new subsections:
       ``(c) Additional Requirements.--(1) The Secretary concerned 
     shall ensure that--
       ``(A) preseparation counseling under this section includes 
     material that is specifically relevant to the needs of 
     persons being separated from active duty by discharge from a 
     regular component of the armed forces and the needs of 
     members of the reserve components being separated from active 
     duty;
       ``(B) the locations at which preseparation counseling is 
     presented to eligible personnel include--
       ``(i) inpatient medical care facilities of the uniformed 
     services where such personnel are receiving inpatient care; 
     and
       ``(ii) in the case of a member on the temporary disability 
     retired list under section 1202 or 1205 of this title who is 
     being retired under another provision of this title or is 
     being discharged, a location reasonably convenient to the 
     member.
       ``(C) the scope and content of the material presented in 
     preseparation counseling at each location under this section 
     are consistent with the scope and content of the material 
     presented in the preseparation counseling at the other 
     locations under this section; and
       ``(D) followup counseling is provided for each member of 
     the reserve components described in subparagraph (A) not 
     later than 180 days after separation from active duty.
       ``(2) The Secretary concerned shall, on a continuing basis, 
     update the content of the materials used by the National 
     Veterans Training Institute and such officials' other 
     activities that provide direct training support to personnel 
     who provide preseparation counseling under this section.
       ``(d) National Guard Members on Duty in State Status.--(1) 
     Members of the National Guard being separated from long-term 
     duty to which ordered under section 502(f) of title 32 shall 
     also be provided preseparation counseling under this section 
     to the same extent that members of the reserve components 
     being discharged or released from active duty are provided 
     preseparation counseling under this section.
       ``(2) The Secretary of Defense shall prescribe in 
     regulations the standards for determining long-term duty for 
     the purposes of paragraph (1).''.
       (4)(A) The heading for section 1142 of such title is 
     amended to read as follows:

     ``Sec. 1142. Members separating from active duty: 
       preseparation counseling''.

       (B) The table of sections at the beginning of chapter 58 of 
     such title is amended by striking the item relating to 
     section 1142 and inserting the following new items:

``1142. Members separating from active duty: preseparation counseling.
``1142a. Members separating from active duty: transmittal of medical 
              records to Department of Veterans Affairs.''.

       (c) Department of Labor Transitional Services Program.--(1) 
     Subsection (c) of

[[Page S5540]]

     section 1144 of title 10, United States Code, is amended to 
     read as follows:
       ``(c) Participation.--(1) Subject to paragraph (2), the 
     Secretary of Defense and the Secretary of Homeland Security 
     shall require participation by members of the armed forces 
     eligible for assistance under the program carried out under 
     this section.
       ``(2) The Secretary of Defense and the Secretary of 
     Homeland Security need not require, but shall encourage and 
     otherwise promote, participation in the program by the 
     following members of the armed forces described in paragraph 
     (1):
       ``(A) Each member who has previously participated in the 
     program.
       ``(B) Each member who, upon discharge or release from 
     active duty, is returning to--
       ``(i) a position of employment previously held by such 
     member; or
       ``(ii) pursuit of an academic degree or other educational 
     or occupational training objective that the member was 
     pursuing when called or ordered to such active duty.''.
       (2) Subsection (a)(1) of such section is amended by 
     striking ``paragraph (4)(A)'' in the second sentence and 
     inserting ``paragraph (6)(A)''.
       (d) Study on Coordination of Job Training and Certification 
     Standards.--The Secretary of Defense and the Secretary of 
     Labor shall jointly carry out a study to determine ways to 
     coordinate the standards applied by the Armed Forces for the 
     training and certification of members of the Armed Forces in 
     military occupational specialties with the standards that 
     apply under State laws to the training and certification of 
     persons in corresponding civilian occupations.

     SEC. 3. BENEFITS DELIVERY DISCHARGE PROGRAM.

       (a) Accessibility of Information.--Chapter 58 of title 10, 
     United States Code, is amended by adding at the end the 
     following new section:

     ``Sec. 1154. Requirements applicable to all benefits delivery 
       at discharge programs

       ``(a) Locations.--The Secretary of Defense, the Secretary 
     of Homeland Security, and the Secretary of Veterans Affairs 
     shall ensure that the benefits delivery at discharge programs 
     for members of the armed forces are provided--
       ``(1) at each installation and inpatient medical care 
     facility of the uniformed services at which personnel 
     eligible for assistance under the programs are discharged 
     from the armed forces; and
       ``(2) in the case of a member on the temporary disability 
     retired list under section 1202 or 1205 of this title who is 
     being retired under another provision of this title or is 
     being discharged, at a location reasonably convenient to the 
     member.
       ``(b) Participation of Military and Veterans' Service 
     Organizations.--The Secretary of Defense, the Secretary of 
     Homeland Security, and the Secretary of Veterans Affairs 
     shall ensure that representatives of military and veterans' 
     service organizations and representatives of veterans' 
     services agencies of States are invited to participate in the 
     benefits delivery at discharge programs at the locations 
     where assistance under the programs is provided.
       ``(c) Benefits Delivery at Discharge Programs Defined.--In 
     this section, the term `benefits delivery at discharge 
     programs' means the programs under sections 1142 and 1144 of 
     this title and any similar programs administered by, in 
     conjunction with, or in consultation with the Secretary of 
     Defense or the Secretary of a military department.''.
       (b) Clerical Amendment.--The table of sections at the 
     beginning of such chapter is amended by adding at the end the 
     following new item:

``1154. Requirements applicable to all benefits delivery at discharge 
              programs.''.

     SEC. 4. POST-DEPLOYMENT MEDICAL ASSESSMENT AND SERVICES.

       (a) Improvement of Medical Tracking System for Members 
     Deployed Overseas.--Section 1074f of title 10, United States 
     Code, is amended--
       (1) in subsection (b), by striking ``(including an 
     assessment of mental health'' and inserting ``(which shall 
     include mental health screening and assessment'';
       (2) by redesignating subsections (c) and (d) as subsections 
     (e) and (f), respectively; and
       (3) by inserting after subsection (b) the following new 
     subsections:
       ``(c) Medical Examinations.--(1) The Secretary of Defense 
     shall prescribe the minimum content and standards that apply 
     for the medical examinations required under this section. The 
     Secretary shall ensure that the content and standards 
     prescribed under the preceding sentence are applied uniformly 
     at all installations and medical facilities of the armed 
     forces where medical examinations required under this section 
     are performed for members of the armed forces returning from 
     a deployment as described in subsection (a).
       ``(2) The content and standards prescribed under paragraph 
     (1) for mental health screening and assessment shall include 
     content and standards for screening acute post-traumatic 
     stress disorder and delayed onset post-traumatic stress 
     disorder, and shall specifically include questions to 
     identify all stressors experienced by members that have the 
     potential to lead to post-traumatic stress disorder.
       ``(3) An examination consisting solely or primarily of an 
     assessment questionnaire completed by a member does not meet 
     the requirements of this subsection for a medical examination 
     and does not meet the requirements of this section for an 
     assessment.
       ``(4) An examination of a member required under this 
     section may not be waived by the Secretary (or any official 
     exercising the Secretary's authority under this section) or 
     by the member.
       ``(d) Followup Services.--(1) The Secretary of Defense, in 
     consultation with the Secretary of Veterans Affairs, shall 
     ensure that appropriate actions are taken to assist a member 
     who, as a result of a medical examination carried out under 
     the system established under this section, is identified or 
     suspected as having an illness (including any mental health 
     condition) or injury.
       ``(2) Assistance required to be provided a member under 
     paragraph (1) includes the following:
       ``(A) Care and treatment and other services that the 
     Secretary of Defense or the Secretary of Veterans Affairs may 
     provide such member under any other provision of law, as 
     follows:
       ``(i) Clinical services, including counseling and treatment 
     for post-traumatic stress disorder and other mental health 
     conditions.
       ``(ii) Any other care, treatment, and services.
       ``(B) Assistance to enroll in the Department of Veterans 
     Affairs health care system for health care benefits for which 
     the member is eligible under laws administered by the 
     Secretary of Veterans Affairs.''.
       (b) Report on PTSD Cases.--(1) The Secretary of Defense and 
     the Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall jointly submit to 
     Congress a report on the services provided members and former 
     members of the Armed Forces who experience post-traumatic 
     stress disorder (and related conditions) associated with 
     service in the Armed Forces.
       (2) The report under paragraph (1) shall include a 
     discussion of the policies, plans, and procedures of the 
     Department of Defense and the Department of Veterans Affairs 
     for--
       (A) the identification of cases of persons experiencing 
     post-traumatic stress disorder or related conditions, 
     intervention in such cases, and treatment of such persons; 
     and
       (B) the training of Department of Defense personnel and 
     Department of Veterans Affairs personnel regarding such 
     disorder and conditions.
       (c) Study on DoD-VA Coordination and Cooperation.--(1) The 
     Secretary of Defense and the Secretary of Veterans Affairs 
     shall jointly carry out a study to identify ways to improve 
     the coordination and cooperation between the two departments 
     to support the provision of veterans' benefits to members and 
     former members of the Armed Forces who have been deployed as 
     described in section 1074f(a) of title 10, United States 
     Code, as well as to other members and former members of the 
     Armed Forces.
       (2) The study under paragraph (1) shall, at a minimum, 
     address the following matters:
       (A) Compatibility of health care filing systems.
       (B) Consistency of claims forms.
       (C) Consistency of medical examination forms.
       (D) Shared electronic database with appropriate privacy 
     protections.

     SEC. 5. ACCESS OF MILITARY AND VETERANS SERVICE AGENCIES AND 
                   ORGANIZATIONS.

       (a) Department of Defense.--(1) Chapter 58 of title 10, 
     United States Code, as amended by section 3(a), is further 
     amended by adding at the end the following new section:

     ``Sec. 1155. Veteran-to-veteran preseparation counseling

       ``(a) Cooperation Required.--The Secretary of Defense shall 
     carry out a program to facilitate the access of 
     representatives of military and veterans' service 
     organizations and representatives of veterans' services 
     agencies of States to provide preseparation counseling and 
     services to members of the armed forces who are scheduled, or 
     are in the process of being scheduled, for discharge, release 
     from active duty, or retirement.
       ``(b) Elements of Program.--The program under this section 
     shall include the following elements:
       ``(1) Invitation to representatives of military and 
     veterans' service organizations and representatives of 
     veterans' services agencies of States to participate in the 
     preseparation counseling and other assistance briefings 
     provided to members under the programs carried out under 
     sections 1142 and 1144 of this title.
       ``(2) Support for the outreach programs of such 
     organizations and agencies by providing the organizations and 
     agencies with the names and addresses of members of the armed 
     forces described in subsection (a), including, in particular, 
     members who are being separated from active duty upon return 
     from a deployment in support of a contingency operation.
       ``(c) Locations.--The program under this section shall 
     provide for access to members--
       ``(1) at each installation of the armed forces;
       ``(2) at each inpatient medical care facility of the 
     uniformed services administered under chapter 55 of this 
     title; and
       ``(3) in the case of a member on the temporary disability 
     retired list under section 1202 or 1205 of this title who is 
     being retired under another provision of this title or is 
     being discharged, at a location reasonably convenient to the 
     member.
       ``(d) Waiver of Access Restrictions.--To carry out elements 
     of the program under subsection (b), the Secretary of Defense 
     may waive the applicable provisions of the regulations 
     promulgated under section 264(c) of

[[Page S5541]]

     the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 
     1996 (42 U.S.C. 1320d-2 note) to the extent necessary to 
     ensure that representatives of military and veterans' service 
     organizations and representatives of veterans' services 
     agencies of States have access to members and former members 
     of the uniformed services in medical treatment facilities of 
     the uniformed services.
       ``(e) Consent of Members Required.--Access to a member of 
     the armed forces under the program under this section is 
     subject to the consent of the member.''.
       (2) The table of sections at the beginning of such chapter, 
     as amended by section 3(b), is amended by adding at the end 
     the following new item:

``1155. Veteran-to-veteran preseparation counseling.''.

       (b) Department of Veterans Affairs.--(1) Subchapter 1 of 
     chapter 17 of title 38, United States Code, is amended by 
     adding at the end the following new section:

     ``Sec. 1709. Veteran-to-veteran counseling

       ``(a) Cooperation Required.--The Secretary shall carry out 
     a program to facilitate the access of representatives of 
     military and veterans' service organizations and 
     representatives of veterans' services agencies of States to 
     veterans furnished care and services under this chapter to 
     provide information and counseling to such veterans on the 
     care and services authorized by this chapter and on other 
     benefits and services available under the laws administered 
     by the Secretary.
       ``(b) Facilities Covered.--The program under this section 
     shall provide for access to veterans described in subsection 
     (a) at each facility of the Department or non-Department 
     facility at which the Secretary furnishes care and services 
     under this chapter.
       ``(c) Waiver of Access Restrictions.--To carry out the 
     program under this section, the Secretary may waive the 
     applicable provisions of the regulations promulgated under 
     section 264(c) of the Health Insurance Portability and 
     Accountability Act of 1996 (42 U.S.C. 1320d-2 note) to the 
     extent necessary to ensure that representatives of military 
     and veterans' service organizations and representatives of 
     veterans' services agencies of States have access to veterans 
     described in subsection (a) at the facilities referred to in 
     subsection (b).
       ``(d) Consent of Veterans Required.--Access to a veteran 
     under the program under this section is subject to the 
     consent of the veteran.''.
       (2) The table of sections at the beginning of that chapter 
     is amended by inserting after the item relating to section 
     1708 the following new item:

``Veteran-to-veteran counseling.''.

     SEC. 6. COLLEGE CREDIT FOR SERVICE IN ARMED FORCES.

       (a) Requirement for Program.--Chapter 58 of title 10, 
     United States Code, as amended by section 5(a), is further 
     amended by adding at the end the following new section:

     ``Sec. 1156. College credit for training in the armed forces

       ``The Secretary of Defense shall carry out a program to 
     assist members of the armed forces being discharged, released 
     from active duty, or retired to obtain college credit for 
     training received as a member of the armed forces.''.
       (b) Clerical Amendment.--The table of sections at the 
     beginning of such chapter, as amended by section 5(a)(2), is 
     amended by adding at the end the following new item:

``1156. College credit for training in the armed forces.''.

                                 ______