[Congressional Record Volume 167, Number 184 (Wednesday, October 20, 2021)]
[Senate]
[Pages S7130-S7131]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
SA 3865. Mr. BROWN (for himself and Mr. Portman) submitted an
amendment intended to be proposed by him to the bill S. 2792, to
authorize appropriations for fiscal year 2022 for military activities
of the Department of Defense, for military construction, and for
defense activities of the Department of Energy, to prescribe military
personnel strengths for such fiscal year, and for other purposes; which
was ordered to lie on the table; as follows:
At the end of subtitle G of title X, add the following:
SEC. 1064. NOTIFICATIONS AND REPORTS REGARDING REPORTED CASES
OF BURN PIT EXPOSURE.
(a) Quarterly Notifications.--
(1) In general.--On a quarterly basis, the Secretary of
Veterans Affairs shall submit to the appropriate
congressional committees a report on each reported case of
burn pit exposure by a covered veteran reported during the
previous quarter.
(2) Elements.--Each report submitted under paragraph (1)
shall include, with respect to each reported case of burn pit
exposure of a covered veteran included in the report, the
following:
(A) Notice of the case, including the medical facility at
which the case was reported.
(B) Notice of, as available--
(i) the enrollment status of the covered veteran with
respect to the patient enrollment system of the Department of
Veterans Affairs under section 1705(a) of title 38, United
States Code;
(ii) a summary of all health care visits by the covered
veteran at the medical facility at which the case was
reported that are related to the case;
(iii) the demographics of the covered veteran, including
age, sex, and race;
(iv) any non-Department of Veterans Affairs health care
benefits that the covered veteran receives;
(v) the Armed Force in which the covered veteran served and
the rank of the covered veteran;
(vi) the period in which the covered veteran served;
(vii) each location of an open burn pit from which the
covered veteran was exposed to toxic airborne chemicals and
fumes during such service;
(viii) the medical diagnoses of the covered veteran and the
treatment provided to the veteran; and
(ix) whether the covered veteran is registered in the
Airborne Hazards and Open Burn Pit Registry.
(3) Protection of information.--The Secretary shall ensure
that the reports submitted under paragraph (1) do not include
the identity of covered veterans or contain other personally
identifiable data.
(b) Annual Report on Cases.--
(1) In general.--Not later than 180 days after the date of
the enactment of this Act, and annually thereafter, the
Secretary of Veterans Affairs, in collaboration with the
Secretary of Defense, shall submit to the appropriate
congressional committees a report detailing the following:
(A) The total number of covered veterans.
(B) The total number of claims for disability compensation
under chapter 11 of title 38, United States Code, approved
and the total number denied by the Secretary of Veterans
Affairs with respect to a covered veteran, and for each such
denial, the rationale of the denial.
(C) A comprehensive list of--
(i) the conditions for which covered veterans seek
treatment; and
(ii) the locations of the open burn pits from which the
covered veterans were exposed to toxic airborne chemicals and
fumes.
(D) Identification of any illnesses relating to exposure to
open burn pits that formed the basis for the Secretary to
award benefits, including entitlement to service connection
or an increase in disability rating.
(E) The total number of covered veterans who died after
seeking care for an illness relating to exposure to an open
burn pit.
(F) Any updates or trends with respect to the information
described in subparagraphs (A), (B), (C), (D), and (E) that
the Secretary determines appropriate.
(2) Matters included in first report.--The Secretary shall
include in the first report under paragraph (1) information
specified in subsection (a)(2) with respect to reported cases
of burn pit exposure made during the period beginning January
1, 1990, and ending on the day before the date of the
enactment of this Act.
(c) Inclusion of Information After Death and Provision of
Information Regarding Open Burn Pit Registry.--Section 201(a)
of the Dignified Burial and Other Veterans' Benefits
Improvement Act of 2012 (Public Law 112-260; 38 U.S.C. 527
note) is amended by adding at the end the following new
paragraphs:
``(3) Reporting of information after death.--The Secretary
of Veterans Affairs shall permit a survivor of a deceased
veteran to report to the registry under paragraph (1) the
exposure of the veteran to toxic airborne chemicals and fumes
caused by an open burn pit, even if such veteran was not
included in the registry before their death.
``(4) Information regarding registry.--
``(A) Notice.--The Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall
ensure that a medical professional of the Department of
Veterans Affairs informs a veteran of the registry under
paragraph (1) if the veteran presents at a medical facility
of the Department for treatment that the veteran describes as
being related to, or ancillary to, the exposure of the
veteran to toxic airborne chemicals and fumes caused by open
burn pits.
``(B) Display.--In making information public regarding the
number of participants in the registry under paragraph (1),
the Secretary shall display such numbers by both State and by
congressional district.''.
(d) Comptroller General Report.--Not later than 180 days
after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Comptroller
General of the United States shall submit to the appropriate
congressional committees a report containing an assessment of
the effectiveness of any memorandum of understanding or
memorandum of agreement entered into by the Secretary of
Veterans Affairs with respect to--
(1) the processing of reported cases of burn pit exposure;
and
(2) the coordination of care and provision of health care
relating to such cases at medical facilities of the
Department of Veterans Affairs and at non-Department
facilities.
(e) Definitions.--In this section:
(1) The term ``Airborne Hazards and Open Burn Pit
Registry'' means the registry established by the Secretary of
Veterans Affairs under section 201 of the Dignified Burial
and Other Veterans' Benefits Improvement Act of 2012 (Public
Law 112-260; 38 U.S.C. 527 note).
(2) The term ``appropriate congressional committees''
means--
(A) the Committee on Veterans' Affairs and the Committee on
Armed Services of the Senate; and
(B) The Committee on Veterans' Affairs and the Committee on
Armed Services of the House of Representatives.
(3) The term ``covered veteran'' means a veteran who
presents at a medical facility of the Department of Veterans
Affairs (or in a non-Department facility pursuant to section
1703 or 1703A of title 38, United States Code) for treatment
that the veteran describes as being related to, or ancillary
to, the exposure of the veteran to toxic airborne chemicals
and fumes caused by open burn pits at any time while serving
in the Armed Forces.
(4) The term ``open burn pit'' has the meaning given that
term in section 201(c) of the Dignified Burial and Other
Veterans' Benefits Improvement Act of 2012 (Public Law 112-
260; 38 U.S.C. 527 note).
(5) The term ``reported case of burn pit exposure'' means
each instance in which a veteran presents at a medical
facility of the Department of Veterans Affairs (or in a non-
Department facility pursuant to section 1703 or 1703A of
title 38, United States Code) for treatment that the veteran
describes as
[[Page S7131]]
being related to, or ancillary to, the exposure of the
veteran to toxic airborne chemicals and fumes caused by open
burn pits at any time while serving in the Armed Forces.
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