[The Regulatory Plan and Unified Agenda of Federal Regulations]
[Department of Veterans Affairs Regulatory Plan]
[From the U.S. Government Printing Office, www.gpo.gov]


DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS (VA)

Statement of Regulatory Priorities
The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) is the custodian and 
administrator of important public obligations to those who served this 
Nation. The VA's regulatory responsibility is almost solely confined to 
carrying out the mandate of the laws enacted by Congress relating to 
programs for veterans and their beneficiaries. VA's major regulatory 
objective is to implement these laws with fairness, justice, and 
efficiency.
Most of the regulations issued by the VA involve three VA components: 
the Veterans Benefits Administration, the Veterans Health 
Administration, and the National Cemetery System. The basic goal of the 
Veterans Benefits Administration is to provide high-quality and timely 
nonmedical benefits to eligible veterans and their beneficiaries. The 
principal goal of the Veterans Health Administration is to provide 
high-quality health care on a timely basis to eligible veterans through 
its system of medical centers, nursing homes, domiciliaries, and 
outpatient medical and dental facilities. The National Cemetery 
System's primary mission is to bury eligible veterans, members of the 
Reserve components, and their dependents in VA National Cemeteries and 
to maintain those cemeteries as national shrines in perpetuity as a 
final tribute of a grateful Nation to honor the memory and service of 
those who served in the Armed Forces.
The VA is conducting regulatory reform initiatives. After obtaining 
input from representatives of veterans service organizations and other 
interested individuals, VA personnel undertook a line-by-line review of 
the more than 1,700 pages of VA regulations published in the Code of 
Federal Regulations. Actions are now underway to make appropriate 
changes. Consistent with the President's goals, this is the beginning 
of VA's effort to create better and more effective regulations 
governing the programs the VA administers for the Nation's veterans and 
their beneficiaries.
_______________________________________________________________________
VA

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                            FINAL RULE STAGE

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98. SCHEDULE FOR RATING DISABILITIES--THE CARDIOVASCULAR SYSTEM
Priority:


Other Significant


Reinventing Government:


This rulemaking is part of the Reinventing Government effort. It will 
revise text in the CFR to reduce burden or duplication, or streamline 
requirements.


Legal Authority:


 38 USC 1155


CFR Citation:


 38 CFR 4.100; 38 CFR 4.101; 38 CFR 4.102; 38 CFR 4.103; 38 CFR 4.104


Legal Deadline:


None


Abstract:


The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) is conducting the first 
comprehensive review of its rating schedule since 1945. These revisions 
will update the rating schedule to ensure that it uses current medical 
terminology and unambiguous criteria, and that it reflects medical 
advances that have occurred since the last review.


Statement of Need:


Because evaluation criteria in the rating schedule are based on medical 
findings, the advances that have occurred in medicine since the last 
overall revision of the rating schedule in 1945 need to be incorporated 
into the schedule so that it reflects the current state of medicine, 
including the use of new techniques and procedures, such as liver and 
heart transplants. Some medical terms and nomenclature in the current 
schedule are obsolete, and the course of some illnesses has changed 
because of modern therapy. The rating schedule criteria need to reflect 
these advances. There are also new disease entities that have been 
defined or become more common since the last revision.


Summary of the Legal Basis:


Under 38 USC 1155, the Secretary of Veterans Affairs is required to 
establish a schedule for rating disabilities and has the authority to 
readjust the schedule from time to time in accordance with experience.


Alternatives:


Although VA has made some ad hoc revisions and additions to the rating 
schedule, this is the first comprehensive review since 1945. We could 
continue to make ad hoc revisions; however, we feel that this would be 
inadequate. We also intend to review three to four body systems per 
year on a cyclical basis to ensure that the schedule remains current.


Anticipated Costs and Benefits:


There are no known administrative costs directly related to these 
regulatory amendments of 38 CFR, part 4. The same personnel will 
adjudicate disability claims utilizing the same procedures. There are 
no readily ascertainable entitlement costs or savings related to these 
amendments. There is no accurate way to quantify their impact. We 
expect these revisions to result in greater precision and consistency 
within the disability evaluation process, but anticipate no net savings 
or cost within the entitlement account.


Risks:


None known.


Timetable:
_______________________________________________________________________
Action                                 DFR Cite

_______________________________________________________________________
ANPRM           55 FR 6658                                     02/26/90
ANPRM Comment Pe55 FR 6658                                     04/27/90
NPRM            58 FR 4954                                     01/19/93
NPRM Comment Period End                                        03/22/93
Final Action                                                   03/00/96
Small Entities Affected:


None


Government Levels Affected:


None


Additional Information:


This umbrellas RIN's: AE40, AF23, AE95, AE41, AF00, AF02, AE94, AE89, 
AF24, AH43, AF22


Agency Contact:
Caroll McBrine, M.D.
Consultant, Regulations Staff (211B)
Department of Veterans Affairs
Veterans Benefits Administration
810 Vermont Avenue NW.
Washington, DC 20420
Phone: 202 273-7210
RIN: 2900-AE40
_______________________________________________________________________
VA
99. ELIGIBILITY REPORTING REQUIREMENTS
Priority:


Other Significant


Reinventing Government:


This rulemaking is part of the Reinventing Government effort. It will 
revise text in the CFR to reduce burden or duplication, or streamline 
requirements.


Legal Authority:


 38 USC 501(a)


CFR Citation:


 38 CFR 3.256; 38 CFR 3.277


Legal Deadline:


None


Abstract:


The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) is amending its adjudication 
regulations regarding submission of annual eligibility verification 
reports (EVRs) by changing the criteria for determining who would be 
required to submit EVRs.


Statement of Need:


EVRs are used to obtain information for determining continued 
eligibility for pension or parents' dependency and indemnity 
compensation (DIC). Until recently, VA was required by law to secure a 
completed EVR at least once a year from every pension beneficiary and 
every parents' DIC beneficiary under the age of 72. Public Law 103-271 
gave the Secretary of Veterans Affairs discretionary authority to 
require submission of income and resource reports by recipients of 
income-based benefits. It appears that, in most cases, VA can obtain 
the necessary information for these income-based benefits from computer 
matches. In addition to reducing VA processing costs, VA estimates that 
adoption of the proposal would reduce the number of persons required to 
submit an EVR during a calendar year from 825,000 to 325,000, and would 
reduce the total annual reporting hours for the EVRs from 412,000 to 
162,500 hours.


Summary of the Legal Basis:


38 U.S.C. 501, 1315,1506


Alternatives:


VA could have continued to require annual submission of EVRs by all 
beneficiaries of income-based benefits.


Anticipated Costs and Benefits:


No direct benefit savings or costs are expected from these amendments. 
Since VA estimates that roughly 500,000 fewer EVRs will be processed at 
regional offices, VA expects to be able to redirect approximately 135 
full-time employees from EVR processing to other claims processing 
activities.


Risks:


VA conducts regular computer matches with the Social Security 
Administration, the Internal Revenue Service, and other Federal 
Agencies. These matches furnish information about income received by 
recipients of VA's means-tested programs. These matches are keyed to 
the beneficiary's Social Security number. The Social Security 
Administration furnishes information about the rate of Social Security 
benefits paid to VA beneficiaries shortly after the annual cost-of-
living adjustment is accomplished. VA uses this information to verify 
the accuracy of Social Security rate information in its records. Since 
this Social Security rate information is current, it is not necessary 
to require beneficiaries whose Social Security numbers have been 
verified by the Social Security Administration, and who have no other 
income, to submit an annual EVR. Historically, few pensioners who have 
reported no income or only Social Security income start receiving 
income from some new source. VA will continue to require completion of 
annual EVR by any beneficiary whose Social Security number or whose 
spouse's Social Security number has not been verified by the Social 
Security Administration, since we cannot rely on computer matches to 
verify their income. We will also require submission of annual EVRs by 
beneficiaries with income other than Social Security. VA retains the 
authority to require any beneficiary to complete an EVR if it 
determines that submission of an EVR is necessary to preserve program 
integrity.


Timetable:
_______________________________________________________________________
Action                                 DFR Cite

_______________________________________________________________________
NPRM            60 FR 25877                                    05/15/95
NPRM Comment Period End                                        07/14/95
Final Action                                                   10/00/95
Small Entities Affected:


None


Government Levels Affected:


None


Agency Contact:
Paul Trowbridge
Consultant (211B)
Department of Veterans Affairs
810 Vermont Avenue NW.
Washington, DC 20420
Phone: 202 273-7210
RIN: 2900-AH18
BILLING CODE 8320-01-F