[Congressional Bills 110th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 92 Introduced in House (IH)]
110th CONGRESS
1st Session
H. R. 92
To amend title 38, United States Code, to establish standards of access
to care for veterans seeking health care from the Department of
Veterans Affairs, and for other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
January 4, 2007
Ms. Ginny Brown-Waite of Florida introduced the following bill; which
was referred to the Committee on Veterans' Affairs
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To amend title 38, United States Code, to establish standards of access
to care for veterans seeking health care from the Department of
Veterans Affairs, 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 ``Veterans Timely Access to Health
Care Act''.
SEC. 2. STANDARDS FOR ACCESS TO CARE.
(a) Required Standards for Access to Care.--Section 1703 of title
38, United States Code, is amended by adding at the end the following
new subsection:
``(e)(1) For a veteran seeking primary care from the Department,
the standard for access to care, determined from the date on which the
veteran contacts the Department seeking an appointment until the date
on which a visit with a primary-care provider is completed, is 30 days.
``(2)(A) The Secretary shall prescribe an appropriate standard for
access to care applicable to waiting times at Department health-care
facilities, determined from the time at which a veteran's visit is
scheduled until the time at which the veteran is seen by the provider
with whom the visit is scheduled.
``(B) The Secretary shall periodically review the performance of
Department health-care facilities compared to the standard prescribed
under subparagraph (A). The Secretary shall submit to the Committees on
Veterans' Affairs of the Senate and House of Representatives an annual
report providing an assessment of the Department's performance in
meeting that standard.
``(3) Effective on the first day of the first fiscal year beginning
after the date of the enactment of this section, but subject to
paragraph (4), in a case in which the Secretary is unable to meet the
standard for access to care applicable under paragraph (1) or (2), the
Secretary shall, or with respect to a veteran described in section
1705(a)(8) of this title may, use the authority of subsection (a) to
furnish health care and services for that veteran in a non-Department
facility. In any such case--
``(A) payments by the Secretary may not exceed the
reimbursement rate for similar outpatient services paid by the
Secretary of Health and Human Services under part B of the
medicare program (as defined in section 1781(d)(4)(A) of this
title); and
``(B) the non-Department facility may not bill the veteran
for any difference between the facility's billed charges and
the amount paid by the Secretary under subparagraph (A).
``(4) Paragraph (3) shall not apply to a veteran enrolled or
seeking care at a Department facility within a Department geographic
service area that has a compliance rate, determined over the first
quarter of the first calendar-year beginning after the date of the
enactment of this Act, for the standards for access to care under
paragraphs (1) and (2) of 90 percent or more. The Secretary shall make
the determination of the compliance rate for each Department geographic
service area for purposes of the preceding sentence not later than July
1 of the first calendar-year beginning after the date of the enactment
of this Act.
``(5)(A) The Secretary shall submit to the Committees on Veterans'
Affairs of the Senate and House of Representatives for each calendar-
year quarter, not later than 60 days after the end of the quarter, a
comprehensive report on the experience of the Department during the
quarter covered by the report with respect to waiting times for
veterans seeking appointments with a Department health-care provider.
``(B) Each report under subparagraph (A) shall include the total
number of veterans waiting, shown for each geographic service area by
the following categories:
``(i) Those waiting under 30 days for scheduled
appointments.
``(ii) Those waiting over 30 days but less than 60 days.
``(iii) Those waiting over 60 days but less than 4 months.
``(iv) Those waiting over 4 months but who cannot be
scheduled within 6 months.
``(v) Those waiting over 6 months but who cannot be
scheduled within 9 months of seeking care.
``(vi) Those who cannot be scheduled within one year of
seeking care.
``(vii) Any remaining veterans who cannot be scheduled,
with the reasons therefor.
``(C) For each category set forth in subparagraph (B), the report
shall distinguish between--
``(i) waiting times for primary care and specialty care;
and
``(ii) waiting times for veterans who are newly enrolled
versus those who were enrolled before October 1, 2001.
``(D) Each such report shall also set forth the number of veterans
who have enrolled in the Department's health care system but have not
since such enrollment sought care at a Department health care facility.
``(E) The final report under this paragraph shall be for the
quarter ending on December 31, 2010.''.
(b) Effective Date.--Subsection (e) of section 1703 of title 38,
United States Code, as added by subsection (a), shall take effect on
the first day of the first month beginning more than six months after
the date of the enactment of this Act. The first report under paragraph
(5) of that subsection shall be submitted for the quarter ending on
December 31 of the first calendar year beginning after the date of the
enactment of this Act.
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