II 

116TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. 374 

To amend title 38, United States Code, to expand health care and benefits 

from the Department of Veterans Affairs for military sexual trauma, 

and for other purposes. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

FEBRUARY 7, 2019 

Mr. TESTER (for himself, Ms. MURKOWSKI, Mr. BLUMENTHAL, Ms. SINEMA, 

Ms. BALDWIN, Ms. HASSAN, Mr. SANDERS, Mr. KING, Ms. DUCKWORTH, 

Ms. KLOBUCHAR, and Mrs. MURRAY) introduced the following bill; which 

was read twice and referred to the Committee on Veterans’ Affairs 

A BILL 

To amend title 38, United States Code, to expand health 

care and benefits from the Department of Veterans Affairs for military sexual trauma, and for other purposes. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Servicemembers and 

5 Veterans Empowerment and Support Act of 2019’’. 


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1 SEC. 2. TECHNOLOGICAL ABUSE DEFINED. 

2 Section 101 of title 38, United States Code, is 

3 amended by adding at the end the following new para4 graph: 

5 ‘‘(37) The term ‘technological abuse’ means be6 havior intended to harm, threaten, intimidate, con7 trol, stalk, harass, impersonate, or monitor another 

8 person, except as otherwise permitted by law, that 

9 occurs via the Internet, social networking sites, com10 puters, mobile devices, cellular telephones, apps, lo11 cation tracking devices, instant messages, text mes12 sages, or other forms of technology. Technological 

13 abuse may include— 

14 ‘‘(A) unwanted, repeated telephone calls, 

15 text messages, instant messages, or social 

16 media posts; 

17 ‘‘(B) non-consensual access of email ac18 counts, texts or instant messaging accounts, so19 cial networking accounts, or cellular telephone 

20 logs; 

21 ‘‘(C) attempting to control or restrict a 

22 person’s ability to access technology with the in23 tent to isolate them from support and social 

24 connection; 


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1 ‘‘(D) using tracking devices or location 

2 tracking software for the purpose of monitoring 

3 or stalking another person’s location; 

4 ‘‘(E) impersonation of a person with the 

5 intent to deceive or cause harm through the use 

6 of spoofing technology or the creation of fake 

7 email or social media accounts; or 

8 ‘‘(F) pressuring for or sharing of another 

9 person’s private information, photographs, or 

10 videos without their consent.’’. 

11 SEC. 3. EXPANSION OF COVERAGE BY THE DEPARTMENT 

12 OF VETERANS AFFAIRS OF COUNSELING AND 

13 TREATMENT FOR SEXUAL TRAUMA TO IN14 CLUDE TECHNOLOGICAL ABUSE OF A SEX15 UAL NATURE. 

16 Section 1720D(a)(1) of title 38, United States Code, 

17 is amended by inserting ‘‘technological abuse of a sexual 

18 nature,’’ after ‘‘battery of a sexual nature,’’. 

19 SEC. 4. STANDARD OF PROOF FOR SERVICE-CONNECTION 

20 OF MENTAL HEALTH CONDITIONS RELATED 

21 TO MILITARY SEXUAL TRAUMA. 

22 (a) STANDARD OF PROOF.—Section 1154 of title 38, 

23 United States Code, is amended by adding at the end the 

24 following new subsection: 


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1 ‘‘(c)(1) In the case of any veteran who claims that 

2 a covered mental health condition was incurred in or ag3 gravated by military sexual trauma during active military, 

4 naval, or air service, the Secretary shall accept as suffi5 cient proof of service-connection a diagnosis of such men6 tal health condition by a mental health professional to7 gether with satisfactory lay or other evidence of such trau8 ma and an opinion by the mental health professional that 

9 such covered mental health condition is related to such 

10 military sexual trauma, if consistent with the facts of such 

11 service, notwithstanding the fact that there is no official 

12 record of such incurrence or aggravation in such service, 

13 and, to that end, shall resolve every reasonable doubt in 

14 favor of the veteran. Service-connection of such covered 

15 mental health condition may be rebutted by clear and con16 vincing evidence to the contrary. The reasons for granting 

17 or denying service-connection in each case shall be re18 corded in full. 

19 ‘‘(2) In this subsection: 

20 ‘‘(A) The term ‘covered mental health condi21 tion’ means post-traumatic stress disorder, anxiety, 

22 depression, or other mental health diagnosis de23 scribed in the current version of the Diagnostic and 

24 Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders published by 

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1 retary determines to be related to military sexual 

2 trauma. 

3 ‘‘(B) The term ‘military sexual trauma’ means, 

4 with respect to a veteran, a physical assault of a sex5 ual nature, battery of a sexual nature, technological 

6 abuse of a sexual nature, or sexual harassment in 

7 line of duty.’’. 

8 (b) USE OF EVIDENCE IN EVALUATING DISABILITY

9 CLAIMS INVOLVING MILITARY SEXUAL TRAUMA.— 

10 (1) IN GENERAL.—Subchapter VI of chapter 11 

11 of such title is amended by adding at the end the 

12 following new section: 

13 ‘‘§ 1164. Evaluation of claims involving military sex14 ual trauma 

15 ‘‘(a) NONMILITARY SOURCES OF EVIDENCE.—(1) In 

16 carrying out section 1154(c) of this title, the Secretary 

17 shall ensure that if a claim for compensation under this 

18 chapter is received by the Secretary for a covered mental 

19 health condition (as defined in such section) based on mili20 tary sexual trauma experienced by a veteran during active 

21 military, naval, or air service, evidence from sources other 

22 than official records of the Department of Defense regard23 ing the veteran’s service may corroborate the veteran’s ac24 count of the assault, battery, or harassment. 


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1 ‘‘(2) Examples of evidence described in paragraph (1) 

2 include the following: 

3 ‘‘(A) Records from law enforcement authorities, 

4 rape crisis centers, mental health counseling centers, 

5 hospitals, and physicians. 

6 ‘‘(B) Pregnancy tests and tests for sexually 

7 transmitted diseases. 

8 ‘‘(C) Statements from family members, room9 mates, other members of the Armed Forces or vet10 erans, and clergy. 

11 ‘‘(b) BEHAVIOR CHANGES CORROBORATING EVI12 DENCE.—(1) In carrying out section 1154(c) of this title, 

13 the Secretary shall ensure that evidence of a behavior 

14 change following military sexual trauma is one type of rel15 evant evidence that may be found in sources described in 

16 such subsection. 

17 ‘‘(2) Examples of behavior changes that may be rel18 evant evidence of military sexual trauma include the fol19 lowing: 

20 ‘‘(A) A request for a transfer to another mili21 tary duty assignment. 

22 ‘‘(B) Deterioration in work performance. 

23 ‘‘(C) Substance abuse. 

24 ‘‘(D) Episodes of depression, panic attacks, or 

25 anxiety without an identifiable cause. 


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1 ‘‘(E) Unexplained economic or social behavior 

2 changes. 

3 ‘‘(c) NOTICE AND OPPORTUNITY TO SUPPLY EVI4 DENCE.—The Secretary may not deny a claim of a veteran 

5 for compensation under this chapter for a covered mental 

6 health condition that is based on military sexual trauma 

7 without first— 

8 ‘‘(1) advising the veteran that evidence de9 scribed in subsections (a) and (b) may constitute 

10 credible corroborating evidence of the military sexual 

11 trauma; and 

12 ‘‘(2) allowing the veteran an opportunity to fur13 nish such corroborating evidence or advise the Sec14 retary of potential sources of such evidence. 

15 ‘‘(d) REVIEW OF EVIDENCE.—In reviewing a claim 

16 for compensation described in subsection (a)(1), for any 

17 evidence received with such claim that is described in sub18 section (a) or (b), the Secretary may submit such evidence 

19 to such medical or mental health professional as the Sec20 retary considers appropriate, including clinical and coun21 seling experts employed by the Department, to obtain a 

22 credible opinion as to whether the evidence indicates that 

23 military sexual trauma occurred. 

24 ‘‘(e) POINT OF CONTACT.—The Secretary shall en25 sure that each document provided to a veteran relating 


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1 to a claim for compensation described in subsection (a)(1) 

2 includes contact information for an appropriate point of 

3 contact with the Department. 

4 ‘‘(f) SPECIALIZED TEAMS.—(1) The Secretary shall 

5 establish specialized teams to process claims for com6 pensation described in subsection (a)(1). 

7 ‘‘(2) The Secretary shall ensure that members of 

8 teams established under paragraph (1) are trained to iden9 tify markers indicating military sexual trauma. 

10 ‘‘(3) In any case in which the Secretary obtains con11 flicting evidence relating to the substantiation of a claim 

12 for compensation described in subsection (a)(1), the Sec13 retary shall give more credence to the evidence that is 

14 more beneficial to the claimant. 

15 ‘‘(g) DEFINITIONS.—In this section, the terms ‘cov16 ered mental health condition’ and ‘military sexual trauma’ 

17 has the meanings given such terms in section 1154(c) of 

18 this title.’’. 

19 (2) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sec20 tions at the beginning of such chapter is amended 

21 by adding at the end the following new item: 

‘‘1164. Evaluation of claims involving military sexual trauma.’’. 

22 (c) ANNUAL REPORTS.— 

23 (1) IN GENERAL.—Subchapter VI of chapter 11 

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1 section (b), is further amended by adding at the end 

2 the following new section: 

3 ‘‘§ 1165. Annual reports on claims for disabilities in4 curred or aggravated by military sexual 

5 trauma 

6 ‘‘(a) REPORTS.—Not later than March 1, 2020, and 

7 not less frequently than once each year thereafter through 

8 2027, the Secretary shall submit to Congress a report on 

9 covered claims submitted during the previous fiscal year 

10 to identify and track the consistency of decisions across 

11 regional offices. 

12 ‘‘(b) ELEMENTS.—Each report under subsection (a) 

13 shall include the following: 

14 ‘‘(1) The number of covered claims submitted 

15 to or considered by the Secretary during the fiscal 

16 year covered by the report. 

17 ‘‘(2) Of the covered claims listed under para18 graph (1), the number and percentage of such 

19 claims— 

20 ‘‘(A) submitted by each sex; 

21 ‘‘(B) that were approved, including the 

22 number and percentage of such approved claims 

23 submitted by each sex; and 


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1 ‘‘(C) that were denied, including the num2 ber and percentage of such denied claims sub3 mitted by each sex. 

4 ‘‘(3) Of the covered claims listed under para5 graph (1) that were approved, the number and per6 centage, disaggregated by sex, of claims assigned to 

7 each rating percentage. 

8 ‘‘(4) Of the covered claims listed under para9 graph (1) that were denied— 

10 ‘‘(A) the three most common reasons given 

11 by the Secretary under section 5104(b)(1) of 

12 this title for such denials; and 

13 ‘‘(B) the number of denials that were 

14 based on the failure of a veteran to report for 

15 a medical examination. 

16 ‘‘(5) The number of covered claims that, as of 

17 the end of the fiscal year covered by the report, are 

18 pending and, separately, the number of such claims 

19 on appeal. 

20 ‘‘(6) For the fiscal year covered by the report, 

21 the average number of days that covered claims take 

22 to complete, beginning on the date on which the 

23 claim is submitted. 

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1 fits Administration, or such contractors or other in2 dividuals as the Secretary considers appropriate, 

3 specifically with respect to covered claims, including 

4 the frequency, length, and content of such training. 

5 ‘‘(c) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 

6 ‘‘(1) The term ‘covered claims’ means claims 

7 for disability compensation submitted to the Sec8 retary based on a covered mental health condition 

9 alleged to have been incurred or aggravated by mili10 tary sexual trauma. 

11 ‘‘(2) The terms ‘covered mental health condi12 tion’ and ‘military sexual trauma’ have the meanings 

13 given such terms in section 1154(c) of this title.’’. 

14 (2) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sec15 tions at the beginning of such chapter, as amended 

16 by subsection (b), is further amended by adding at 

17 the end the following new item: 

‘‘1165. Annual reports on claims for disabilities incurred or aggravated by military sexual trauma.’’. 

18 (d) EFFECTIVE DATE.—Subsection (c) of section 

19 1154 of title 38, United States Code, as added by sub20 section (a), shall apply with respect to any claim for dis21 ability compensation under laws administered by the Sec22 retary of Veterans Affairs for which no final decision has 

23 been made before the date of the enactment of this Act. 


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1 SEC. 5. INFORMATION FOR MEMBERS OF THE ARMED 

2 FORCES REGARDING AVAILABILITY OF SERV3 ICES AT THE DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AF4 FAIRS. 

5 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of Defense shall in6 form members of the Armed Forces, using mechanisms 

7 available to the Secretary, of the eligibility of such mem8 bers for services at the Department of Veterans Affairs. 

9 (b) INFORMATION FROM SEXUAL ASSAULT RE10 SPONSE COORDINATORS.—The Secretary shall ensure that 

11 Sexual Assault Response Coordinators of the Department 

12 of Defense advise members of the Armed Forces who re13 port instances of military sexual trauma regarding the eli14 gibility of such members for services at the Department 

15 of Veterans Affairs. 

16 (c) MILITARY SEXUAL TRAUMA DEFINED.—In this 

17 section, the term ‘‘military sexual trauma’’ means psycho18 logical trauma described in section 1720D(a)(1) of title 

19 38, United States Code. 

20 SEC. 6. SENSE OF CONGRESS ON ACCESS TO DEPARTMENT 

21 OF VETERANS AFFAIRS FACILITIES BY RE22 SERVISTS FOR COUNSELING AND TREAT23 MENT RELATING TO MILITARY SEXUAL TRAU24 MA. 

25 (a) IN GENERAL.—It is the sense of Congress that 

26 members of the reserve components of the Armed Forces, 


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1 including members of the National Guard, should be able 

2 to access all health care facilities of the Department of 

3 Veterans Affairs to receive counseling and treatment relat4 ing to military sexual trauma and not just at Vet Centers. 

5 (b) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 

6 (1) MILITARY SEXUAL TRAUMA.—The term 

7 ‘‘military sexual trauma’’ means psychological trau8 ma described in section 1720D(a)(1) of title 38, 

9 United States Code. 

10 (2) VET CENTER.—The term ‘‘Vet Center’’ has 

11 the meaning given that term in section 1712A(h) of 

12 such title. 

Æ 


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