II

104TH CONGRESS

1ST SESSION S. 403

To amend title 38, United States Code, to provide for the organization

and administration of the Readjustment Counseling Service, to improve

eligibility for readjustment counseling and related counseling, and for

other purposes.

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

FEBRUARY 14 (legislative day, JANUARY 30), 1995

Mr. AKAKA (for himself, Mr. DASCHLE, Mr. WELLSTONE, Mr. INOUYE, and

Mr. JEFFORDS) 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 provide for the

organization and administration of the Readjustment

Counseling Service, to improve eligibility for readjustment counseling and related counseling, 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 ‘‘Readjustment Counsel5 ing Service Amendments of 1995’’.
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1 SEC. 2. ORGANIZATION OF THE READJUSTMENT COUNSEL2 ING SERVICE IN THE DEPARTMENT OF VET3 ERANS AFFAIRS.

4 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 7305 of title 38, United

5 States Code, is amended—

6 (1) by redesignating paragraph (7) as para7 graph (8); and

8 (2) by inserting after paragraph (6) the follow9 ing new paragraph (7):

10 ‘‘(7) A Readjustment Counseling Service.’’.

11 (b) ORGANIZATION.—The Readjustment Counseling

12 Service shall have the organizational structure and admin13 istrative structure of that service as such structures were

14 in existence on January 1, 1993.

15 (c) REVISION OF ORGANIZATIONAL STRUCTURE.—

16 (1) The Secretary of Veterans Affairs may not alter or

17 revise the organizational structure or the administrative

18 structure of the Readjustment Counseling Service until—

19 (A) the Secretary has submitted to the Commit20 tees on Veterans’ Affairs of the Senate and House

21 of Representatives a report containing a full and

22 complete statement of the proposed alteration or re23 vision; and

24 (B) a period of 60 days has elapsed after the

25 date on which the report is received by the commit26 tees.
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1 (2) In the computation of the 60-day period under

2 paragraph (1)(B), there shall be excluded any day on

3 which either House of Congress is not in session because

4 of an adjournment of more than 3 calendar days to a day

5 certain.

6 (d) BUDGET INFORMATION RELATING TO THE SERV7 ICE.—Each budget submitted to Congress by the Presi8 dent under section 1105 of title 31, United States Code,

9 shall set forth the amount requested in the budget for the

10 operation of the Readjustment Counseling Service in the

11 fiscal year covered by the budget and shall set forth sepa12 rately the amount requested for administrative oversight

13 of the activities of the service (including the amount re14 quested for funding of the Advisory Committee on Read15 justment of Veterans).

16 SEC. 3. DIRECTOR OF THE READJUSTMENT COUNSELING

17 SERVICE.

18 (a) DIRECTOR.—Section 7306(b) of title 38, United

19 States Code, is amended—

20 (1) by striking out ‘‘and’’ at the end of para21 graph (2);

22 (2) by striking out the period at the end of

23 paragraph (3) and inserting in lieu thereof ‘‘; and’’;

24 and

25 (3) by adding at the end the following:
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1 ‘‘(4) one shall be a person who (A)(i) is a quali2 fied psychiatrist, (ii) is a qualified psychologist hold3 ing a diploma as a doctorate in clinical or counseling

4 psychology from an authority approved by the Amer5 ican Psychological Association and has successfully

6 undergone an internship approved by that associa7 tion, (iii) is a qualified holder of a master in social

8 work degree, or (iv) is a registered nurse holding a

9 master of science in nursing degree in psychiatric

10 nursing or any other mental-health related degree

11 approved by the Secretary, and (B) has at least 3

12 years of clinical experience and 2 years of adminis13 trative experience in the Readjustment Counseling

14 Service or other comparable mental health care

15 counseling service (as determined by the Secretary),

16 who shall be the director of the Readjustment Coun17 seling Service.’’.

18 (b) STATUS OF DIRECTOR.—Section 7306(a)(3) of

19 such title is amended by striking out ‘‘eight’’ and inserting

20 in lieu thereof ‘‘nine’’.

21 (c) ORGANIZATIONAL REQUIREMENT.—The Director

22 of the Readjustment Counseling Service shall report to the

23 Under Secretary for Health of the Department of Veter24 ans Affairs through the Associate Deputy Under Secretary

25 for Health for Clinical Programs.
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1 SEC. 4. EXPANSION OF ELIGIBILITY FOR READJUSTMENT

2 COUNSELING AND CERTAIN RELATED COUN3 SELING SERVICES.

4 (a) READJUSTMENT COUNSELING.—(1) Subsection

5 (a) of section 1712A of title 38, United States Code, is

6 amended to read as follows:

7 ‘‘(a)(1)(A) Upon the request of any veteran referred

8 to in subparagraph (B) of this paragraph, the Secretary

9 shall furnish counseling to the veteran to assist the vet10 eran in readjusting to civilian life.

11 ‘‘(B) A veteran referred to in subparagraph (A) of

12 this paragraph is any veteran who—

13 ‘‘(i) served on active duty during the Vietnam

14 era; or

15 ‘‘(ii) served on active military, naval, or air

16 service in a theater of combat operations (as deter17 mined by the Secretary, in consultation with the

18 Secretary of Defense) during a period of war or in

19 any other area during a period in which hostilities

20 (as defined in subparagraph (D) of this paragraph)

21 occurred in such area.

22 ‘‘(C) Upon the request of any veteran other than a

23 veteran referred to in subparagraph (A) of this paragraph,

24 the Secretary may furnish counseling to the veteran to as25 sist the veteran in readjusting to civilian life.
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1 ‘‘(D) For the purposes of subparagraph (A) of this

2 paragraph, the term ‘hostilities’ means an armed conflict

3 in which the members of the Armed Forces are subjected

4 to danger comparable to the danger to which members of

5 the Armed Forces have been subjected in combat with

6 enemy armed forces during a period of war, as determined

7 by the Secretary in consultation with the Secretary of De8 fense.

9 ‘‘(2) The counseling referred to in paragraph (1)

10 shall include a general mental and psychological assess11 ment of a covered veteran to ascertain whether such vet12 eran has mental or psychological problems associated with

13 readjustment to civilian life.’’.

14 (2) Subsection (c) of such section is repealed.

15 (b) OTHER COUNSELING.—Such section is further

16 amended by inserting after subsection (b) the following

17 new subsection (c):

18 ‘‘(c)(1) The Secretary shall provide the counseling

19 services described in section 1701(6)(B)(ii) of this title to

20 the surviving parents, spouse, and children of any member

21 of the Armed Forces who is killed during service on active

22 military, naval, or air service in a theater of combat oper23 ations (as determined by the Secretary, in consultation

24 with the Secretary of Defense) during a period of war or

25 in any other area during a period in which hostilities (as
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1 defined in subsection (a)(1)(D) of this section) occurred

2 in such area.

3 ‘‘(2) The Secretary may provide the counseling serv4 ices referred to in paragraph (1) to the surviving parents,

5 spouse, and children of any member of the Armed Forces

6 who dies while serving on active duty or from a condition

7 (as determined by the Secretary) incurred in or aggra8 vated by such service.’’.

9 (c) AUTHORITY TO CONTRACT FOR COUNSELING

10 SERVICES.—Subsection (e) of such section is amended by

11 striking out ‘‘subsections (a) and (b)’’ each place it ap12 pears and inserting in lieu thereof ‘‘subsections (a), (b),

13 and (c)’’.

14 SEC. 5. ADVISORY COMMITTEE ON THE READJUSTMENT OF

15 VETERANS.

16 (a) IN GENERAL.—(1) Subchapter II of chapter 17

17 of title 38, United States Code, is amended by inserting

18 after section 1712B the following:

19 ‘‘§ 1712C. Advisory Committee on the Readjustment

20 of Veterans

21 ‘‘(a)(1) There is in the Department the Advisory

22 Committee on the Readjustment of Veterans (hereafter in

23 this section referred to as the ‘Committee’).
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1 ‘‘(2) The Committee shall consist of not more than

2 18 members appointed by the Secretary from among vet3 erans who—

4 ‘‘(A) have demonstrated significant civic or pro5 fessional achievement; and

6 ‘‘(B) have experience with the provision of vet7 erans benefits and services by the Department.

8 ‘‘(3) The Secretary shall seek to ensure that members

9 appointed to the Committee include persons from a wide

10 variety of geographic areas and ethnic backgrounds, per11 sons from veterans service organizations, and women.

12 ‘‘(4) The Secretary shall determine the terms of serv13 ice and pay and allowances of the members of the Commit14 tee, except that a term of service may not exceed 2 years.

15 The Secretary may reappoint any member for additional

16 terms of service.

17 ‘‘(b)(1) The Secretary shall, on a regular basis, con18 sult with and seek the advice of the Committee with re19 spect to the provision by the Department of benefits and

20 services to veterans in order to assist veterans in the read21 justment to civilian life.

22 ‘‘(2)(A) In providing advice to the Secretary under

23 this subsection, the Committee shall—

24 ‘‘(i) assemble and review information relating to

25 the needs of veterans in readjusting to civilian life;
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1 ‘‘(ii) provide information relating to the nature

2 and character of psychological problems arising from

3 service in the Armed Forces;

4 ‘‘(iii) provide an on-going assessment of the ef5 fectiveness of the policies, organizational structures,

6 and services of the Department in assisting veterans

7 in readjusting to civilian life; and

8 ‘‘(iv) provide on-going advice on the most ap9 propriate means of responding to the readjustment

10 needs of veterans in the future.

11 ‘‘(B) In carrying out its duties under subparagraph

12 (A), the Committee shall take into special account veter13 ans of the Vietnam era, and the readjustment needs of

14 such veterans.

15 ‘‘(c)(1) Not later than March 31 of each year, the

16 Committee shall submit to the Secretary a report on the

17 programs and activities of the Department that relate to

18 the readjustment of veterans to civilian life. Each such

19 report shall include—

20 ‘‘(A) an assessment of the needs of veterans

21 with respect to readjustment to civilian life;

22 ‘‘(B) a review of the programs and activities of

23 the Department designed to meet such needs; and
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1 ‘‘(C) such recommendations (including rec2 ommendations for administrative and legislative ac3 tion) as the Committee considers appropriate.

4 ‘‘(2) Not later than 90 days after the receipt of each

5 report under paragraph (1), the Secretary shall transmit

6 to the Committees on Veterans’ Affairs of the Senate and

7 House of Representatives a copy of the report, together

8 with any comments and recommendations concerning the

9 report that the Secretary considers appropriate.

10 ‘‘(3) The Committee may also submit to the Sec11 retary such other reports and recommendations as the

12 Committee considers appropriate.

13 ‘‘(4) The Secretary shall submit with each annual re14 port submitted to the Congress pursuant to section 529

15 of this title a summary of all reports and recommendations

16 of the Committee submitted to the Secretary since the pre17 vious annual report of the Secretary submitted pursuant

18 to that section.

19 ‘‘(d)(1) Except as provided in paragraph (2), the pro20 visions of the Federal Advisory Committee Act (5 U.S.C.

21 App.) shall apply to the activities of the Committee under

22 this section.

23 ‘‘(2) Section 14 of such Act shall not apply to the

24 Committee.’’.
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1 (2) The table of sections at the beginning of chapter

2 17 of such title is amended by inserting after the item

3 relating to section 1712B the following:

‘‘1712C. Advisory Committee on the Readjustment of Veterans.’’.

4 (b) ORIGINAL MEMBERS.—(1) Notwithstanding sub5 section (a)(2) of section 1712C of such title (as added by

6 subsection (a)), the members of the Advisory Committee

7 on the Readjustment of Vietnam and Other War Veterans

8 on the date of the enactment of this Act shall be the origi9 nal members of the advisory committee recognized under

10 such section.

11 (2) The original members shall so serve until the Sec12 retary of Veterans Affairs carries out appointments under

13 such subsection (a)(2). The Secretary shall carry out such

14 appointments as soon after such date as is practicable.

15 The Secretary may make such appointments from among

16 such original members.

17 SEC. 6. PLAN FOR EXPANSION OF VIETNAM VETERAN RE18 SOURCE CENTER PILOT PROGRAM.

19 (a) REQUIREMENT.—(1) The Secretary of Veterans

20 Affairs shall submit to the Committees on Veterans’ Af21 fairs of the Senate and House of Representatives a plan

22 for the expansion of the Vietnam Veteran Resource Center

23 program established pursuant to the amendment made by

24 section 105 of the Veterans’ Administration Health-Care

25 Amendments of 1985 (Public Law 99–166; 99 Stat. 944).
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1 The plan shall include a schedule for, and an assessment

2 of the cost of, the implementation of the program at or

3 through all Department of Veterans Affairs readjustment

4 counseling centers.

5 (2) The Secretary shall submit the plan not later

6 than 4 months after the date of the enactment of this Act.

7 (b) DEFINITION.—In this section, the term ‘‘Depart8 ment of Veterans Affairs readjustment counseling cen9 ters’’ has the same meaning given the term ‘‘center’’ in

10 section 1712A(i)(1) of title 38, United States Code.

11 SEC. 7. REPORT ON COLLOCATION OF VET CENTERS AND

12 DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS OUT13 PATIENT CLINICS.

14 (a) REQUIREMENT.—(1) The Secretary of Veterans

15 Affairs shall submit to the Committees on Veterans’ Af16 fairs of the Senate and House of Representatives a report

17 on the feasibility and desirability of the collocation of Vet

18 Centers and outpatient clinics (including rural mobile clin19 ics) of the Department of Veterans Affairs as current

20 leases for such centers and clinics expire.

21 (2) The Secretary shall submit the report not later

22 than 6 months after the date of the enactment of this Act.

23 (b) COVERED MATTERS.—The report under this sec24 tion shall include an assessment of the following:
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1 (1) The results of any collocation of Vet Cen2 ters and outpatient clinics carried out by the Sec3 retary before the date of the enactment of this Act,

4 including the effects of such collocation on the qual5 ity of care provided at such centers and clinics.

6 (2) The effect of such collocation on the capac7 ity of such centers to carry out their primary mis8 sion.

9 (3) The extent to which such collocation will

10 impair the operational independence or administra11 tive integrity of such centers.

12 (4) The feasibility of combining the services

13 provided by such centers and clinics in the course of

14 the collocation of such centers and clinics.

15 (5) The advisability of the collocation of centers

16 and clinics of significantly different size.

17 (6) The effect of the locations (including urban

18 and rural locations) of the centers and clinics on the

19 feasibility and desirability of such collocation.

20 (7) The amount of any costs savings to be

21 achieved by Department as a result of such colloca22 tion.

23 (8) The desirability of such collocation in light

24 of plans for the provision of health care services by

25 the Department under national health care reform.
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1 (9) Any other matters that the Secretary deter2 mines appropriate.

3 SEC. 8. VET CENTER HEALTH CARE PILOT PROGRAM.

4 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of Veterans Affairs

5 shall carry out a pilot program for the provision of health6 related services to eligible veterans at readjustment coun7 seling centers. The Secretary shall carry out the pilot pro8 gram in accordance with this section.

9 (b) SERVICES.—(1) In carrying out the pilot pro10 gram, the Secretary shall provide the services referred to

11 in paragraph (2) at not less than 10 readjustment counsel12 ing centers in existence on the date of the enactment of

13 this Act.

14 (2) The Secretary shall provide basic ambulatory

15 services and health care screening services by such person16 nel as the Secretary considers appropriate at each read17 justment counseling center under the pilot program. The

18 Secretary shall assign not less than one-half of a full-time

19 employee equivalent at each such center in order to pro20 vide such services under the pilot program.

21 (3) In determining the location of the readjustment

22 counseling centers at which to provide services under the

23 pilot program, the Secretary shall select centers that are

24 located in a variety of geographic areas and that serve vet-
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1 erans of a variety of economic, social, and ethnic back2 grounds.

3 (c) PERIOD OF OPERATION.—(1) The Secretary shall

4 commence the provision of health-related services at read5 justment counseling centers under the pilot program not

6 later than 4 months after the date of the enactment of

7 this Act.

8 (2) The pilot program shall terminate 2 years after

9 the date on which the Secretary commences the provision

10 of services under paragraph (1).

11 (d) REPORT.—(1) The Secretary shall submit to Con12 gress a report on the pilot program established under this

13 section. The report shall include the following:

14 (A) A description of the program, including in15 formation on—

16 (i) the number of veterans provided basic

17 ambulatory services and health care screening

18 services under the pilot program;

19 (ii) the number of such veterans referred

20 to Department of Veterans Affairs general

21 health-care facilities in order to provide such

22 services to such veterans; and

23 (iii) the cost to the Department of Veter24 ans Affairs of the pilot program.
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1 (B) An analysis of the effectiveness of the serv2 ices provided to veterans under the pilot program.

3 (C) The recommendations of the Secretary for

4 means of improving the pilot program, and an esti5 mate of the cost to the Department of implementing

6 such recommendations.

7 (D) An assessment of the desirability of ex8 panding the type or nature of services provided

9 under the pilot program in light of plans for the pro10 vision of health care services by the Department

11 under national health care reform.

12 (E) An assessment of the extent to which the

13 provision of services under the pilot program impairs

14 the operational or administrative independence of

15 the readjustment counseling centers at which such

16 services are provided.

17 (F) An assessment of the effect of the location

18 of the centers on the effectiveness for the Depart19 ment and for veterans of the services provided under

20 the pilot program.

21 (G) Such other information as the Secretary

22 considers appropriate.

23 (2) The Secretary shall submit the report not later

24 than 18 months after the date of the enactment of this

25 Act.
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1 (e) DEFINITIONS.—For the purposes of this section:

2 (1) The term ‘‘Department of Veterans Affairs

3 general health-care facility’’ has the meaning given

4 such term in section 1712A(i)(2) of title 38, United

5 States Code.

6 (2) The term ‘‘eligible veteran’’ means any vet7 eran eligible for outpatient services under paragraph

8 (1), (2), or (3) of section 1712(a) of such title.

9 (3) The term ‘‘readjustment counseling center’’

10 has the same meaning given the term ‘‘center’’ in

11 section 1712A(i)(1) of such title.

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