I 

113TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 3516 

To improve health care furnished by the Department of Veterans Affairs 

and the Department of Defense by increasing access to complementary 

and alternative medicine and other approaches to wellness and preventive 

care, and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

NOVEMBER 15, 2013 

Mr. RYAN of Ohio (for himself, Mr. NUGENT, and Mr. RUIZ) introduced the 

following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Veterans’ Affairs, 

and in addition to the Committee on Armed Services, for a period to be 

subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration 

of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned 

A BILL 

To improve health care furnished by the Department of 

Veterans Affairs and the Department of Defense by increasing access to complementary and alternative medicine and other approaches to wellness and preventive 

care, 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 ‘‘Veterans and Armed 

5 Forces Health Promotion Act of 2013’’. 


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1 SEC. 2. DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS AND DEPART2 MENT OF DEFENSE EXPANSION OF RE3 SEARCH AND EDUCATION INTO INTEGRA4 TION OF COMPLEMENTARY AND ALTER5 NATIVE MEDICINE INTERVENTIONS. 

6 (a) DEVELOPMENT AND IMPLEMENTATION OF EX7 PANSION PLAN.—Not later than 270 days after the date 

8 of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Veterans 

9 Affairs and the Secretary of Defense shall jointly develop 

10 and implement a plan to expand materially and substan11 tially the scope of research and education on, and delivery 

12 of holistic care that includes, the integration of appro13 priate complementary and alternative medicine interven14 tions in the delivery of health care to veterans under chap15 ter 17 of title 38, United States Code, and members of 

16 the Armed Forces at military medical treatment facilities 

17 under title 10, United States Code. Such plan shall pro18 vide for— 

19 (1) the conduct of research on— 

20 (A) integrating proven or promising com21 plementary and alternative medicine interven22 tions into the delivery of health care to veterans 

23 and members of the Armed Forces; and 

24 (B) models and systems for providing ho25 listic care that includes complementary and al26 ternative medicine interventions; 


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1 (2) education and training for health care pro2 fessionals on— 

3 (A) proven and promising complementary 

4 and alternative medicine interventions; 

5 (B) appropriate uses of such interventions 

6 therapeutic options; and 

7 (C) holistic integration of such interven8 tions into the delivery of health care to vet9 erans; 

10 (3) carrying out the research, education, and 

11 clinical activities described in paragraphs (1) and (2) 

12 at centers of innovation at geographically dispersed 

13 medical centers operated jointly by the Secretary of 

14 Veterans Affairs and the Secretary of Defense; and 

15 (4) the development of joint metrics and out16 come measures to evaluate the provision (and cost 

17 effectiveness) of complementary and alternative med18 icine interventions in the care of patients of both the 

19 Department of Veterans Affairs and the Department 

20 of Defense. 

21 (b) CONSULTATION WITH EXPERTS.— 

22 (1) CONSULTATION REQUIRED.—For the pur23 poses described in paragraph (2), the Secretary of 

24 Veterans Affairs and the Secretary of Defense shall 

25 consult with the following: 


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1 (A) The Director of the Center on Com2 plementary and Alternative Medicine at the Na3 tional Institute of Health. 

4 (B) The Director of the Food and Drug 

5 Administration. 

6 (C) Academic centers, private research in7 stitutes, and individual researchers that have 

8 extensive experience in studying complementary 

9 and alternative medicine and the integration of 

10 such interventions in the delivery of conven11 tional medical care. 

12 (D) Nationally recognized providers of 

13 complementary and alternative medicine. 

14 (E) Such other sources of expertise as the 

15 Secretary deems appropriate. 

16 (2) PURPOSE OF CONSULTATION.—The Sec17 retary of Veterans Affairs and the Secretary of De18 fense shall undertake the consultation described in 

19 paragraph (1)— 

20 (A) in developing the plan required under 

21 subsection (a); 

22 (B) to identify specific proven or promising 

23 complementary and alternative medicine inter24 ventions that, on the basis of research findings 

25 or promising clinical interventions, are approVerDate Mar 15 2010 19:00 Nov 18, 2013 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3516.IH H3516

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1 priate to include as covered services under sec2 tion 3; and 

3 (C) to identify barriers to the effective pro4 vision and integration of complementary and al5 ternative medicine interventions (and means of 

6 circumventing such barriers). 

7 (c) FUNDING.—None of the amounts authorized to 

8 be appropriated to carry out this section may be obligated 

9 or expended except for a joint effort of the Department 

10 of Defense and the Department of Veterans Affairs. 

11 SEC. 3. MEDICAL TREATMENT AND RESEARCH FACILITIES 

12 JOINTLY OPERATED BY THE DEPARTMENT 

13 OF VETERANS AFFAIRS AND THE DEPART14 MENT OF DEFENSE. 

15 (a) PILOT PROGRAM REQUIRED.—Commencing not 

16 later than 270 days after the date of the enactment of 

17 this Act, the Secretary of Veterans Affairs and the Sec18 retary of Defense shall jointly develop and implement a 

19 plan to establish jointly-operated medical treatment and 

20 research facilities. Such facilities shall— 

21 (1) be staffed by employees of the Department 

22 of Veterans Affairs and the Department of Defense 

23 and members of the Armed Forces; 

24 (2) be operated by dividing the operation and 

25 maintenance expenses between both the Department 


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1 of Veterans Affairs and the Department of Defense 

2 by a ratio determined in a memorandum of under3 standing between the Secretaries; and 

4 (3) bill to each Department the cost of certain 

5 specialty medical services, including radiology, lab6 oratory, and surgery, as such services are used. 

7 (b) DURATION OF PROGRAM.—The pilot program 

8 shall be carried out during the three-year period beginning 

9 on the date of the commencement of the pilot program. 

10 (c) LOCATIONS.— 

11 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretaries shall carry 

12 out the pilot program by establishing not fewer than 

13 5 joint medical treatment and research facilities. 

14 (2) CONSIDERATIONS.—In selecting locations 

15 for the pilot program, the Secretaries shall consider 

16 the feasibility and advisability of selecting loca17 tions— 

18 (A) in areas with a high concentration of 

19 veterans and members of the Armed Forces; 

20 (B) that present a reasonable probability 

21 of cost savings to the taxpayer by consolidation 

22 of services and facilities currently administered 

23 separately as determined jointly by the Secre24 taries; and 


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1 (C) where collaboration of research and 

2 treatment will be most beneficial to the common 

3 needs of the patients under the care of both De4 partments, as determined jointly by the Secre5 taries. 

6 (d) FUNDING.—None of the amounts authorized to 

7 be appropriated to carry out this section may be obligated 

8 or expended except for a joint effort of the Department 

9 of Defense and the Department of Veterans Affairs. 

10 SEC. 4. PILOT PROGRAM ON ESTABLISHMENT OF COM11 PLEMENTARY AND ALTERNATIVE MEDICINE 

12 CENTERS WITHIN DEPARTMENT OF VET13 ERANS AFFAIRS MEDICAL CENTERS. 

14 (a) PILOT PROGRAM REQUIRED.—Commencing not 

15 later than 180 days after the date of the enactment of 

16 this Act, the Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall carry out, 

17 through the Office of Patient Centered Care and Cultural 

18 Transformation of the Department of Veterans Affairs, a 

19 pilot program to assess the feasibility and advisability of 

20 establishing complementary and alternative medicine cen21 ters within Department of Veterans Affairs medical cen22 ters to promote the use and integration of complementary 

23 and alternative medicine services for mental health diag24 noses and pain management. 


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1 (b) DURATION OF PROGRAM.—The pilot program 

2 shall be carried out during the three-year period beginning 

3 on the date of the commencement of the pilot program. 

4 (c) LOCATIONS.— 

5 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall carry 

6 out the pilot program by establishing not fewer than 

7 10 complementary and alternative medicine centers 

8 in 10 separate Department medical centers as fol9 lows: 

10 (A) Three Department medical centers 

11 designated by the Secretary as polytrauma cen12 ters. 

13 (B) Seven Department medical centers not 

14 designated by Secretary as polytrauma centers. 

15 (2) CONSIDERATIONS.—In selecting locations 

16 for the pilot program, the Secretary shall consider 

17 the feasibility and advisability of selecting locations 

18 in— 

19 (A) rural areas; 

20 (B) areas that are not in close proximity to 

21 an active duty military installation; and 

22 (C) areas representing different geographic 

23 locations, such as census tracts established by 

24 the Bureau of the Census. 


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1 (d) PROVISION OF SERVICES.—Under the pilot pro2 gram, the Secretary shall provide covered services to cov3 ered patients through the complementary and alternative 

4 medicine centers established under subsection (c)(1). 

5 (e) COVERED PATIENTS.—For purposes of the pilot 

6 program, a covered patient is any patient who is a veteran 

7 or member of the Armed Forces who has— 

8 (1) a mental health condition diagnosed by a 

9 clinician of the Department of Veterans Affairs, in 

10 the case of a patient who is a veteran, or a clinician 

11 of the Department of Defense, in the case of a pa12 tient who is a member of the Armed Forces; or 

13 (2) a pain condition for which the veteran has 

14 received a pain management plan from a clinician of 

15 the Department of Veterans Affairs, in the case of 

16 a patient who is a veteran, or a clinician of the De17 partment of Defense, in the case of a patient who 

18 is a member of the Armed Forces. 

19 (f) COVERED SERVICES.— 

20 (1) IN GENERAL.—For purposes of the pilot 

21 program, covered services are services consisting of 

22 complementary or alternative medicine. 

23 (2) ADMINISTRATION OF SERVICES.—Covered 

24 services shall be administered under the pilot pro25 gram as follows: 


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1 (A) Covered services shall be administered 

2 by clinicians who exclusively provide services 

3 consisting of complementary or alternative med4 icine. 

5 (B) Covered services shall be included as 

6 part of the Patient Aligned Care Teams initia7 tive of the Office of Patient Care Services, Pri8 mary Care Program Office. 

9 (C) Covered services shall be made avail10 able to both— 

11 (i) covered patients with mental 

12 health conditions or pain conditions de13 scribed in subsection (e) who have received 

14 traditional treatments from the Depart15 ment for such conditions; and 

16 (ii) covered patients with mental 

17 health conditions or pain conditions de18 scribed in subsection (e) who have not re19 ceived traditional treatments from the De20 partment for such conditions. 

21 (g) VOLUNTARY PARTICIPATION.—The participation 

22 of a patient in the pilot program shall be at the election 

23 of the patient and in consultation with a clinician of the 

24 Department of Veterans Affairs, in the case of a patient 

25 who is a veteran, and in consultation with a clinician of 


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1 the Department of Defense, in the case of a patient who 

2 is member of the Armed Forces. 

3 (h) REPORTS TO CONGRESS.— 

4 (1) QUARTERLY REPORTS.—Not later than 90 

5 days after the date of the commencement of the pilot 

6 program and not less frequently than once every 90 

7 days thereafter for the duration of the pilot pro8 gram, the Secretary shall submit to the Committee 

9 on Veterans’ Affairs of the Senate and the Com10 mittee on Veterans’ Affairs of the House of Rep11 resentatives a report on the efforts of the Secretary 

12 to carry out the pilot program, including a descrip13 tion of the outreach conducted by the Secretary to 

14 veterans and community organizations to inform 

15 such organizations about the pilot program. 

16 (2) FINAL REPORT.— 

17 (A) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 180 

18 days after the completion of the pilot program, 

19 the Secretary shall submit to the Committee on 

20 Veterans’ Affairs of the Senate and the Com21 mittee on Veterans’ Affairs of the House of 

22 Representatives a report on the pilot program. 

23 (B) CONTENTS.—The report submitted 

24 under subparagraph (A) shall include the fol25 lowing: 


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1 (i) The findings and conclusions of 

2 the Secretary with respect to the pilot pro3 gram, including with respect to the utiliza4 tion and efficacy of the complementary and 

5 alternative medicine centers established 

6 under the pilot program. 

7 (ii) Such recommendations for the 

8 continuation or expansion of the pilot pro9 gram as the Secretary considers appro10 priate. 

11 (i) FUNDING.—There is authorized to be appro12 priated to the Secretary such sums as may be necessary 

13 to carry out this section. 

14 SEC. 5. PILOT PROGRAM ON USE OF WELLNESS PROGRAMS 

15 AS COMPLEMENTARY APPROACH TO MENTAL 

16 HEALTH CARE FOR VETERANS AND FAMILY 

17 MEMBERS OF VETERANS. 

18 (a) PILOT PROGRAM REQUIRED.— 

19 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of Veterans 

20 Affairs shall carry out a pilot program through the 

21 award of grants to public or private nonprofit enti22 ties to assess the feasibility and advisability of using 

23 wellness programs to complement the provision of 

24 mental health care to veterans and family members 


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1 eligible for counseling under section 1712A(a)(1)(C) 

2 of title 38, United States Code. 

3 (2) MATTERS TO BE ADDRESSED.—The pilot 

4 program shall be carried out so as to assess the fol5 lowing: 

6 (A) Means of improving coordination be7 tween Federal, State, local, and community pro8 viders of health care in the provision of mental 

9 health care to veterans and family members de10 scribed in paragraph (1). 

11 (B) Means of enhancing outreach, and co12 ordination of outreach, by and among providers 

13 of health care referred to in subparagraph (A) 

14 on the mental health care services available to 

15 veterans and family members described in para16 graph (1). 

17 (C) Means of using wellness programs of 

18 providers of health care referred to in subpara19 graph (A) as complements to the provision by 

20 the Department of Veterans Affairs of mental 

21 health care to veterans and family members de22 scribed in paragraph (1). 

23 (D) Whether wellness programs described 

24 in subparagraph (C) are effective in enhancing 

25 the quality of life and well-being of veterans 


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1 and family members described in paragraph 

2 (1). 

3 (E) Whether wellness programs described 

4 in subparagraph (C) are effective in increasing 

5 the adherence of veterans described in para6 graph (1) to the primary mental health services 

7 provided such veterans by the Department. 

8 (F) Whether wellness programs described 

9 in subparagraph (C) have an impact on the 

10 sense of wellbeing of veterans described in para11 graph (1) who receive primary mental health 

12 services from the Department. 

13 (G) Whether wellness programs described 

14 in subparagraph (C) are effective in encour15 aging veterans receiving health care from the 

16 Department to adopt a more healthy lifestyle. 

17 (b) DURATION.—The Secretary shall carry out the 

18 pilot program for a period of three years beginning on the 

19 date that is 90 days after the date of the enactment of 

20 this Act. 

21 (c) LOCATIONS.—The Secretary shall carry out the 

22 pilot program at facilities of the Department providing 

23 mental health care services to veterans and family mem24 bers described in subsection (a)(1). 

25 (d) GRANT PROPOSALS.— 


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1 (1) IN GENERAL.—A public or private nonprofit 

2 entity seeking the award of a grant under this sec3 tion shall submit an application therefor to the Sec4 retary in such form and in such manner as the Sec5 retary may require. 

6 (2) APPLICATION CONTENTS.—Each application 

7 submitted under paragraph (1) shall include the fol8 lowing: 

9 (A) A plan to coordinate activities under 

10 the pilot program, to the extent possible, with 

11 the Federal, State, and local providers of serv12 ices for veterans to enhance the following: 

13 (i) Awareness by veterans of benefits 

14 and health care services provided by the 

15 Department. 

16 (ii) Outreach efforts to increase the 

17 use by veterans of services provided by the 

18 Department. 

19 (iii) Educational efforts to inform vet20 erans of the benefits of a healthy and ac21 tive lifestyle. 

22 (B) A statement of understanding from 

23 the entity submitting the application that, if se24 lected, such entity will be required to report to 

25 the Secretary periodically on standardized data 


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1 and other performance data necessary to evalu2 ate individual outcomes and to facilitate evalua3 tions among entities participating in the pilot 

4 program. 

5 (C) Other requirements that the Secretary 

6 may prescribe. 

7 (e) GRANT USES.— 

8 (1) IN GENERAL.—A public or private nonprofit 

9 entity awarded a grant under this section shall use 

10 the award for purposes prescribed by the Secretary. 

11 (2) ELIGIBLE VETERANS AND FAMILY.—In car12 rying out the purposes prescribed by the Secretary 

13 in paragraph (1), a public or private nonprofit entity 

14 awarded a grant under this section shall use the 

15 award to furnish services only to individuals speci16 fied in section 1712A(a)(1)(C) of title 38, United 

17 States Code. 

18 (f) REPORTS.— 

19 (1) PERIODIC REPORTS.— 

20 (A) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 180 

21 days after the date of the enactment of this 

22 Act, and every 180 days thereafter, the Sec23 retary shall submit to Congress a report on the 

24 pilot program. 


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1 (B) REPORT ELEMENTS.—Each report re2 quired by subparagraph (A) shall include the 

3 following: 

4 (i) The findings and conclusions of 

5 the Secretary with respect to the pilot pro6 gram during the 180-day period preceding 

7 the report. 

8 (ii) An assessment of the benefits of 

9 the pilot program to veterans and their 

10 family members during the 180-day period 

11 preceding the report. 

12 (2) FINAL REPORT.—Not later than 180 days 

13 after the end of the pilot program, the Secretary 

14 shall submit to Congress a report detailing the rec15 ommendations of the Secretary as to the advisability 

16 of continuing or expanding the pilot program. 

17 (g) WELLNESS DEFINED.—In this section, the term 

18 ‘‘wellness’’ shall have the meaning given that term in regu19 lations prescribed by the Secretary. 

20 (h) FUNDING.—There is authorized to be appro21 priated to the Secretary such sums as may be necessary 

22 to carry out this section. 


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1 SEC. 6. PILOT PROGRAM ON FITNESS AND NUTRITION IM2 PROVEMENT FOR OVERWEIGHT AND OBESE 

3 VETERANS. 

4 (a) PILOT PROGRAM REQUIRED.—Commencing not 

5 later than 180 days after the date of the enactment of 

6 this Act, the Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall, through 

7 the National Center for Preventive Health, carry out a 

8 pilot program to assess the feasibility and advisability of 

9 promoting health in covered veterans, including achieving 

10 a healthy weight and reducing risks of chronic disease, 

11 through support for fitness center membership. 

12 (b) COVERED VETERANS.—For purposes of this sec13 tion, a covered veteran is any veteran who— 

14 (1) is determined by a clinician of the Depart15 ment of Veterans Affairs to be overweight or obese 

16 as of the date of the commencement of the pilot pro17 gram; and 

18 (2) resides in a location that is more than 15 

19 miles from a fitness center at a facility of the De20 partment that would otherwise be available to the 

21 veteran for at least eight hours per day during five 

22 or more days per week. 

23 (c) DURATION OF PILOT PROGRAM.—The pilot pro24 gram shall be carried out during the three-year period be25 ginning on the date of the commencement of the pilot pro26 gram. 


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1 (d) LOCATIONS.— 

2 (1) IN GENERAL.—In carrying out the pilot 

3 program, the Secretary shall select— 

4 (A) not less than five medical centers of 

5 the Department at which the Secretary shall 

6 cover the full reasonable cost of a fitness center 

7 membership for covered veterans within the 

8 catchment area of such centers; 

9 (B) not less than five medical centers of 

10 the Department at which the Secretary shall 

11 cover half the reasonable cost of a fitness center 

12 membership for covered veterans within the 

13 catchment area of such centers; and 

14 (C) not less than five medical centers of 

15 the Department at which the Secretary shall 

16 provide comprehensive medical nutrition ther17 apy for covered veterans. 

18 (2) CONSIDERATIONS.—In selecting locations 

19 for the pilot program, the Secretary shall consider 

20 the feasibility and advisability of selecting locations 

21 in the following areas: 

22 (A) Areas that are not in close proximity 

23 to an active duty military installation. 

24 (B) Areas in different geographic locations. 

25 (e) PARTICIPATION.— 


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1 (1) MAXIMUM NUMBER OF PARTICIPANTS.— 

2 The number of covered veterans who may participate 

3 in the pilot program at a location selected under 

4 subsection (d) may not exceed 100. 

5 (2) VOLUNTARY PARTICIPATION.—The partici6 pation of a covered veteran in the pilot program 

7 shall be at the election of the covered veteran in con8 sultation with a clinician of the Department. 

9 (f) FITNESS CENTER MEMBERSHIP PAYMENT.— 

10 (1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in para11 graph (2), in carrying out the pilot program, the 

12 Secretary shall pay the following: 

13 (A) The full reasonable cost of a fitness 

14 center membership for covered veterans within 

15 the catchment area of centers selected under 

16 subsection (b)(1)(A) who are participating in 

17 the pilot program. 

18 (B) Half the reasonable cost of a fitness 

19 center membership for covered veterans within 

20 the catchment area of centers selected under 

21 subsection (b)(1)(B) who are participating in 

22 the pilot program. 

23 (2) LIMITATION.—Payment for a fitness center 

24 membership of a covered veteran may not exceed 

25 $50 per month of membership. 


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1 (g) REPORTS.— 

2 (1) PERIODIC REPORTS.—Not later than 90 

3 days after the date of the commencement of the pilot 

4 program and not less frequently than once every 90 

5 days thereafter, the Secretary shall submit to the 

6 Committee on Veterans’ Affairs of the Senate and 

7 the Committee on Veterans’ Affairs of the House of 

8 Representatives a report on activities carried out to 

9 implement the pilot program, including outreach ac10 tivities to veterans and community organizations. 

11 (2) FINAL REPORT.—Not later than 180 days 

12 after the date of the completion of the pilot pro13 gram, the Secretary shall submit to the Committee 

14 on Veterans’ Affairs of the Senate and the Com15 mittee on Veterans’ Affairs of the House of Rep16 resentatives a report on the pilot program detail17 ing— 

18 (A) the findings and conclusions of the 

19 Secretary as a result of the pilot program; and 

20 (B) recommendations for the continuation 

21 or expansion of the pilot program. 

22 (h) FUNDING.—There is authorized to be appro23 priated to the Secretary such sums as may be necessary 

24 to carry out this section. 


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1 SEC. 7. PILOT PROGRAM ON TRANSFORMATION OF VET2 ERANS SERVICES ORGANIZATIONS FACILI3 TIES INTO VETERAN HEALTH AND WELLNESS 

4 CENTERS. 

5 (a) PILOT PROGRAM REQUIRED.— 

6 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of Veterans 

7 Affairs shall carry out a pilot program under which 

8 the Secretary makes grants to nonprofit veterans 

9 services organizations (hereinafter in this section re10 ferred to as ‘‘VSOs’’) recognized by the Secretary in 

11 accordance with section 5902 of title 38, United 

12 States Code, to upgrade, through construction and 

13 repair, VSO community facilities into health and 

14 wellness centers. 

15 (2) USE OF FUNDS.—The recipient of a grant 

16 under this section shall use the grant to carry out 

17 the repair of a facility owned by the recipient or to 

18 construct a facility on property owned by the recipi19 ent. Such funds may not be used to purchase real 

20 estate or to carry out repair of facilities leased by 

21 the recipient or to construct facilities on property 

22 leased by the recipient. Any facility repaired or con23 structed using grant funds shall be used to provide 

24 alternative medical care, or wellness programs, to 

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1 fined in section 1712A(h)(3) of title 38, United 

2 States Code. 

3 (3) FACILITY OPERATION.—As a condition of 

4 the receipt of a grant under this section, a VSO 

5 shall agree to carry out the operation and mainte6 nance of the facility that is repaired or constructed 

7 using grant funds for the three-year period begin8 ning on the date of the completion of the repair or 

9 construction. 

10 (b) DURATION OF PILOT PROGRAM.—The pilot pro11 gram shall be carried out during the two-year period be12 ginning on the date of the commencement of the pilot pro13 gram. 

14 (c) LOCATIONS.—In selecting the recipients of grants 

15 under this section, the Secretary shall ensure that the 

16 grant recipients use grant funds to construct or repair fa17 cilities located in at least ten different geographic loca18 tions. The Secretary shall give priority to locations in eco19 nomically depressed areas that are not in close proximity 

20 to Department of Veterans Affairs medical centers. 

21 (d) ELIGIBILITY.—To be eligible to receive a grant 

22 under this section, a VSO shall submit to the Secretary 

23 an application in such form and in such manner as the 

24 Secretary may require. 

25 (e) REPORTS.— 


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1 (1) PERIODIC REPORTS.— 

2 (A) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 180 

3 days after the date of the enactment of this 

4 Act, and every 180 days thereafter for the du5 ration of the pilot program, the Secretary shall 

6 submit to Congress a report on the pilot pro7 gram. 

8 (B) REPORT ELEMENTS.—Each report re9 quired by subparagraph (A) shall include the 

10 following: 

11 (i) The findings and conclusions of 

12 the Secretary with respect to the pilot pro13 gram during the 180-day period covered by 

14 the report. 

15 (ii) An assessment of the benefits of 

16 the pilot program to veterans and either 

17 family members during the 180-day period 

18 covered by the report. 

19 (2) FINAL REPORT.—Not later than 180 days 

20 after the conclusion of the pilot program, the Sec21 retary shall submit to Congress a report detailing 

22 the recommendations of the Secretary as to the ad23 visability of continuing or expanding the pilot pro24 gram. 


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1 (f) FUNDING.—There is authorized to be appro2 priated to the Secretary such sums as may be necessary 

3 to carry out this section. 

4 SEC. 8. DEFINITION OF COMPLEMENTARY AND ALTER5 NATIVE MEDICINE. 

6 In this Act, the term ‘‘complementary and alternative 

7 medicine’’ shall— 

8 (1) have the meaning given that term in regula9 tions the Secretary shall prescribe for purposes of 

10 this Act, which shall, to the degree practicable, be 

11 consistent with the meaning given such term by the 

12 Secretary of Health and Human Services; and 

13 (2) include integrative health care, adjunctive 

14 health care, and functional medicine. 

Æ 


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