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[Congressional Bills 114th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 1203 Reported in Senate (RS)]

<DOC>

                                                       Calendar No. 267
114th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                S. 1203

                          [Report No. 114-153]

To amend title 38, United States Code, to improve the processing by the 
   Department of Veterans Affairs of claims for benefits under laws 
   administered by the Secretary of Veterans Affairs, and for other 
                               purposes.

_______________________________________________________________________

                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                              May 6, 2015

Mr. Heller (for himself, Mr. Casey, Mr. Moran, Mr. Manchin, Mr. Toomey, 
Mr. Heinrich, Mr. Vitter, Mr. Tester, Ms. Collins, Mr. Cochran, and Mr. 
Coons) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred 
                 to the Committee on Veterans' Affairs

                            October 19, 2015

  Reported by Mr. Isakson, with an amendment and an amendment to the 
                                 title
 [Strike out all after the enacting clause and insert the part printed 
                               in italic]

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL

 
To amend title 38, United States Code, to improve the processing by the 
   Department of Veterans Affairs of claims for benefits under laws 
   administered by the Secretary 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,

<DELETED>SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS.</DELETED>

<DELETED>    (a) Short Title.--This Act may be cited as the ``21st 
Century Veterans Benefits Delivery Act''.</DELETED>
<DELETED>    (b) Table of Contents.--The table of contents for this Act 
is as follows:</DELETED>

<DELETED>Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents.
              <DELETED>TITLE I--BENEFITS CLAIMS SUBMISSION

<DELETED>Sec. 101. Improvements to Transition Assistance Program.
<DELETED>Sec. 102. Requirement that decisions on claims explain 
                            advantages of filing appeals within 180 
                            days.
<DELETED>Sec. 103. Determination of manner of appearance for hearings 
                            before Board of Veterans' Appeals.
            <DELETED>TITLE II--PRACTICES OF REGIONAL OFFICES

<DELETED>Sec. 201. Required Comptroller General audit of regional 
                            offices of Veterans Benefits 
                            Administration.
<DELETED>Sec. 202. Requirement for management training program for 
                            veterans service center managers of 
                            Veterans Benefits Administration.
<DELETED>Sec. 203. Analysis of communication between regional offices 
                            of Department of Veterans Affairs and 
                            veterans service organizations and 
                            Congressional caseworkers.
<DELETED>Sec. 204. Review of practices of regional offices regarding 
                            use of suspense dates.
<DELETED>Sec. 205. Annual report on capacity of Veterans Benefits 
                            Administration to process benefits claims.
<DELETED>Sec. 206. Requirement to complete efforts to revise resource 
                            allocation model of Department of Veterans 
                            Affairs.
<DELETED>Sec. 207. Semiannual report on progress in implementing 
                            Veterans Benefits Management System.
<DELETED>Sec. 208. Report on plans of Secretary of Veterans Affairs to 
                            reduce inventory of claims for dependency 
                            and indemnity compensation and claims for 
                            pension.
<DELETED>Sec. 209. Increased transparency in Monday Morning Workload 
                            Report.
<DELETED>Sec. 210. Reports on appeals of decisions on benefits claims.
<DELETED>Sec. 211. Modification of pilot program for use of contract 
                            physicians for disability examinations.
                <DELETED>TITLE III--GOVERNMENT RESPONSE

<DELETED>Sec. 301. Increased cooperation across Government.
<DELETED>Sec. 302. Report on interoperability between electronic health 
                            records systems of Department of Defense 
                            and Department of Veterans Affairs.

         <DELETED>TITLE I--BENEFITS CLAIMS SUBMISSION</DELETED>

<DELETED>SEC. 101. IMPROVEMENTS TO TRANSITION ASSISTANCE 
              PROGRAM.</DELETED>

<DELETED>    (a) Modification To Enable Online Access.--Section 1144 of 
title 10, United States Code, is amended by adding at the end the 
following new subsection:</DELETED>
<DELETED>    ``(f) Online Access.--(1) The Secretary of Labor, in 
conjunction with the Secretary of Defense, the Secretary of Homeland 
Security, and the Secretary of Veterans Affairs, shall take such 
actions and make such modifications to the eBenefits Internet website 
as may be necessary to ensure that members of the armed forces and 
spouses described in subsection (a)(1) can access materials from the 
program carried out under this section through an Internet 
website.</DELETED>
<DELETED>    ``(2) An individual subject to a requirement under 
subsection (c) may not satisfy such requirement by participating in the 
program carried out under this section solely through an Internet 
website.''.</DELETED>
<DELETED>    (b) Participation of Veterans Service Organizations.--
</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    (1) Sense of congress.--It is the sense of 
        Congress that the Secretary of Defense, in collaboration with 
        the Secretary of Labor, the Secretary of Homeland Security, and 
        the Secretary of Veterans Affairs, should establish a process 
        by which a representative of a veterans service organization 
        may be present at any portion of the program carried out under 
        section 1144 of title 10, United States Code, relating to the 
        submittal of claims to the Secretary of Veterans Affairs for 
        compensation under chapter 11 or 13 of title 38, United States 
        Code.</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    (2) Report.--</DELETED>
                <DELETED>    (A) In general.--Not later than one year 
                after the date of the enactment of this Act, the 
                Secretary of Defense shall submit to Congress a report 
                on participation of veterans service organizations in 
                the program carried out under section 1144 of title 10, 
                United States Code.</DELETED>
                <DELETED>    (B) Contents.--The report required by 
                subparagraph (A) shall include the following:</DELETED>
                        <DELETED>    (i) An assessment of the 
                        compliance of facilities of the Department of 
                        Defense with the directives included in the 
                        memorandum of the Secretary of Defense entitled 
                        ``Installation Access and Support Services for 
                        Nonprofit Non-Federal Entities'' and dated 
                        December 23, 2014.</DELETED>
                        <DELETED>    (ii) The number of military bases 
                        that have complied with such 
                        directives.</DELETED>
                        <DELETED>    (iii) How many veterans service 
                        organizations have been present at a portion of 
                        a program as described in paragraph 
                        (1).</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    (3) Veterans service organization defined.--In 
        this subsection, the term ``veterans service organization'' 
        means any organization recognized by the Secretary for the 
        representation of veterans under section 5902 of title 
        38.</DELETED>

<DELETED>SEC. 102. REQUIREMENT THAT DECISIONS ON CLAIMS EXPLAIN 
              ADVANTAGES OF FILING APPEALS WITHIN 180 DAYS.</DELETED>

<DELETED>    Section 5104(a) of title 38, United States Code, is 
amended--</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    (1) by inserting ``(1)'' before ``In the case''; 
        and</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    (2) by striking the second sentence and inserting 
        the following new paragraph:</DELETED>
<DELETED>    ``(2) The notice shall include the following:</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    ``(A) An explanation of the procedure for 
        obtaining review of the decision.</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    ``(B) An explanation of the advantages of filing 
        for review of the decision within 180 days.''.</DELETED>

<DELETED>SEC. 103. DETERMINATION OF MANNER OF APPEARANCE FOR HEARINGS 
              BEFORE BOARD OF VETERANS' APPEALS.</DELETED>

<DELETED>    (a) In General.--Section 7107 of title 38, United States 
Code, is amended--</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    (1) by striking subsection (e);</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    (2) by redesignating subsections (d) and (f) as 
        subsections (f) and (g), respectively;</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    (3) by inserting after subsection (c) the 
        following new subsections (d) and (e):</DELETED>
<DELETED>    ``(d)(1) Subject to paragraph (2), a hearing before the 
Board shall be conducted, as the Board considers appropriate--
</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    ``(A) in person; or</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    ``(B) through picture and voice transmission, by 
        electronic or other means, in such manner that the appellant is 
        not present in the same location as the members of the Board 
        during the hearing.</DELETED>
<DELETED>    ``(2) Upon request by an appellant, a hearing before the 
Board shall be conducted, as the appellant considers appropriate--
</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    ``(A) in person; or</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    ``(B) through picture and voice transmission as 
        described in paragraph (1)(B).</DELETED>
<DELETED>    ``(e)(1) In a case in which a hearing before the Board is 
to be conducted through picture and voice transmission as described in 
subsection (d)(1)(B), the Secretary shall provide suitable facilities 
and equipment to the Board or other components of the Department to 
enable an appellant located at an appropriate facility within the area 
served by a regional office to participate as so described.</DELETED>
<DELETED>    ``(2) Any hearing conducted through picture and voice 
transmission as described in subsection (d)(1)(B) shall be conducted in 
the same manner as, and shall be considered the equivalent of, a 
personal hearing.''; and</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    (4) in subsection (f)(1), as redesignated by 
        paragraph (2), by striking ``An appellant may request'' and all 
        that follows through ``office of the Department'' and inserting 
        ``In a case in which a hearing before the Board is to be 
        conducted in person, the hearing shall be held at the principal 
        location of the Board or at a facility of the Department 
        located within the area served by a regional office of the 
        Department.''.</DELETED>
<DELETED>    (b) Effective Date.--The amendment made by subsection (a) 
shall apply with respect to cases received by the Board of Veterans' 
Appeals pursuant to notices of disagreement submitted on or after the 
date of the enactment of this Act.</DELETED>

       <DELETED>TITLE II--PRACTICES OF REGIONAL OFFICES</DELETED>

<DELETED>SEC. 201. REQUIRED COMPTROLLER GENERAL AUDIT OF REGIONAL 
              OFFICES OF VETERANS BENEFITS ADMINISTRATION.</DELETED>

<DELETED>    (a) In General.--Not later than one year after the date of 
the enactment of this Act, the Comptroller General of the United States 
shall complete an audit of the regional offices of the Veterans 
Benefits Administration--</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    (1) to assess the consistency of decisions being 
        made with respect to claims for benefits under laws 
        administered by the Secretary of Veterans Affairs; 
        and</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    (2) to identify ways in which the consistency of 
        such decisions can be improved.</DELETED>
<DELETED>    (b) Identification of Factors and Best Practices.--The 
audit conducted under subsection (a) shall include the 
following:</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    (1) Identification of the factors, including 
        management practices, that distinguish higher performing 
        regional offices from other regional offices.</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    (2) Identification of best practices employed by 
        higher performing regional offices that distinguish the 
        performance of such offices from other regional 
        offices.</DELETED>
<DELETED>    (c) Report.--Not later than 90 days after the date on 
which the Comptroller General completes the audit required by 
subsection (a), the Comptroller General shall submit to Congress a 
report on the results of the audit.</DELETED>

<DELETED>SEC. 202. REQUIREMENT FOR MANAGEMENT TRAINING PROGRAM FOR 
              VETERANS SERVICE CENTER MANAGERS OF VETERANS BENEFITS 
              ADMINISTRATION.</DELETED>

<DELETED>    The Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall establish a 
training program for veterans service center managers, or for employees 
in successor positions in regional offices of the Veterans Benefits 
Administration, on matters concerning managerial skills and such other 
skills as the Secretary considers appropriate for such 
managers.</DELETED>

<DELETED>SEC. 203. ANALYSIS OF COMMUNICATION BETWEEN REGIONAL OFFICES 
              OF DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS AND VETERANS SERVICE 
              ORGANIZATIONS AND CONGRESSIONAL CASEWORKERS.</DELETED>

<DELETED>    (a) In General.--The Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall 
ensure that each systemic analysis of operations that is completed by a 
veterans service center manager in a regional office of the Department 
of Veterans Affairs includes an analysis of the communication between 
the regional office and veterans service organizations and caseworkers 
employed by Members of Congress.</DELETED>
<DELETED>    (b) Veterans Service Organization Defined.--In this 
section, the term ``veterans service organization'' means any 
organization recognized by the Secretary for the representation of 
veterans under section 5902 of title 38, United States Code.</DELETED>

<DELETED>SEC. 204. REVIEW OF PRACTICES OF REGIONAL OFFICES REGARDING 
              USE OF SUSPENSE DATES.</DELETED>

<DELETED>    (a) Review Required.--Not later than 180 days after the 
date of the enactment of this Act, the Inspector General of the 
Department of Veterans Affairs shall conduct a review of the practices 
of regional offices of the Department regarding the use of suspense 
dates during the disability claim assessment process.</DELETED>
<DELETED>    (b) Report.--Not later than 270 days after the date of the 
enactment of this Act, the Inspector General of the Department shall 
submit to Congress a report on the findings of the Inspector General 
with respect to the review conducted under subsection (a).</DELETED>
<DELETED>    (c) Suspense Date Defined.--In this section, the term 
``suspense date'' means a measure used by the Veterans Benefits 
Administration to set incremental deadlines for disability claims as 
they progress through the disability claim assessment 
process.</DELETED>

<DELETED>SEC. 205. ANNUAL REPORT ON CAPACITY OF VETERANS BENEFITS 
              ADMINISTRATION TO PROCESS BENEFITS CLAIMS.</DELETED>

<DELETED>    (a) In General.--Along with the supporting information 
included in the budget submitted by the President for fiscal year 2017 
pursuant to section 1105(a) of title 31, United States Code, and with 
the supporting information included in each budget submittal under such 
section thereafter, the President shall include a report that the 
Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall prepare on the capacity of the 
Veterans Benefits Administration to process claims for benefits under 
laws administered by the Secretary during the fiscal year covered by 
the budget with which the report is submitted.</DELETED>
<DELETED>    (b) Contents.--Each report submitted under subsection (a) 
shall include, for the period covered by the report, the 
following:</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    (1) The number of claims for benefits under laws 
        administered by the Secretary that the Secretary expects the 
        Veterans Benefits Administration to process.</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    (2) The number of full-time equivalent employees 
        of the Veterans Benefits Administration who are dedicated to 
        processing such claims.</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    (3) An estimate of the average number of such 
        claims a single full-time equivalent employee of the 
        Administration can process in a year, based on a time and 
        motion study that the Secretary shall conduct on the processing 
        of such claims.</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    (4) An assessment of whether the Administration 
        requires additional or fewer full-time equivalent employees to 
        process such claims during the next one-year, five-year, and 
        ten-year periods.</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    (5) A description of the actions the Secretary 
        will take to improve the processing of such claims.</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    (6) An assessment of the actions identified by the 
        Secretary in the previous report submitted under subsection (a) 
        and identification of the effects of those actions.</DELETED>
<DELETED>    (c) Public Availability.--The Secretary shall make each 
report required by subsection (a) available to the public on an 
Internet website of the Department of Veterans Affairs.</DELETED>

<DELETED>SEC. 206. REQUIREMENT TO COMPLETE EFFORTS TO REVISE RESOURCE 
              ALLOCATION MODEL OF DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS 
              AFFAIRS.</DELETED>

<DELETED>    (a) In General.--Not later than 180 days after the date of 
the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall 
complete the efforts of the Department of Veterans Affairs to revise 
the resource allocation model of the Veterans Benefits 
Administration.</DELETED>
<DELETED>    (b) Report.--Not later than 180 days after the date of the 
enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall submit to the Committee on 
Veterans' Affairs of the Senate and the Committee on Veterans' Affairs 
of the House of Representatives a report on the resource allocation 
model revised pursuant to subsection (a).</DELETED>

<DELETED>SEC. 207. SEMIANNUAL REPORT ON PROGRESS IN IMPLEMENTING 
              VETERANS BENEFITS MANAGEMENT SYSTEM.</DELETED>

<DELETED>    (a) In General.--Not later than 180 days after the date of 
the enactment of this Act and not less frequently than once every 180 
days thereafter until the date that is three years after the date of 
the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall 
submit to Congress a report on the progress of the Secretary in 
implementing the Veterans Benefits Management System.</DELETED>
<DELETED>    (b) Contents.--The report required by subsection (a) shall 
include the following:</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    (1) An assessment of the current functionality of 
        the Veterans Benefits Management System.</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    (2) Recommendations submitted to the Secretary by 
        employees of the Department of Veterans Affairs who are 
        involved in processing claims for benefits under laws 
        administered by the Secretary, including veteran service 
        representatives, rating veteran service representatives, and 
        decision review officers, for such legislative or 
        administrative action as the employees consider appropriate to 
        improve the processing of such claims.</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    (3) Recommendations submitted to the Secretary by 
        veterans service organizations who use the Veterans Benefits 
        Management System for such legislative or administrative action 
        as the veterans service organization consider appropriate to 
        improve such system.</DELETED>

<DELETED>SEC. 208. REPORT ON PLANS OF SECRETARY OF VETERANS AFFAIRS TO 
              REDUCE INVENTORY OF CLAIMS FOR DEPENDENCY AND INDEMNITY 
              COMPENSATION AND CLAIMS FOR PENSION.</DELETED>

<DELETED>    Not later than 90 days after the date of the enactment of 
this Act, the Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall submit to Congress a 
report that details the plans of the Secretary to reduce the inventory 
of--</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    (1) claims submitted to the Secretary for 
        compensation under chapter 13 of title 38, United States Code; 
        and</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    (2) claims submitted to the Secretary for pension 
        under chapter 15 of such title.</DELETED>

<DELETED>SEC. 209. INCREASED TRANSPARENCY IN MONDAY MORNING WORKLOAD 
              REPORT.</DELETED>

<DELETED>    (a) Disaggregation of Claims by Decisions Requiring 
Disability Rating.--The Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall include in 
each Monday Morning Workload Report published by the Secretary the 
number of claims for benefits under laws administered by the Secretary 
that have been received by a regional office of the Department of 
Veterans Affairs and are pending a decision, disaggregated by--
</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    (1) claims that have been pending for more than 
        125 days;</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    (2) claims that have been pending for 125 days or 
        fewer; and</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    (3) claims that do not require a decision 
        concerning a disability rating.</DELETED>
<DELETED>    (b) Inclusion of Information on Assignment of Partial 
Ratings.--The Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall include in each 
Monday Morning Workload Report published by the Secretary in the 
portion of the report entitled ``Transformation'' and in the portion of 
the report entitled ``Aggregate'' the number of partial ratings 
assigned.</DELETED>
<DELETED>    (c) Report on Fully Developed Claims.--The Secretary of 
Veterans Affairs shall include in each Monday Morning Workload Report 
published by the Secretary the following:</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    (1) The total number of fully developed claims for 
        benefits under laws administered by the Secretary that--
        </DELETED>
                <DELETED>    (A) have been received by a regional 
                office of the Department of Veterans Affairs; 
                and</DELETED>
                <DELETED>    (B) are pending a decision.</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    (2) The total number of such claims that have been 
        pending for more than 125 days, disaggregated by 
        station.</DELETED>
<DELETED>    (d) Station Defined.--In this section, the term 
``station'' means the location of a regional office of the Department 
where claims for disability compensation are processed.</DELETED>

<DELETED>SEC. 210. REPORTS ON APPEALS OF DECISIONS ON BENEFITS 
              CLAIMS.</DELETED>

<DELETED>    (a) Public Availability.--The Secretary of Veterans 
Affairs shall make the reports of the Department of Veterans Affairs 
entitled ``Appeals Pending'' and ``Appeals Workload By Station'' 
available to the public on an Internet website of the 
Department.</DELETED>
<DELETED>    (b) Appeals Granted by Station.--The Secretary shall 
include in one of the reports described in subsection (a) the 
percentage of appeals granted by station.</DELETED>
<DELETED>    (c) Claims Previously Adjudicated by Appeals Management 
Center.--The Secretary shall include in one of the reports described in 
subsection (a) the percentage of claims previously adjudicated by the 
Appeals Management Center that were either subsequently granted or 
remanded by the Board of Veterans' Appeals.</DELETED>
<DELETED>    (d) Station Defined.--In this section, the term 
``station'' means the location of a regional office of the Department 
where claims for disability compensation are processed.</DELETED>

<DELETED>SEC. 211. MODIFICATION OF PILOT PROGRAM FOR USE OF CONTRACT 
              PHYSICIANS FOR DISABILITY EXAMINATIONS.</DELETED>

<DELETED>    Section 504 of the Veterans' Benefits Improvement Act of 
1996 (Public Law 104-275; 38 U.S.C. 5101 note) is amended--</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    (1) by redesignating subsections (c) and (d) as 
        subsections (d) and (e), respectively; and</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    (2) by inserting after subsection (b) the 
        following new subsection (c):</DELETED>
<DELETED>    ``(c) Licensure of Contract Physicians.--</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    ``(1) In general.--Notwithstanding any law 
        regarding the licensure of physicians, a physician described in 
        paragraph (2) may conduct an examination pursuant to a contract 
        entered into under subsection (a) at any location in any State, 
        the District of Columbia, or a Commonwealth, territory, or 
        possession of the United States, so long as the examination is 
        within the scope of the authorized duties under such 
        contract.</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    ``(2) Physician described.--A physician described 
        in this paragraph is a physician who--</DELETED>
                <DELETED>    ``(A) has a current license to practice 
                the health care profession of the physician; 
                and</DELETED>
                <DELETED>    ``(B) is performing authorized duties for 
                the Department of Veterans Affairs pursuant to a 
                contract entered into under subsection 
                (a).''.</DELETED>

           <DELETED>TITLE III--GOVERNMENT RESPONSE</DELETED>

<DELETED>SEC. 301. INCREASED COOPERATION ACROSS GOVERNMENT.</DELETED>

<DELETED>    (a) Appointment of Liaisons.--</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    (1) Department of defense.--The Secretary of 
        Defense shall appoint individuals as follows:</DELETED>
                <DELETED>    (A) At least one individual to act as a 
                liaison under this section between the Department of 
                Defense and the Department of Veterans 
                Affairs.</DELETED>
                <DELETED>    (B) At least one individual for each of 
                the reserve components of the Armed Forces to act as a 
                liaison under this section between the respective 
                component of the Armed Forces and the Department of 
                Veterans Affairs.</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    (2) National archives and records 
        administration.--The Archivist of the United States shall 
        appoint at least one individual to act as a liaison under this 
        section between the National Archives and Records 
        Administration and the Department of Veterans 
        Affairs.</DELETED>
<DELETED>    (b) Duties of Liaisons.--Each individual acting as a 
liaison under this section shall expedite the timely provision to the 
Secretary of Veterans Affairs of such information as the Secretary 
requires to process claims submitted to the Secretary for benefits 
under laws administered by the Secretary.</DELETED>
<DELETED>    (c) Procedures.--</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    (1) In general.--The Secretary of Veterans 
        Affairs, the Secretary of Defense, and the Archivist of the 
        United States shall jointly develop and implement procedures to 
        improve the timely provision to the Secretary of Veterans 
        Affairs of such information as the Secretary requires to 
        process claims submitted to the Secretary for benefits under 
        laws administered by the Secretary.</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    (2) Timely provision.--The procedures developed 
        and implemented under paragraph (1) shall ensure that the 
        information provided to the Secretary of Veterans Affairs is 
        provided to the Secretary not later than 30 days after the date 
        on which the Secretary requests the information.</DELETED>
<DELETED>    (d) Annual Reports.--Not less frequently than once each 
year, the Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall submit to Congress a 
report on--</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    (1) the requests for information made by the 
        Secretary during the most recent one-year period for 
        information from the Secretary of Defense and the Archivist of 
        the United States required by the Secretary of Veterans Affairs 
        to process claims submitted to the Secretary for benefits under 
        laws administered by the Secretary; and</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    (2) the timeliness of responses to such 
        requests.</DELETED>

<DELETED>SEC. 302. REPORT ON INTEROPERABILITY BETWEEN ELECTRONIC HEALTH 
              RECORDS SYSTEMS OF DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE AND DEPARTMENT 
              OF VETERANS AFFAIRS.</DELETED>

<DELETED>    Not later than one year after the date of the enactment of 
this Act, the Secretary of Defense and the Secretary of Veterans 
Affairs shall jointly submit to Congress a report that sets forth a 
timeline with milestones for achieving interoperability between the 
electronic health records systems of the Department of Defense and the 
Department of Veterans Affairs.</DELETED>

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS.

    (a) Short Title.--This Act may be cited as the ``21st Century 
Veterans Benefits Delivery and Other Improvements Act''.
    (b) Table of Contents.--The table of contents for this Act is as 
follows:

Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents.

                      TITLE I--HEALTH CARE MATTERS

     Subtitle A--Expansion and Improvement of Health Care Benefits

Sec. 101. Improved access to appropriate immunizations for veterans.
Sec. 102. Expansion of provision of chiropractic care and services to 
                            veterans.

                 Subtitle B--Health Care Administration

Sec. 111. Expansion of availability of prosthetic and orthotic care for 
                            veterans.
Sec. 112. Public access to Department of Veterans Affairs research and 
                            data sharing between Departments.
Sec. 113. Revival of Intermediate Care Technician Pilot Program of 
                            Department of Veterans Affairs.
Sec. 114. Transfer of health care provider credentialing data from 
                            Secretary of Defense to Secretary of 
                            Veterans Affairs.
Sec. 115. Examination and treatment by Department of Veterans Affairs 
                            for emergency medical conditions and women 
                            in labor.

              Subtitle C--Improvement of Medical Workforce

Sec. 121. Inclusion of mental health professionals in education and 
                            training program for health personnel of 
                            the Department of Veterans Affairs.
Sec. 122. Expansion of qualifications for licensed mental health 
                            counselors of the Department of Veterans 
                            Affairs to include doctoral degrees.
Sec. 123. Requirement that physician assistants employed by the 
                            Department of Veterans Affairs receive 
                            competitive pay.
Sec. 124. Report on medical workforce of the Department of Veterans 
                            Affairs.

           TITLE II--COMPENSATION AND OTHER BENEFITS MATTERS

                 Subtitle A--Benefits Claims Submission

Sec. 201. Participation of veterans service organizations in Transition 
                            Assistance Program.
Sec. 202. Requirement that Secretary of Veterans Affairs publish the 
                            average time required to adjudicate timely 
                            and untimely appeals.
Sec. 203. Determination of manner of appearance for hearings before 
                            Board of Veterans' Appeals.

 Subtitle B--Practices of Regional Offices Relating to Benefits Claims

Sec. 211. Comptroller General review of claims processing performance 
                            of regional offices of Veterans Benefits 
                            Administration.
Sec. 212. Inclusion in annual budget submission of information on 
                            capacity of Veterans Benefits 
                            Administration to process benefits claims.
Sec. 213. Report on staffing levels at regional offices of Department 
                            of Veterans Affairs after transition to 
                            National Work Queue.
Sec. 214. Annual report on progress in implementing Veterans Benefits 
                            Management System.
Sec. 215. Report on plans of Secretary of Veterans Affairs to reduce 
                            inventory of non-rating workload.
Sec. 216. Sense of Congress on increased transparency relating to 
                            claims for benefits and appeals of 
                            decisions relating to benefits in Monday 
                            Morning Workload Report.

                   Subtitle C--Other Benefits Matters

Sec. 221. Modification of pilot program for use of contract physicians 
                            for disability examinations.
Sec. 222. Development of procedures to increase cooperation with 
                            National Guard Bureau.
Sec. 223. Review of determination of certain service in Philippines 
                            during World War II.
Sec. 224. Reports on Department disability medical examinations and 
                            prevention of unnecessary medical 
                            examinations.
Sec. 225. Sense of Congress on submittal of information relating to 
                            claims for disabilities incurred or 
                            aggravated by military sexual trauma.

                      TITLE III--EDUCATION MATTERS

Sec. 301. Retention of entitlement to educational assistance during 
                            certain additional periods of active duty.
Sec. 302. Reports on progress of students receiving Post-9/11 
                            Educational Assistance.
Sec. 303. Secretary of Defense report on level of education attained by 
                            those who transfer entitlement to Post-9/11 
                            educational assistance.
Sec. 304. Reports on educational levels attained by certain members of 
                            the Armed Forces at time of separation from 
                            the Armed Forces.

              TITLE IV--EMPLOYMENT AND TRANSITION MATTERS

Sec. 401. Required coordination between Directors for Veterans' 
                            Employment and Training with State 
                            departments of labor and veterans affairs.
Sec. 402. Report on job fairs attended by one-stop career center 
                            employees at which such employees encounter 
                            veterans.
Sec. 403. Review of challenges faced by employers seeking to hire 
                            veterans and sharing of information among 
                            Federal agencies that serve veterans.
Sec. 404. Review of Transition GPS Program Core Curriculum.
Sec. 405. Modification of requirement for provision of preseparation 
                            counseling.

                TITLE V--VETERAN SMALL BUSINESS MATTERS

Sec. 501. Modification of treatment under contracting goals and 
                            preferences of Department of Veterans 
                            Affairs for small businesses owned by 
                            veterans of small businesses after death of 
                            disabled veteran owners.
Sec. 502. Treatment of businesses after deaths of servicemember-owners 
                            for purposes of Department of Veterans 
                            Affairs contracting goals and preferences.

                        TITLE VI--BURIAL MATTERS

Sec. 601. Department of Veterans Affairs study on matters relating to 
                            burial of unclaimed remains of veterans in 
                            national cemeteries.

                        TITLE VII--OTHER MATTERS

Sec. 701. Honoring as veterans certain persons who performed service in 
                            the reserve components of the Armed Forces.
Sec. 702. Report on Laotian military support of Armed Forces of the 
                            United States during Vietnam War.
Sec. 703. Restoration of prior reporting fee multipliers.

                      TITLE I--HEALTH CARE MATTERS

     Subtitle A--Expansion and Improvement of Health Care Benefits

SEC. 101. IMPROVED ACCESS TO APPROPRIATE IMMUNIZATIONS FOR VETERANS.

    (a) Inclusion of Recommended Adult Immunizations as Medical 
Services.--
            (1) Covered benefit.--Subparagraph (F) of section 1701(9) 
        of title 38, United States Code, is amended to read as follows:
                    ``(F) immunizations against infectious diseases, 
                including each immunization on the recommended adult 
                immunization schedule at the time such immunization is 
                indicated on that schedule;''.
            (2) Recommended adult immunization schedule defined.--
        Section 1701 of such title is amended by adding after paragraph 
        (9) the following new paragraph:
            ``(10) The term `recommended adult immunization schedule' 
        means the schedule established (and periodically reviewed and, 
        as appropriate, revised) by the Advisory Committee on 
        Immunization Practices established by the Secretary of Health 
        and Human Services and delegated to the Centers for Disease 
        Control and Prevention.''.
    (b) Inclusion of Recommended Adult Immunizations in Annual 
Report.--Section 1704(1)(A) of such title is amended--
            (1) in clause (i), by striking ``and'' at the end;
            (2) in clause (ii), by striking the period at the end and 
        inserting ``; and''; and
            (3) by inserting after clause (ii) the following new 
        clause:
                            ``(iii) to provide veterans each 
                        immunization on the recommended adult 
                        immunization schedule at the time such 
                        immunization is indicated on that schedule.''.
    (c) Report to Congress.--
            (1) In general.--Not later than two years after the date of 
        the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Veterans Affairs 
        shall submit to the Committee on Veterans' Affairs of the 
        Senate and the Committee on Veterans' Affairs of the House of 
        Representatives a report on the development and implementation 
        by the Department of Veterans Affairs of quality measures and 
        metrics, including targets for compliance, to ensure that 
        veterans receiving medical services under chapter 17 of title 
        38, United States Code, receive each immunization on the 
        recommended adult immunization schedule at the time such 
        immunization is indicated on that schedule.
            (2) Recommended adult immunization schedule defined.--In 
        this subsection, the term ``recommended adult immunization 
        schedule'' has the meaning given that term in section 1701(10) 
        of title 38, United States Code, as added by subsection (a)(2).

SEC. 102. EXPANSION OF PROVISION OF CHIROPRACTIC CARE AND SERVICES TO 
              VETERANS.

    (a) Program for Provision of Chiropractic Care and Services to 
Veterans.--Section 204(c) of the Department of Veterans Affairs Health 
Care Programs Enhancement Act of 2001 (Public Law 107-135; 115 Stat. 
2459; 38 U.S.C. 1710 note) is amended--
            (1) by inserting ``(1)'' before ``The program''; and
            (2) by adding at the end the following new paragraph:
    ``(2) The program shall be carried out at not fewer than two 
medical centers or clinics in each Veterans Integrated Service Network 
by not later than two years after the date of the enactment of the 21st 
Century Veterans Benefits Delivery and Other Improvements Act, and at 
not fewer than 50 percent of all medical centers in each Veterans 
Integrated Service Network by not later than three years after such 
date of enactment.''.
    (b) Expanded Chiropractor Services Available to Veterans.--
            (1) Medical services.--Paragraph (6) of section 1701 of 
        title 38, United States Code, is amended by adding at the end 
        the following new subparagraph:
                    ``(H) Chiropractic services.''.
            (2) Rehabilitative services.--Paragraph (8) of such section 
        is amended by inserting ``chiropractic,'' after 
        ``counseling,''.
            (3) Preventive health services.--Paragraph (9) of such 
        section is amended--
                    (A) by redesignating subparagraphs (F) through (K) 
                as subparagraphs (G) through (L), respectively; and
                    (B) by inserting after subparagraph (E) the 
                following new subparagraph (F):
                    ``(F) periodic and preventive chiropractic 
                examinations and services;''.

                 Subtitle B--Health Care Administration

SEC. 111. EXPANSION OF AVAILABILITY OF PROSTHETIC AND ORTHOTIC CARE FOR 
              VETERANS.

    (a) Establishment or Expansion of Advanced Degree Programs to 
Expand Availability of Provision of Care.--The Secretary of Veterans 
Affairs shall work with institutions of higher education to develop 
partnerships for the establishment or expansion of programs of advanced 
degrees in prosthetics and orthotics in order to improve and enhance 
the availability of high quality prosthetic and orthotic care for 
veterans.
    (b) Report.--Not later than one year after the effective date 
specified in subsection (d), the Secretary shall submit to the 
Committee on Veterans' Affairs of the Senate and the Committee on 
Veterans' Affairs of the House of Representatives a report setting 
forth a plan for carrying out subsection (a). The Secretary shall 
develop the plan in consultation with veterans service organizations, 
institutions of higher education with accredited degree programs in 
prosthetics and orthotics, and representatives of the prosthetics and 
orthotics field.
    (c) Funding.--
            (1) Authorization of appropriations.--There is hereby 
        authorized to be appropriated for fiscal year 2017 for the 
        Department of Veterans Affairs, $5,000,000 to carry out this 
        section.
            (2) Availability.--The amount authorized to be appropriated 
        by paragraph (1) shall remain available for expenditure until 
        September 30, 2019.
    (d) Effective Date.--This section shall take effect on the date 
that is one year after the date of the enactment of this Act.

SEC. 112. PUBLIC ACCESS TO DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS RESEARCH AND 
              DATA SHARING BETWEEN DEPARTMENTS.

    (a) Establishment of Internet Website.--The Secretary of Veterans 
Affairs shall make available on an Internet website of the Department 
of Veterans Affairs available to the public the following:
            (1) Data files that contain information on research of the 
        Department.
            (2) A data dictionary on each data file.
            (3) Instructions for how to obtain access to each data file 
        for use in research.
    (b) Public Access to Manuscripts on Department Funded Research.--
            (1) In general.--Beginning not later than 18 months after 
        the effective date specified in subsection (e), the Secretary 
        shall require, as a condition on the use of any data gathered 
        or formulated from research funded by the Department, that any 
        final, peer-reviewed manuscript prepared for publication that 
        uses such data be submitted to the Secretary for deposit in the 
        digital archive under paragraph (2) and publication under 
        paragraph (3).
            (2) Digital archive.--Not later than 18 months after the 
        effective date specified in subsection (e), the Secretary 
        shall--
                    (A) establish a digital archive consisting of 
                manuscripts described in paragraph (1); or
                    (B) partner with another executive agency to 
                compile such manuscripts in a digital archive.
            (3) Public availability.--
                    (A) Availability of archive.--The Secretary shall 
                ensure that the digital archive under paragraph (2) and 
                the contents of such archive are available to the 
                public via a publicly accessible Internet website at no 
                cost to the public.
                    (B) Availability of manuscripts.--The Secretary 
                shall ensure that each manuscript submitted to the 
                Secretary under paragraph (1) is available to the 
                public under subparagraph (A) not later than one year 
                after the official date on which the manuscript is 
                otherwise published.
            (4) Consistent with copyright law.--The Secretary shall 
        carry out this subsection in a manner consistent with 
        applicable copyright law.
            (5) Annual report.--
                    (A) In general.--Not later than one year after the 
                date the Secretary begins making manuscripts available 
                to the public under this subsection and not less 
                frequently than once each year thereafter, the 
                Secretary shall submit to the Committee on Veterans' 
                Affairs of the Senate and the Committee on Veterans' 
                Affairs of the House of Representatives a report on the 
                implementation of this subsection during the most 
                recent one-year period.
                    (B) Contents.--Each report submitted under 
                subparagraph (A) shall include for the period of the 
                report:
                            (i) The number of manuscripts submitted 
                        under paragraph (1).
                            (ii) The titles of such manuscripts.
                            (iii) The authors of such manuscripts.
                            (iv) For each such manuscript, the name and 
                        issue number or volume number, as the case may 
                        be, of the journal or other publication in 
                        which such manuscript was published.
    (c) Recommendations for Data Sharing Between Department of Veterans 
Affairs and Department of Defense.--Not later than one year after the 
effective date specified in subsection (e), the Department of Veterans 
Affairs-Department of Defense Joint Executive Committee established by 
section 320(a) of title 38, United States Code, shall submit to the 
Secretary of Veterans Affairs and the Secretary of Defense options and 
recommendations for the establishment of a program for long-term 
cooperation and data sharing between and within the Department of 
Veterans Affairs and the Department of Defense to facilitate research 
on outcomes of military service, readjustment after combat deployment, 
and other topics of importance to the following:
            (1) Veterans.
            (2) Members of the Armed Forces.
            (3) Family members of veterans.
            (4) Family members of members of the Armed Forces.
            (5) Members of communities that have a significant 
        population of veterans or members of the Armed Forces.
    (d) Executive Agency Defined.--In this section, the term 
``executive agency'' has the meaning given that term in section 133 of 
title 41, United States Code.
    (e) Effective Date.--This section shall take effect on the date 
that is one year after the date of the enactment of this Act.

SEC. 113. REVIVAL OF INTERMEDIATE CARE TECHNICIAN PILOT PROGRAM OF 
              DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS.

    (a) Revival.--The Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall revive the 
Intermediate Care Technician Pilot Program of the Department of 
Veterans Affairs that was carried out by the Secretary between January 
2013 and February 2014.
    (b) Technicians.--
            (1) Selection.--The Secretary shall select not less than 45 
        intermediate care technicians to participate in the pilot 
        program.
            (2) Facilities.--
                    (A) In general.--Any intermediate care technician 
                hired pursuant to paragraph (1) may be assigned to a 
                medical facility of the Department as determined by the 
                Secretary for purposes of this section.
                    (B) Priority.--In assigning intermediate care 
                technicians under subparagraph (A), the Secretary shall 
                give priority to facilities at which veterans have the 
                longest wait times for appointments for the receipt of 
                hospital care or medical services from the Department, 
                as determined by the Secretary for purposes of this 
                section.
    (c) Termination.--The Secretary shall carry out the pilot program 
under subsection (a) during the three-year period beginning on the 
effective date specified in subsection (e).
    (d) Hospital Care and Medical Services Defined.--In this section, 
the terms ``hospital care'' and ``medical services'' have the meanings 
given such terms in section 1701 of title 38, United States Code.
    (e) Effective Date.--This section shall take effect on the date 
that is one year after the date of the enactment of this Act.

SEC. 114. TRANSFER OF HEALTH CARE PROVIDER CREDENTIALING DATA FROM 
              SECRETARY OF DEFENSE TO SECRETARY OF VETERANS AFFAIRS.

    (a) In General.--In a case in which the Secretary of Veterans 
Affairs hires a covered health care provider, the Secretary of Defense 
shall, after receiving a request from the Secretary of Veterans Affairs 
for the credentialing data of the Secretary of Defense relating to such 
health care provider, transfer to the Secretary of Veterans Affairs 
such credentialing data.
    (b) Covered Health Care Providers.--For purposes of this section, a 
covered provider is a health care provider who--
            (1) is or was employed by the Secretary of Defense;
            (2) provides or provided health care related services as 
        part of such employment; and
            (3) was credentialed by the Secretary of Defense.
    (c) Policies and Regulations.--The Secretary of Veterans Affairs 
and the Secretary of Defense shall establish such policies and 
promulgate such regulations as may be necessary to carry out this 
section.
    (d) Credentialing Defined.--In this section, the term 
``credentialing'' means the systematic process of screening and 
evaluating qualifications and other credentials, including licensure, 
required education, relevant training and experience, and current 
competence and health status.
    (e) Effective Date.--This section shall take effect on the date 
that is one year after the date of the enactment of this Act.

SEC. 115. EXAMINATION AND TREATMENT BY DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS 
              FOR EMERGENCY MEDICAL CONDITIONS AND WOMEN IN LABOR.

    (a) In General.--Subchapter VIII of chapter 17 of title 38, United 
States Code, is amended by inserting after section 1784 the following 
new section:
``Sec. 1784A. Examination and treatment for emergency medical 
              conditions and women in labor
    ``(a) In General.--In the case of a hospital of the Department that 
has an emergency department, if any individual comes to the hospital or 
the campus of the hospital and a request is made on behalf of the 
individual for examination or treatment for a medical condition, the 
hospital must provide for an appropriate medical screening examination 
within the capability of the emergency department, including ancillary 
services routinely available to the emergency department, to determine 
whether or not an emergency medical condition exists.
    ``(b) Necessary Stabilizing Treatment for Emergency Medical 
Conditions and Labor.--(1) If any individual comes to a hospital of the 
Department that has an emergency department or the campus of such a 
hospital and the hospital determines that the individual has an 
emergency medical condition, the hospital must provide either--
            ``(A) within the staff and facilities available at the 
        hospital, for such further medical examination and such 
        treatment as may be required to stabilize the medical 
        condition; or
            ``(B) for transfer of the individual to another medical 
        facility in accordance with subsection (c).
    ``(2) A hospital is deemed to meet the requirement of paragraph 
(1)(A) with respect to an individual if the hospital offers the 
individual the further medical examination and treatment described in 
that paragraph and informs the individual (or a person acting on behalf 
of the individual) of the risks and benefits to the individual of such 
examination and treatment, but the individual (or a person acting on 
behalf of the individual) refuses to consent to the examination and 
treatment. The hospital shall take all reasonable steps to secure the 
written informed consent of the individual (or person) to refuse such 
examination and treatment.
    ``(3) A hospital is deemed to meet the requirement of paragraph (1) 
with respect to an individual if the hospital offers to transfer the 
individual to another medical facility in accordance with subsection 
(c) and informs the individual (or a person acting on behalf of the 
individual) of the risks and benefits to the individual of such 
transfer, but the individual (or a person acting on behalf of the 
individual) refuses to consent to the transfer. The hospital shall take 
all reasonable steps to secure the written informed consent of the 
individual (or person) to refuse such transfer.
    ``(c) Restricting Transfers Until Individual Stabilized.--(1) If an 
individual at a hospital of the Department has an emergency medical 
condition that has not been stabilized, the hospital may not transfer 
the individual unless--
            ``(A)(i) the individual (or a legally responsible person 
        acting on behalf of the individual), after being informed of 
        the obligations of the hospital under this section and of the 
        risk of transfer, requests, in writing, transfer to another 
        medical facility;
            ``(ii) a physician of the Department has signed a 
        certification that, based upon the information available at the 
        time of transfer, the medical benefits reasonably expected from 
        the provision of appropriate medical treatment at another 
        medical facility outweigh the increased risks to the individual 
        and, in the case of labor, to the unborn child from effecting 
        the transfer; or
            ``(iii) if a physician of the Department is not physically 
        present in the emergency department at the time an individual 
        is transferred, a qualified medical person (as defined by the 
        Secretary for purposes of this section) has signed a 
        certification described in clause (ii) after a physician of the 
        Department, in consultation with the person, has made the 
        determination described in such clause, and subsequently 
        countersigns the certification; and
            ``(B) the transfer is an appropriate transfer to that 
        facility.
    ``(2) A certification described in clause (ii) or (iii) of 
paragraph (1)(A) shall include a summary of the risks and benefits upon 
which the certification is based.
    ``(3) For purposes of paragraph (1)(B), an appropriate transfer to 
a medical facility is a transfer--
            ``(A) in which the transferring hospital provides the 
        medical treatment within its capacity that minimizes the risks 
        to the health of the individual and, in the case of a woman in 
        labor, the health of the unborn child;
            ``(B) in which the receiving facility--
                    ``(i) has available space and qualified personnel 
                for the treatment of the individual; and
                    ``(ii) has agreed to accept transfer of the 
                individual and to provide appropriate medical 
                treatment;
            ``(C) in which the transferring hospital sends to the 
        receiving facility all medical records (or copies thereof) 
        available at the time of the transfer relating to the emergency 
        medical condition for which the individual has presented, 
        including--
                    ``(i) observations of signs or symptoms;
                    ``(ii) preliminary diagnosis;
                    ``(iii) treatment provided;
                    ``(iv) the results of any tests; and
                    ``(v) the informed written consent or certification 
                (or copy thereof) provided under paragraph (1)(A);
            ``(D) in which the transfer is effected through qualified 
        personnel and transportation equipment, including the use of 
        necessary and medically appropriate life support measures 
        during the transfer; and
            ``(E) that meets such other requirements as the Secretary 
        considers necessary in the interest of the health and safety of 
        individuals transferred.
    ``(d) Definitions.--In this section:
            ``(1) The term `campus' means, with respect to a hospital 
        of the Department--
                    ``(A) the physical area immediately adjacent to the 
                main buildings of the hospital;
                    ``(B) other areas and structures that are not 
                strictly contiguous to the main buildings but are 
                located not less than 250 yards from the main 
                buildings; and
                    ``(C) any other areas determined by the Secretary 
                to be part of the campus of the hospital.
            ``(2) The term `emergency medical condition' means--
                    ``(A) a medical condition manifesting itself by 
                acute symptoms of sufficient severity (including severe 
                pain) such that the absence of immediate medical 
                attention could reasonably be expected to result in--
                            ``(i) placing the health of the individual 
                        (or, with respect to a pregnant woman, the 
                        health of the woman or her unborn child) in 
                        serious jeopardy;
                            ``(ii) serious impairment to bodily 
                        functions; or
                            ``(iii) serious dysfunction of any bodily 
                        organ or part; or
                    ``(B) with respect to a pregnant woman who is 
                having contractions--
                            ``(i) that there is inadequate time to 
                        effect a safe transfer to another hospital 
                        before delivery; or
                            ``(ii) that transfer may pose a threat to 
                        the health or safety of the woman or the unborn 
                        child.
            ``(3)(A) The term `to stabilize' means, with respect to an 
        emergency medical condition described in paragraph (2)(A), to 
        provide such medical treatment of the condition as may be 
        necessary to assure, within reasonable medical probability, 
        that no material deterioration of the condition is likely to 
        result from or occur during the transfer of the individual from 
        a facility, or, with respect to an emergency medical condition 
        described in paragraph (2)(B), to deliver (including the 
        placenta).
            ``(B) The term `stabilized' means, with respect to an 
        emergency medical condition described in paragraph (2)(A), that 
        no material deterioration of the condition is likely, within 
        reasonable medical probability, to result from or occur during 
        the transfer of the individual from a facility, or, with 
        respect to an emergency medical condition described in 
        paragraph (2)(B), that the woman has delivered (including the 
        placenta).
            ``(4) The term `transfer' means the movement (including the 
        discharge) of an individual outside the facilities of a 
        hospital of the Department at the direction of any person 
        employed by (or affiliated or associated, directly or 
        indirectly, with) the hospital, but does not include such a 
        movement of an individual who--
                    ``(A) has been declared dead; or
                    ``(B) leaves the facility without the permission of 
                any such person.''.
    (b) Clerical Amendment.--The table of sections at the beginning of 
chapter 17 of such title is amended by inserting after the item 
relating to section 1784 the following new item:

``Sec. 1784A. Examination and treatment for emergency medical 
                            conditions and women in labor.''.

              Subtitle C--Improvement of Medical Workforce

SEC. 121. INCLUSION OF MENTAL HEALTH PROFESSIONALS IN EDUCATION AND 
              TRAINING PROGRAM FOR HEALTH PERSONNEL OF THE DEPARTMENT 
              OF VETERANS AFFAIRS.

    In carrying out the education and training program required under 
section 7302(a)(1) of title 38, United States Code, the Secretary of 
Veterans Affairs shall include education and training of marriage and 
family therapists and licensed professional mental health counselors.

SEC. 122. EXPANSION OF QUALIFICATIONS FOR LICENSED MENTAL HEALTH 
              COUNSELORS OF THE DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS TO 
              INCLUDE DOCTORAL DEGREES.

    Section 7402(b)(11)(A) of title 38, United States Code, is amended 
by inserting ``or doctoral degree'' after ``master's degree''.

SEC. 123. REQUIREMENT THAT PHYSICIAN ASSISTANTS EMPLOYED BY THE 
              DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS RECEIVE COMPETITIVE PAY.

    Section 7451(a)(2) of title 38, United States Code, is amended--
            (1) by redesignating subparagraph (B) as subparagraph (C);
            (2) by inserting after subparagraph (A) the following new 
        subparagraph (B):
            ``(B) Physician assistant.''; and
            (3) in subparagraph (C), as redesignated by paragraph (1), 
        by striking ``and registered nurse'' and inserting ``registered 
        nurse, and physician assistant''.

SEC. 124. REPORT ON MEDICAL WORKFORCE OF THE DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS 
              AFFAIRS.

    (a) In General.--Not later than 120 days after the date of the 
enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall submit 
to the Committee on Veterans Affairs of the Senate and the Committee on 
Veterans Affairs of the House of Representatives a report on the 
medical workforce of the Department of Veterans Affairs.
    (b) Elements.--The report required by subsection (a) shall include 
the following:
            (1) With respect to licensed professional mental health 
        counselors and marriage and family therapists of the 
        Department--
                    (A) how many such counselors and therapists are 
                currently enrolled in the mental health professionals 
                trainee program of the Department;
                    (B) how many such counselors and therapists are 
                expected to enroll in the mental health professionals 
                trainee program of the Department during the 180-day 
                period beginning on the date of the submittal of the 
                report;
                    (C) a description of the eligibility criteria for 
                such counselors and therapists as compared to other 
                behavioral health professions in the Department;
                    (D) a description of the objectives, goals, and 
                timing of the Department with respect to increasing the 
                representation of such counselors and therapists in the 
                behavioral health workforce of the Department; and
                    (E) a description of the actions taken by the 
                Secretary, in consultation with the Director of the 
                Office of Personnel Management, to create an 
                occupational series for such counselors and therapists 
                and a timeline for the creation of such an occupational 
                series.
            (2) A breakdown of spending by the Department in connection 
        with the education debt reduction program of the Department 
        under subchapter VII of chapter 76 of title 38, United States 
        Code, including--
                    (A) the amount spent by the Department in debt 
                reduction payments during the three-year period 
                preceding the submittal of the report disaggregated by 
                the medical profession of the individual receiving the 
                payments;
                    (B) a description of how the Department prioritizes 
                such spending by medical profession, including an 
                assessment of whether such priority reflects the five 
                occupations identified in the most recent determination 
                by the Inspector General of the Department of Veterans 
                Affairs as having the largest staffing shortages in the 
                Veterans Health Administration; and
                    (C) a description of the actions taken by the 
                Secretary to increase the effectiveness of such 
                spending for purposes of recruitment of health care 
                providers to the Department, including efforts to more 
                consistently include eligibility for the education debt 
                reduction program in vacancy announcements of positions 
                for health care providers at the Department.
            (3) A description of any impediments to the delivery by the 
        Department of telemedicine services to veterans and any actions 
        taken by the Department to address such impediments, including 
        with respect to--
                    (A) restrictions under Federal or State laws;
                    (B) licensing or credentialing issues for health 
                care providers, including non-Department health care 
                providers, practicing telemedicine with a veteran 
                located in a different State;
                    (C) the effect of limited broadband access or 
                limited information technology capabilities on the 
                delivery of health care;
                    (D) the distance a veteran is required to travel to 
                access a facility or clinic with telemedicine 
                capabilities;
                    (E) the effect on the provision of telemedicine 
                services to veterans of policies of and limited 
                liability protection for certain entities; and
                    (F) issues relating to reimbursement and travel 
                limitations for veterans that affect the participation 
                of non-Department health care providers in the 
                telemedicine program.
            (4) An update on the efforts of the Secretary to offer 
        training opportunities in telemedicine to medical residents in 
        medical facilities of the Department that use telemedicine, 
        consistent with medical residency program requirements 
        established by the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical 
        Education, as required in section 108(b) of the Honoring 
        America's Veterans and Caring for Camp Lejeune Families Act of 
        2012 (Public Law 112-154; 38 U.S.C. 7406 note).
            (5) An assessment of the development and implementation by 
        the Secretary of succession planning policies to address the 
        prevalence of vacancies in positions in the Veterans Health 
        Administration of more than 180 days, including the development 
        of an enterprise position management system to more effectively 
        identify, track, and resolve such vacancies.
            (6) A description of the actions taken by the Secretary, in 
        consultation with the Director of the Office of Personnel 
        Management, to address any impediments to the timely 
        appointment and determination of qualifications for Directors 
        of Veterans Integrated Service Networks and Medical Directors 
        of the Department.

           TITLE II--COMPENSATION AND OTHER BENEFITS MATTERS

                 Subtitle A--Benefits Claims Submission

SEC. 201. PARTICIPATION OF VETERANS SERVICE ORGANIZATIONS IN TRANSITION 
              ASSISTANCE PROGRAM.

    (a) Sense of Congress.--It is the sense of Congress that the 
Secretary of Defense, in collaboration with the Secretary of Labor, the 
Secretary of Homeland Security, and the Secretary of Veterans Affairs, 
should establish a process by which a representative of a veterans 
service organization may be present at any portion of the program 
carried out under section 1144 of title 10, United States Code, 
relating to the submittal of claims to the Secretary of Veterans 
Affairs for compensation under chapter 11 or 13 of title 38, United 
States Code.
    (b) Report.--
            (1) In general.--Not later than 18 months after the date of 
        the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Defense shall 
        submit to Congress a report on participation of veterans 
        service organizations in the program carried out under section 
        1144 of title 10, United States Code.
            (2) Contents.--The report required by paragraph (1) shall 
        include the following:
                    (A) An assessment of the compliance of facilities 
                of the Department of Defense with the directives 
                included in the memorandum of the Secretary of Defense 
                entitled ``Installation Access and Support Services for 
                Nonprofit Non-Federal Entities'' and dated December 23, 
                2014.
                    (B) The number of military bases that have complied 
                with such directives.
                    (C) How many veterans service organizations have 
                been present at a portion of a program as described in 
                subsection (a).
    (c) Veterans Service Organization Defined.--In this section, the 
term ``veterans service organization'' means any organization 
recognized by the Secretary for the representation of veterans under 
section 5902 of title 38.

SEC. 202. REQUIREMENT THAT SECRETARY OF VETERANS AFFAIRS PUBLISH THE 
              AVERAGE TIME REQUIRED TO ADJUDICATE TIMELY AND UNTIMELY 
              APPEALS.

    (a) Publication Requirement.--
            (1) In general.--On an ongoing basis, the Secretary of 
        Veterans Affairs shall make available to the public the 
        following:
                    (A) The average length of time to adjudicate a 
                timely appeal.
                    (B) The average length of time to adjudicate an 
                untimely appeal.
            (2) Effective date.--Paragraph (1) shall take effect on the 
        date that is one year after the date of the enactment of this 
        Act and shall apply until the date that is three years after 
        the date of the enactment of this Act.
    (b) Report.--
            (1) In general.--Not later than 39 months after the date of 
        the enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall submit to the 
        Committee on Veterans' Affairs of the Senate and the Committee 
        on Veterans' Affairs of the House of Representatives a report 
        on whether publication pursuant to subsection (a)(1) has had an 
        effect on the number of timely appeals filed.
            (2) Contents.--The report required by paragraph (1) shall 
        include the following:
                    (A) The number of appeals and timely appeals that 
                were filed during the one-year period ending on the 
                effective date specified in subsection (a)(2).
                    (B) The number of appeals and timely appeals that 
                were filed during the one-year period ending on the 
                date that is two years after the effective date 
                specified in subsection (a)(2).
    (c) Definitions.--In this section:
            (1) Appeal.--The term ``appeal'' means a notice of 
        disagreement filed pursuant to section 7105(a) of title 38, 
        United States Code, in response to notice of the result of an 
        initial review or determination regarding a claim for a benefit 
        under a law administered by the Secretary of Veterans Affairs.
            (2) Timely.--The term ``timely'' with respect to an appeal 
        means that the notice of disagreement was filed not more than 
        180 days after the date of mailing of the notice of the result 
        of the initial review or determination described in paragraph 
        (1).
            (3) Untimely.--The term ``untimely'' with respect to an 
        appeal means the notice of disagreement was filed more than 180 
        days after the date of mailing of the notice of the result of 
        the initial review or determination described in paragraph (1).

SEC. 203. DETERMINATION OF MANNER OF APPEARANCE FOR HEARINGS BEFORE 
              BOARD OF VETERANS' APPEALS.

    (a) In General.--Section 7107 of title 38, United States Code, is 
amended--
            (1) by striking subsection (e);
            (2) by redesignating subsections (d) and (f) as subsections 
        (f) and (g), respectively;
            (3) by inserting after subsection (c) the following new 
        subsections (d) and (e):
    ``(d)(1) Subject to paragraph (2), a hearing before the Board shall 
be conducted, as the Board considers appropriate--
            ``(A) in person; or
            ``(B) through picture and voice transmission, by electronic 
        or other means, in such manner that the appellant is not 
        present in the same location as the member or members of the 
        Board during the hearing.
    ``(2) Upon request by an appellant, a hearing before the Board 
shall be conducted, as the appellant considers appropriate--
            ``(A) in person; or
            ``(B) through picture and voice transmission as described 
        in paragraph (1)(B).
    ``(e)(1) In a case in which a hearing before the Board is to be 
conducted through picture and voice transmission as described in 
subsection (d)(1)(B), the Secretary shall provide suitable facilities 
and equipment to the Board or other components of the Department to 
enable an appellant located at an appropriate facility within the area 
served by a regional office to participate as so described.
    ``(2) Any hearing conducted through picture and voice transmission 
as described in subsection (d)(1)(B) shall be conducted in the same 
manner as, and shall be considered the equivalent of, a personal 
hearing.''; and
            (4) in subsection (f)(1), as redesignated by paragraph (2), 
        by striking ``An appellant may request'' and all that follows 
        through ``office of the Department'' and inserting ``In a case 
        in which a hearing before the Board is to be conducted in 
        person, the hearing shall be held at the principal location of 
        the Board or at a facility of the Department located within the 
        area served by a regional office of the Department''.
    (b) Conforming Amendment.--Subsection (a)(1) of such section is 
amended by striking ``in subsection (f)'' and inserting ``in subsection 
(g)''.
    (c) Effective Date.--The amendment made by subsection (a) shall 
apply with respect to cases received by the Board of Veterans' Appeals 
pursuant to notices of disagreement submitted on or after the date of 
the enactment of this Act.

 Subtitle B--Practices of Regional Offices Relating to Benefits Claims

SEC. 211. COMPTROLLER GENERAL REVIEW OF CLAIMS PROCESSING PERFORMANCE 
              OF REGIONAL OFFICES OF VETERANS BENEFITS ADMINISTRATION.

    (a) Review Required.--Not later than 15 months after the effective 
date specified in subsection (e), the Comptroller General of the United 
States shall complete a review of the regional offices of the Veterans 
Benefits Administration to help the Veterans Benefits Administration 
achieve more consistent performance in the processing of claims for 
disability compensation.
    (b) Elements.--The review required by subsection (a) shall include 
the following:
            (1) An identification of the following:
                    (A) The factors, including management practices, 
                that distinguish higher performing regional offices 
                from other regional offices with respect to claims for 
                disability compensation.
                    (B) The best practices employed by higher 
                performing regional offices that distinguish the 
                performance of such offices from other regional 
                offices.
                    (C) Such other management practices or tools as the 
                Comptroller General determines could be used to improve 
                the performance of regional offices.
            (2) An assessment of the effectiveness of communication 
        with respect to the processing of claims for disability 
        compensation between the regional offices and veterans service 
        organizations and caseworkers employed by Members of Congress.
    (c) Report.--Not later than 15 months after the effective date 
specified in subsection (e), the Comptroller General shall submit to 
the Committee on Veterans' Affairs of the Senate and the Committee on 
Veterans' Affairs of the House of Representatives a report on the 
results of the review completed under subsection (a).
    (d) Veterans Service Organization Defined.--In this section, the 
term ``veterans service organization'' means any organization 
recognized by the Secretary for the representation of veterans under 
section 5902 of title 38, United States Code.
    (e) Effective Date.--This section shall take effect on the date 
that is 270 days after the date of the enactment of this Act.

SEC. 212. INCLUSION IN ANNUAL BUDGET SUBMISSION OF INFORMATION ON 
              CAPACITY OF VETERANS BENEFITS ADMINISTRATION TO PROCESS 
              BENEFITS CLAIMS.

    (a) In General.--Along with the supporting information included in 
the budget submitted to Congress by the President pursuant to section 
1105(a) of title 31, United States Code, the President shall include 
information on the capacity of the Veterans Benefits Administration to 
process claims for benefits under the laws administered by the 
Secretary of Veterans Affairs, including information described in 
subsection (b), during the fiscal year covered by the budget with which 
the information is submitted.
    (b) Information Described.--The information described in this 
subsection is the following:
            (1) An estimate of the average number of claims for 
        benefits under the laws administered by the Secretary, 
        excluding such claims completed during mandatory overtime, that 
        a single full-time equivalent employee of the Administration 
        can process in a year, based on the following:
                    (A) A time and motion study that the Secretary 
                shall conduct on the processing of such claims.
                    (B) Such other information relating to such claims 
                as the Secretary considers appropriate.
            (2) A description of the actions the Secretary will take to 
        improve the processing of such claims.
            (3) An assessment of the actions identified by the 
        Secretary under paragraph (2) in the previous year and an 
        identification of the effects of those actions.
    (c) Effective Date.--This section shall apply with respect to any 
budget submitted as described in subsection (a) with respect to any 
fiscal year after fiscal year 2017.

SEC. 213. REPORT ON STAFFING LEVELS AT REGIONAL OFFICES OF DEPARTMENT 
              OF VETERANS AFFAIRS AFTER TRANSITION TO NATIONAL WORK 
              QUEUE.

    Not later than 15 months after the date of the enactment of this 
Act, the Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall submit to the Committee on 
Veterans' Affairs of the Senate and the Committee on Veterans' Affairs 
of the House of Representatives a report on the criteria and procedures 
that the Secretary will use to determine appropriate staffing levels at 
the regional offices of the Department once the Department has 
transitioned to using the National Work Queue for the distribution of 
the claims processing workload.

SEC. 214. ANNUAL REPORT ON PROGRESS IN IMPLEMENTING VETERANS BENEFITS 
              MANAGEMENT SYSTEM.

    (a) In General.--Not later than each of one year, two years, and 
three years after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary 
of Veterans Affairs shall submit to Congress a report on the progress 
of the Secretary in implementing the Veterans Benefits Management 
System.
    (b) Contents.--Each report required by subsection (a) shall include 
the following:
            (1) An assessment of the current functionality of the 
        Veterans Benefits Management System.
            (2) Recommendations submitted to the Secretary by employees 
        of the Department of Veterans Affairs who are involved in 
        processing claims for benefits under the laws administered by 
        the Secretary, including veterans service representatives, 
        rating veterans service representatives, and decision review 
        officers, for such legislative or administrative action as the 
        employees consider appropriate to improve the processing of 
        such claims.
            (3) Recommendations submitted to the Secretary by veterans 
        service organizations who use the Veterans Benefits Management 
        System for such legislative or administrative action as the 
        veterans service organizations consider appropriate to improve 
        such system.
    (c) Veterans Service Organization Defined.--In this section, the 
term ``veterans service organization'' means any organization 
recognized by the Secretary for the representation of veterans under 
section 5902 of title 38, United States Code.

SEC. 215. REPORT ON PLANS OF SECRETARY OF VETERANS AFFAIRS TO REDUCE 
              INVENTORY OF NON-RATING WORKLOAD.

    Not later than 120 days after the date of the enactment of this 
Act, the Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall submit to the Committee on 
Veterans' Affairs of the Senate and the Committee on Veterans' Affairs 
of the House of Representatives a report that details the plans of the 
Secretary to reduce the inventory of work items listed in the Monday 
Morning Workload Report under End Products 130, 137, 173, 290, 400, 
600, 607, 690, 930, and 960.

SEC. 216. SENSE OF CONGRESS ON INCREASED TRANSPARENCY RELATING TO 
              CLAIMS FOR BENEFITS AND APPEALS OF DECISIONS RELATING TO 
              BENEFITS IN MONDAY MORNING WORKLOAD REPORT.

    It is the sense of Congress that the Secretary of Veterans Affairs 
should include in each Monday Morning Workload Report published by the 
Secretary the following:
            (1) With respect to each regional office of the Department 
        of Veterans Affairs, the following:
                    (A) The number of fully developed claims for 
                benefits under the laws administered by the Secretary 
                that have been received.
                    (B) The number of claims described in subparagraph 
                (A) that are pending a decision.
                    (C) The number of claims described in subparagraph 
                (A) that have been pending a decision for more than 125 
                days.
            (2) Enhanced information on appeals of decisions relating 
        to claims for benefits under the laws administered by the 
        Secretary that are pending, including information contained in 
        the reports of the Department entitled ``Appeals Pending'' and 
        ``Appeals Workload By Station''.

                   Subtitle C--Other Benefits Matters

SEC. 221. MODIFICATION OF PILOT PROGRAM FOR USE OF CONTRACT PHYSICIANS 
              FOR DISABILITY EXAMINATIONS.

    Section 504 of the Veterans' Benefits Improvement Act of 1996 
(Public Law 104-275; 38 U.S.C. 5101 note) is amended--
            (1) by redesignating subsections (c) and (d) as subsections 
        (d) and (e), respectively; and
            (2) by inserting after subsection (b) the following new 
        subsection (c):
    ``(c) Licensure of Contract Physicians.--
            ``(1) In general.--Notwithstanding any law regarding the 
        licensure of physicians, a physician described in paragraph (2) 
        may conduct an examination pursuant to a contract entered into 
        under subsection (a) at any location in any State, the District 
        of Columbia, or a Commonwealth, territory, or possession of the 
        United States, so long as the examination is within the scope 
        of the authorized duties under such contract.
            ``(2) Physician described.--A physician described in this 
        paragraph is a physician who--
                    ``(A) has a current license to practice the health 
                care profession of the physician; and
                    ``(B) is performing authorized duties for the 
                Department of Veterans Affairs pursuant to a contract 
                entered into under subsection (a).''.

SEC. 222. DEVELOPMENT OF PROCEDURES TO INCREASE COOPERATION WITH 
              NATIONAL GUARD BUREAU.

    (a) In General.--The Secretary of Veterans Affairs and the Chief of 
the National Guard Bureau shall jointly develop and implement 
procedures, including requirements relating to timeliness, to improve 
the timely provision to the Secretary of such information in the 
possession of the Chief as the Secretary requires to process claims 
submitted to the Secretary for benefits under the laws administered by 
the Secretary.
    (b) Report.--Not later than one year after the implementation of 
the procedures under subsection (a), the Secretary and the Chief shall 
jointly submit to Congress a report describing--
            (1) the requests for information relating to records of 
        members of the National Guard made by the Secretary to the 
        Chief pursuant to such procedures; and
            (2) the timeliness of the responses of the Chief to such 
        requests.

SEC. 223. REVIEW OF DETERMINATION OF CERTAIN SERVICE IN PHILIPPINES 
              DURING WORLD WAR II.

    (a) In General.--The Secretary of Veterans Affairs, in consultation 
with the Secretary of Defense and such military historians as the 
Secretary of Defense recommends, shall review the process used to 
determine whether a covered individual served in support of the Armed 
Forces of the United States during World War II in accordance with 
section 1002(d) of title X of Division A of the American Recovery and 
Reinvestment Act of 2009 (Public Law 111-5; 38 U.S.C. 107 note) for 
purposes of determining whether such covered individual is eligible for 
payments described in such section.
    (b) Covered Individuals.--In this section, a covered individual is 
any individual who timely submitted a claim for benefits under 
subsection (c) of section 1002 of title X of Division A of the American 
Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (Public Law 111-5; 38 U.S.C. 107 
note) based on service as described in subsection (d) of that section.
    (c) Report.--Not later than 90 days after the date of the enactment 
of this Act, the Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall submit to the 
Committee on Veterans' Affairs of the Senate and the Committee on 
Veterans' Affairs of the House of Representatives a report detailing 
any findings, actions taken, or recommendations for legislative action 
with respect to the review conducted under subsection (a).
    (d) Prohibition on Benefits for Disqualifying Conduct Under New 
Process Pursuant to Review.--If pursuant to the review conducted under 
subsection (a) the Secretary of Veterans Affairs determines to 
establish a new process for the making of payments as described in that 
subsection, the process shall include mechanisms to ensure that 
individuals are not treated as covered individuals for purposes of such 
payments if such individuals engaged in any disqualifying conduct 
during service described in that subsection, including collaboration 
with the enemy or criminal conduct.

SEC. 224. REPORTS ON DEPARTMENT DISABILITY MEDICAL EXAMINATIONS AND 
              PREVENTION OF UNNECESSARY MEDICAL EXAMINATIONS.

    (a) Report on Disability Medical Examinations Furnished by 
Department of Veterans Affairs.--
            (1) In general.--Not later than 18 months after the date of 
        the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Veterans Affairs 
        shall submit to the Committee on Veterans' Affairs of the 
        Senate and the Committee on Veterans' Affairs of the House of 
        Representatives a report on the furnishing of general medical 
        and specialty medical examinations by the Department of 
        Veterans Affairs for purposes of adjudicating claims for 
        benefits under laws administered by the Secretary.
            (2) Contents.--The report submitted under paragraph (1) 
        shall include the following:
                    (A) The number of general medical examinations 
                furnished by the Department during the period of fiscal 
                years 2011 through 2014 for purposes of adjudicating 
                claims for benefits under laws administered by the 
                Secretary.
                    (B) The number of general medical examinations 
                furnished by the Department during the period of fiscal 
                years 2011 through 2014 for purposes of adjudicating a 
                claim in which a comprehensive joint examination was 
                conducted, but for which no disability relating to a 
                joint, bone, or muscle had been asserted as an issue in 
                the claim.
                    (C) The number of specialty medical examinations 
                furnished by the Department during the period of fiscal 
                years 2011 through 2014 for purposes of adjudicating a 
                claim.
                    (D) The number of specialty medical examinations 
                furnished by the Department during the period of fiscal 
                years 2011 through 2014 for purposes of adjudicating a 
                claim in which one or more joint examinations were 
                conducted.
                    (E) A summary with citations to any medical and 
                scientific studies that provide a basis for determining 
                that three repetitions is adequate to determine the 
                effect of repetitive use on functional impairments.
                    (F) The names of all examination reports, including 
                general medical examinations and Disability Benefits 
                Questionnaires, used for evaluation of compensation and 
                pension disability claims which require measurement of 
                repeated ranges of motion testing and the number of 
                examinations requiring such measurements which were 
                conducted in fiscal year 2014.
                    (G) The average amount of time taken by an 
                individual conducting a medical examination to perform 
                the three repetitions of movement of each joint.
                    (H) A discussion of whether there are more 
                efficient and effective scientifically reliable methods 
                of testing for functional loss on repetitive use of an 
                extremity other than the three time repetition 
                currently used by the Department.
                    (I) Recommendations as to the continuation of the 
                practice of measuring functional impairment by using 
                three repetitions of movement of each joint during the 
                examination as a criteria for evaluating the effect of 
                repetitive motion on functional impairment with 
                supporting rationale.
    (b) Report and Plan to Prevent the Ordering of Unnecessary Medical 
Examinations.--
            (1) In general.--Not later than 18 months after the date of 
        the enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall submit to the 
        Committee on Veterans' Affairs of the Senate and the Committee 
        on Veterans' Affairs of the House of Representatives a report 
        on the efforts of the Secretary in reducing the necessity for 
        in-person disability examinations and other efforts to comply 
        with the provisions of section 5125 of title 38, United States 
        Code.
            (2) Contents.--The report required by paragraph (1) shall 
        include the following:
                    (A) Criteria used by the Secretary to determine if 
                a claim is eligible for the Acceptable Clinical 
                Evidence initiative.
                    (B) The number of claims determined to be eligible 
                for the Acceptable Clinical Evidence initiative during 
                the period beginning on the date of the initiation of 
                the initiative and ending on the date of the enactment 
                of this Act, disaggregated--
                            (i) by fiscal year; and
                            (ii) by claims determined eligible based in 
                        whole or in part on medical evidence provided 
                        by a private health care provider.
                    (C) The total number of claims determined to be 
                eligible for the Acceptable Clinical Evidence 
                initiative that required an employee of the Department 
                to supplement the evidence with information obtained 
                during a telephone interview with a claimant or health 
                care provider.
                    (D) Information on any other initiatives or 
                efforts, including Disability Benefits Questionnaires, 
                of the Department to further encourage the use of 
                medical evidence provided by a private health care 
                provider and reliance upon reports of a medical 
                examination administered by a private physician if the 
                report is sufficiently complete to be adequate for the 
                purposes of adjudicating a claim.
                    (E) A plan--
                            (i) to measure, track, and prevent the 
                        ordering of unnecessary medical examinations 
                        when the provision by a claimant of a medical 
                        examination administered by a private physician 
                        in support of a claim for benefits under 
                        chapter 11 or 15 of title 38, United States 
                        Code, is adequate for the purpose of making a 
                        decision on that claim; and
                            (ii) that includes the actions the 
                        Secretary will take to eliminate any request by 
                        the Department for a medical examination in the 
                        case of a claim for benefits under chapter 11 
                        or 15 of such title in support of which a 
                        claimant submits medical evidence or a medical 
                        opinion provided by a private health care 
                        provider that is competent, credible, 
                        probative, and otherwise adequate for purposes 
                        of making a decision on that claim.

SEC. 225. SENSE OF CONGRESS ON SUBMITTAL OF INFORMATION RELATING TO 
              CLAIMS FOR DISABILITIES INCURRED OR AGGRAVATED BY 
              MILITARY SEXUAL TRAUMA.

    (a) In General.--It is the sense of Congress that the Secretary of 
Veterans Affairs should submit to Congress information on the covered 
claims submitted to the Secretary during each fiscal year, including 
the information specified in subsection (b).
    (b) Elements.--The information specified in this subsection with 
respect to each fiscal year is the following:
            (1) The number of covered claims submitted to or considered 
        by the Secretary during such fiscal year.
            (2) Of the covered claims under paragraph (1), the number 
        and percentage of such claims--
                    (A) submitted by each gender;
                    (B) that were approved, including the number and 
                percentage of such approved claims submitted by each 
                gender; and
                    (C) that were denied, including the number and 
                percentage of such denied claims submitted by each 
                gender.
            (3) Of the covered claims under paragraph (1) that were 
        approved, the number and percentage, listed by each gender, of 
        claims assigned to each rating percentage of disability.
            (4) Of the covered claims under paragraph (1) that were 
        denied--
                    (A) the three most common reasons given by the 
                Secretary under section 5104(b)(1) of title 38, United 
                States Code, for such denials; and
                    (B) the number of denials that were based on the 
                failure of a veteran to report for a medical 
                examination.
            (5) Of the covered claims under paragraph (1) that were 
        resubmitted to the Secretary after denial in a previous 
        adjudication--
                    (A) the number of such claims submitted to or 
                considered by the Secretary during such fiscal year;
                    (B) the number and percentage of such claims--
                            (i) submitted by each gender;
                            (ii) that were approved, including the 
                        number and percentage of such approved claims 
                        submitted by each gender; and
                            (iii) that were denied, including the 
                        number and percentage of such denied claims 
                        submitted by each gender;
                    (C) the number and percentage, listed by each 
                gender, of claims assigned to each rating percentage of 
                disability; and
                    (D) of such claims that were again denied--
                            (i) the three most common reasons given by 
                        the Secretary under section 5104(b)(1) of such 
                        title for such denials; and
                            (ii) the number of denials that were based 
                        on the failure of a veteran to report for a 
                        medical examination.
            (6) The number of covered claims that, as of the end of 
        such fiscal year, are pending and, separately, the number of 
        such claims on appeal.
            (7) The average number of days that covered claims take to 
        complete beginning on the date on which the claim is submitted.
    (c) Definitions.--In this section:
            (1) Covered claims.--The term ``covered claims'' means 
        claims for disability compensation submitted to the Secretary 
        based on post-traumatic stress disorder alleged to have been 
        incurred or aggravated by military sexual trauma.
            (2) Military sexual trauma.--The term ``military sexual 
        trauma'' shall have the meaning specified by the Secretary for 
        purposes of this section and shall include ``sexual 
        harassment'' (as so specified).

                      TITLE III--EDUCATION MATTERS

SEC. 301. RETENTION OF ENTITLEMENT TO EDUCATIONAL ASSISTANCE DURING 
              CERTAIN ADDITIONAL PERIODS OF ACTIVE DUTY.

    (a) Educational Assistance Allowance.--Section 16131(c)(3)(B)(i) of 
title 10, United States Code, is amended by striking ``or 12304'' and 
inserting ``12304, 12304a, or 12304b''.
    (b) Expiration Date.--Section 16133(b)(4) of such title is amended 
by striking ``or 12304'' and inserting ``12304, 12304a, or 12304b''.

SEC. 302. REPORTS ON PROGRESS OF STUDENTS RECEIVING POST-9/11 
              EDUCATIONAL ASSISTANCE.

    (a) In General.--Chapter 33 of title 38, United States Code, is 
amended--
            (1) in subsection 3325(c)--
                    (A) in paragraph (2), by striking ``and'' after the 
                semicolon;
                    (B) by redesignating paragraph (3) as paragraph 
                (4); and
                    (C) by inserting after paragraph (2) the following 
                new paragraph (3):
            ``(3) the information received by the Secretary under 
        section 3326 of this title; and''; and
            (2) by adding at the end the following new section:
``Sec. 3326. Report on student progress
    ``As a condition on approval under chapter 36 of this title of a 
course offered by an educational institution (as defined in section 
3452 of this title), each year, each educational institution (as so 
defined) that received a payment in that year on behalf of an 
individual entitled to educational assistance under this chapter shall 
submit to the Secretary such information regarding the academic 
progress of the individual as the Secretary may require.''.
    (b) Clerical Amendment.--The table of sections at the beginning of 
such chapter is amended by adding at the end the following new item:

``3326. Report on student progress.''.
    (c) Effective Date.--The amendments made by this section shall take 
effect on the date that is one year after the date of the enactment of 
this Act.

SEC. 303. SECRETARY OF DEFENSE REPORT ON LEVEL OF EDUCATION ATTAINED BY 
              THOSE WHO TRANSFER ENTITLEMENT TO POST-9/11 EDUCATIONAL 
              ASSISTANCE.

    (a) In General.--Section 3325(b)(1) of title 38, United States 
Code, is amended--
            (1) in subparagraph (B), by striking ``and'' after the 
        semicolon; and
            (2) by adding at the end the following new subparagraph:
                    ``(D) indicating the highest level of education 
                attained by each individual who transfers a portion of 
                the individual's entitlement to educational assistance 
                under section 3319 of this title; and''.
    (b) Effective Date.--The amendments made by subsection (a) shall 
take effect on the date that is one year after the date of the 
enactment of this Act.

SEC. 304. REPORTS ON EDUCATIONAL LEVELS ATTAINED BY CERTAIN MEMBERS OF 
              THE ARMED FORCES AT TIME OF SEPARATION FROM THE ARMED 
              FORCES.

    (a) Annual Reports Required.--Each Secretary concerned shall submit 
to Congress each year a report on the educational levels attained by 
members of the Armed Forces described in subsection (b) under the 
jurisdiction of such Secretary who separated from the Armed Forces 
during the preceding year.
    (b) Covered Members.--The members of the Armed Forces described in 
this subsection are members of the Armed Forces who transferred unused 
education benefits to family members pursuant to section 3319 of title 
38, United States Code, while serving as members of the Armed Forces.
    (c) Secretary Concerned Defined.--In this section, the term 
``Secretary concerned'' has the meaning given that term in section 101 
of title 38, United States Code.
    (d) Effective Date.--This section shall take effect on the date 
that is one year after the date of the enactment of this Act.

              TITLE IV--EMPLOYMENT AND TRANSITION MATTERS

SEC. 401. REQUIRED COORDINATION BETWEEN DIRECTORS FOR VETERANS' 
              EMPLOYMENT AND TRAINING WITH STATE DEPARTMENTS OF LABOR 
              AND VETERANS AFFAIRS.

    (a) In General.--Section 4103 of title 38, United States Code, is 
amended by adding at the end the following new subsection:
    ``(c) Coordination With State Departments of Labor and Veterans 
Affairs.--Each Director for Veterans' Employment and Training for a 
State shall coordinate the Director's activities under this chapter 
with the State department of labor and the State department of veterans 
affairs.''.
    (b) Effective Date.--The amendment made by subsection (a) shall 
take effect on the date that is one year after the date of the 
enactment of this Act.

SEC. 402. REPORT ON JOB FAIRS ATTENDED BY ONE-STOP CAREER CENTER 
              EMPLOYEES AT WHICH SUCH EMPLOYEES ENCOUNTER VETERANS.

    (a) In General.--Section 136(d)(1) of the Workforce Investment Act 
of 1998 (29 U.S.C. 2871(d)(1)) is amended by adding at the end the 
following new sentence: ``The report also shall include information, 
for the year preceding the year the report is submitted, on the number 
of job fairs attended by One-Stop Career Center employees at which the 
employees had contact with a veteran, and the number of veterans 
contacted at each such job fair.''.
    (b) Effective Date.--The amendment made by subsection (a) shall 
take effect on the date that is one year after the date of the 
enactment of this Act.

SEC. 403. REVIEW OF CHALLENGES FACED BY EMPLOYERS SEEKING TO HIRE 
              VETERANS AND SHARING OF INFORMATION AMONG FEDERAL 
              AGENCIES THAT SERVE VETERANS.

    (a) Review.--
            (1) In general.--The Secretary of Labor, in consultation 
        with the Secretary of Defense and the Secretary of Veterans 
        Affairs, shall conduct a review of--
                    (A) the challenges faced by employers seeking to 
                hire veterans; and
                    (B) information sharing among Federal departments 
                and agencies that serve veterans and members of the 
                Armed Forces who are separating from service.
            (2) Matters reviewed.--In conducting the review required by 
        paragraph (1), the Secretary of Labor shall examine the 
        following:
                    (A) The barriers employers face in gaining 
                information identifying veterans who are seeking jobs.
                    (B) The extent and quality of information sharing 
                among Federal departments and agencies that serve 
                veterans and members of the Armed Forces who are 
                separating from service, including how the departments 
                and agencies may more easily connect employers with 
                such veterans and members.
    (b) Report.--
            (1) In general.--Not later than 120 days after the 
        effective date specified in subsection (c), the Secretary of 
        Labor shall submit to the appropriate committees of Congress a 
        report on the review conducted under subsection (a).
            (2) Contents.--The report required by paragraph (1) shall 
        include the following:
                    (A) Recommendations for addressing the barriers 
                described in subsection (a)(2)(A).
                    (B) Recommendations for improving information 
                sharing described in subsection (a)(2)(B).
            (3) Appropriate committees of congress defined.--In this 
        subsection, the term ``appropriate committees of Congress'' 
        means--
                    (A) the Committee on Armed Services and the 
                Committee on Veterans' Affairs of the Senate; and
                    (B) the Committee on Armed Services and the 
                Committee on Veterans' Affairs of the House of 
                Representatives.
    (c) Effective Date.--This section shall take effect on the date 
that is one year after the date of the enactment of this Act.

SEC. 404. REVIEW OF TRANSITION GPS PROGRAM CORE CURRICULUM.

    (a) Review.--
            (1) In general.--The Secretary of Defense, in consultation 
        with the Secretary of Veterans Affairs and the Secretary of 
        Labor, shall conduct a review of the Department of Defense 
        Transition GPS Program Core Curriculum in effect on the date of 
        the enactment of this Act.
            (2) Matters reviewed.--The review shall examine the 
        following:
                    (A) The Department of Defense Transition GPS 
                Program Core Curriculum in effect on the date of the 
                enactment of this Act.
                    (B) The roles and responsibilities of each Federal 
                department participating in the Transition GPS Program 
                and whether the various roles and responsibilities of 
                the Federal departments are adequately aligned with one 
                another.
                    (C) The allotment of time spent on issues under the 
                jurisdiction of each Federal department participating 
                in the Transition GPS Program and whether the allotment 
                is adequate to provide members of the Armed Forces with 
                all the information the members need regarding 
                important benefits that can assist members in 
                transitioning out of military service.
                    (D) Whether any of the information in the three 
                optional tracks in the Transition GPS Program Core 
                Curriculum should be addressed more appropriately in 
                mandatory tracks rather than optional tracks.
                    (E) The benefits of and obstacles to establishing--
                            (i) a standard implementation plan of long-
                        term outcome measures for the Transition GPS 
                        Program; and
                            (ii) a comprehensive system of metrics for 
                        such measures.
    (b) Report.--
            (1) In general.--Not later than 120 days after the date of 
        the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Defense, in 
        consultation with the Secretary of Veterans Affairs and the 
        Secretary of Labor, shall submit to the appropriate committees 
        of Congress a report on the review conducted under subsection 
        (a).
            (2) Contents.--The report required by paragraph (1) shall 
        include the following:
                    (A) Recommendations for improving the Department of 
                Defense Transition GPS Program Core Curriculum in order 
                to more accurately address the needs of members of the 
                Armed Forces transitioning out of military service.
                    (B) Recommendations for improving the roles and 
                responsibilities described in subsection (a)(2)(B).
                    (C) Recommendations for improving the allotment of 
                time described in subsection (a)(2)(C).
                    (D) Such recommendations as the Secretary of 
                Defense may have regarding the optional and mandatory 
                tracks in the Transition GPS Program Core Curriculum.
                    (E) Such recommendations as the Secretary of 
                Defense may have with respect to the outcome measures 
                and metrics described in subsection (a)(2)(E).
                    (F) Identification of such other areas of concern 
                as the Secretary of Defense may have with respect to 
                the Transition GPS Program and such recommendations for 
                legislative or administrative action as the Secretary 
                may have to address such concerns.
            (3) Appropriate committees of congress defined.--In this 
        subsection, the term ``appropriate committees of Congress'' 
        means--
                    (A) the Committee on Armed Services and the 
                Committee on Veterans' Affairs of the Senate; and
                    (B) the Committee on Armed Services and the 
                Committee on Veterans' Affairs of the House of 
                Representatives.

SEC. 405. MODIFICATION OF REQUIREMENT FOR PROVISION OF PRESEPARATION 
              COUNSELING.

    (a) Clarification of Requirement for 180 Continuous Days of Active 
Duty Service.--Subparagraph (A) of section 1142(a)(4) of title 10, 
United States Code, is amended by inserting ``continuous'' before ``180 
days''.
    (b) Exclusion of Training From Periods of Active Duty.--Such 
section is further amended by adding at the end the following new 
subparagraph:
    ``(C) For purposes of subparagraph (A), the term `active duty' does 
not include full-time training duty, annual training duty, and 
attendance, while in the active military service, at a school 
designated as a service school by law or by the Secretary concerned.''.

                TITLE V--VETERAN SMALL BUSINESS MATTERS

SEC. 501. MODIFICATION OF TREATMENT UNDER CONTRACTING GOALS AND 
              PREFERENCES OF DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS FOR SMALL 
              BUSINESSES OWNED BY VETERANS OF SMALL BUSINESSES AFTER 
              DEATH OF DISABLED VETERAN OWNERS.

    (a) In General.--Section 8127(h) of title 38, United States Code, 
is amended--
            (1) in paragraph (3), by striking ``rated as'' and all that 
        follows through ``disability.'' and inserting a period; and
            (2) in paragraph (2), by amending subparagraph (C) to read 
        as follows:
            ``(C) The date that--
                    ``(i) in the case of a surviving spouse of a 
                veteran with a service-connected disability rated as 
                100 percent disabling or who dies as a result of a 
                service-connected disability, is 10 years after the 
                date of the veteran's death; or
                    ``(ii) in the case of a surviving spouse of a 
                veteran with a service-connected disability rated as 
                less than 100 percent disabling who does not die as a 
                result of a service-connected disability, is three 
                years after the date of the veteran's death.''.
    (b) Effective Date.--The amendments made by subsection (a) shall 
take effect on the date that is 180 days after the date of the 
enactment of this Act and shall apply with respect to applications 
received pursuant to section 8127(f)(2) of title 38, United States 
Code, that are verified on or after such date.

SEC. 502. TREATMENT OF BUSINESSES AFTER DEATHS OF SERVICEMEMBER-OWNERS 
              FOR PURPOSES OF DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS 
              CONTRACTING GOALS AND PREFERENCES.

    (a) In General.--Section 8127 of title 38, United States Code, is 
amended--
            (1) by redesignating subsections (i) through (l) as 
        subsections (j) through (m), respectively; and
            (2) by inserting after subsection (h) the following new 
        subsection (i):
    ``(i) Treatment of Businesses After Death of Servicemember-owner.--
(1) If a member of the Armed Forces owns at least 51 percent of a small 
business concern and such member is killed in line of duty in the 
active military, naval, or air service, the surviving spouse or 
dependent child of such member who acquires such ownership rights in 
such small business concern shall, for the period described in 
paragraph (2), be treated as if the surviving spouse or dependent child 
were a veteran with a service-connected disability for purposes of 
determining the status of the small business concern as a small 
business concern owned and controlled by veterans for purposes of 
contracting goals and preferences under this section.
    ``(2) The period referred to in paragraph (1) is the period 
beginning on the date on which the member of the Armed Forces dies and 
ending on the date as follows:
            ``(A) In the case of a surviving spouse, the earliest of 
        the following dates:
                    ``(i) The date on which the surviving spouse 
                remarries.
                    ``(ii) The date on which the surviving spouse 
                relinquishes an ownership interest in the small 
                business concern and no longer owns at least 51 percent 
                of such small business concern.
                    ``(iii) The date that is ten years after the date 
                of the member's death.
            ``(B) In the case of a dependent child, the earliest of the 
        following dates:
                    ``(i) The date on which the surviving dependent 
                child relinquishes an ownership interest in the small 
                business concern and no longer owns at least 51 percent 
                of such small business concern.
                    ``(ii) The date that is ten years after the date of 
                the member's death.''.
    (b) Effective Date.--Subsection (i) of section 8127 of such title, 
as added by subsection (a), shall take effect on the date of the 
enactment of this Act and shall apply with respect to the deaths of 
members of the Armed Forces occurring on or after such date.

                        TITLE VI--BURIAL MATTERS

SEC. 601. DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS STUDY ON MATTERS RELATING TO 
              BURIAL OF UNCLAIMED REMAINS OF VETERANS IN NATIONAL 
              CEMETERIES.

    (a) Study and Report Required.--Not later than one year after the 
effective date specified in subsection (d), the Secretary of Veterans 
Affairs shall--
            (1) complete a study on matters relating to the interring 
        of unclaimed remains of veterans in national cemeteries under 
        the control of the National Cemetery Administration; and
            (2) submit to Congress a report on the findings of the 
        Secretary with respect to the study required under paragraph 
        (1).
    (b) Matters Studied.--The matters studied under subsection (a)(1) 
shall include the following:
            (1) Determining the scope of issues relating to unclaimed 
        remains of veterans, including an estimate of the number of 
        unclaimed remains of veterans.
            (2) Assessing the effectiveness of the procedures of the 
        Department of Veterans Affairs for working with persons or 
        entities having custody of unclaimed remains to facilitate 
        interment of unclaimed remains of veterans in national 
        cemeteries under the control of the National Cemetery 
        Administration.
            (3) Assessing State and local laws that affect the ability 
        of the Secretary to inter unclaimed remains of veterans in 
        national cemeteries under the control of the National Cemetery 
        Administration.
            (4) Developing recommendations for such legislative or 
        administrative action as the Secretary considers appropriate.
    (c) Methodology.--
            (1) Number of unclaimed remains.--In estimating the number 
        of unclaimed remains of veterans under subsection (b)(1), the 
        Secretary may review such subset of applicable entities as the 
        Secretary considers appropriate, including a subset of funeral 
        homes and coroner offices that possess unclaimed veterans 
        remains.
            (2) Assessment of state and local laws.--In assessing State 
        and local laws under subsection (b)(3), the Secretary may 
        assess such sample of applicable State and local laws as the 
        Secretary considers appropriate in lieu of reviewing all 
        applicable State and local laws.
    (d) Effective Date.--This section shall take effect on the date 
that is one year after the date of the enactment of this Act.

                        TITLE VII--OTHER MATTERS

SEC. 701. HONORING AS VETERANS CERTAIN PERSONS WHO PERFORMED SERVICE IN 
              THE RESERVE COMPONENTS OF THE ARMED FORCES.

    Any person who is entitled under chapter 1223 of title 10, United 
States Code, to retired pay for nonregular service or, but for age, 
would be entitled under such chapter to retired pay for nonregular 
service shall be honored as a veteran but shall not be entitled to any 
benefit by reason of this honor.

SEC. 702. REPORT ON LAOTIAN MILITARY SUPPORT OF ARMED FORCES OF THE 
              UNITED STATES DURING VIETNAM WAR.

    (a) In General.--Not later than one year after the effective date 
specified in subsection (c), the Secretary of Veterans Affairs, in 
consultation with the Secretary of Defense and such agencies and 
individuals as the Secretary of Veterans Affairs considers appropriate, 
shall submit to the appropriate committees of Congress a report on--
            (1) the extent to which Laotian military forces provided 
        combat support to the Armed Forces of the United States between 
        February 28, 1961, and May 15, 1975;
            (2) whether the current classification by the Civilian/
        Military Service Review Board of the Department of Defense of 
        service by individuals of Hmong ethnicity is appropriate; and
            (3) such recommendations as the Secretary of Veterans 
        Affairs may have for legislative action.
    (b) Appropriate Committees of Congress.--In this section, the term 
``appropriate committees of Congress'' means--
            (1) the Committee on Armed Services and the Committee on 
        Veterans' Affairs of the Senate; and
            (2) the Committee on Armed Services and the Committee on 
        Veterans' Affairs of the House of Representatives.
    (c) Effective Date.--This section shall take effect on the date 
that is one year after the date of the enactment of this Act.

SEC. 703. RESTORATION OF PRIOR REPORTING FEE MULTIPLIERS.

    During the 10-year period beginning on September 26, 2015, the 
second sentence of subsection (c) of section 3684 of title 38, United 
States Code, shall be applied--
            (1) by substituting ``$7'' for ``$12''; and
            (2) by substituting ``$11'' for ``$15''.
            Amend the title so as to read: ``A bill to amend title 38, 
        United States Code, to improve the furnishing of health care to 
        veterans by the Department of Veterans Affairs, to improve the 
        processing by the Department of claims for disability 
        compensation, and for other purposes.''.
                                                       Calendar No. 267

114th CONGRESS

  1st Session

                                S. 1203

                          [Report No. 114-153]

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL

To amend title 38, United States Code, to improve the processing by the 
   Department of Veterans Affairs of claims for benefits under laws 
   administered by the Secretary of Veterans Affairs, and for other 
                               purposes.

_______________________________________________________________________

                            October 19, 2015

        Reported with an amendment and an amendment to the title
```