II 

117TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. 2627 

To amend title 38, United States Code, to improve assistance for veterans 

with travel necessary for counseling, mental health services, health care, 

and others services furnished by the Department of Veterans Affairs, 

and for other purposes. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

AUGUST 5, 2021 

Mr. TESTER (for himself and Mr. MORAN) introduced the following bill; which 

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

A BILL 

To amend title 38, United States Code, to improve assistance 

for veterans with travel necessary for counseling, mental 

health services, health care, and others services furnished 

by the Department of Veterans Affairs, and for other 

purposes. 

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

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Rural Veterans Travel 

5 Enhancement Act of 2021’’. 


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1 SEC. 2. MAKING PERMANENT AUTHORITY FOR SECRETARY 

2 OF VETERANS AFFAIRS TO TRANSPORT INDI3 VIDUALS TO AND FROM DEPARTMENT FA4 CILITIES. 

5 Section 111A(a) of title 38, United States Code is 

6 amended— 

7 (1) by striking paragraph (2); and 

8 (2) in paragraph (1), by striking ‘‘(1)’’. 

9 SEC. 3. PERMANENT EXTENSION OF AUTHORIZATION OF 

10 APPROPRIATIONS FOR GRANTS FOR VET11 ERANS SERVICE ORGANIZATIONS FOR 

12 TRANSPORTATION OF HIGHLY RURAL VET13 ERANS. 

14 Section 307(d) of the Caregivers and Veterans Omni15 bus Health Services Act of 2010 (Public Law 111–163; 

16 38 U.S.C. 1710 note) is amended to read as follows: 

17 ‘‘(d) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 

18 are authorized to be appropriated to carry out this section 

19 amounts as follows: 

20 ‘‘(1) $3,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2010 

21 through 2022. 

22 ‘‘(2) Such sums as may be necessary for fiscal 

23 year 2023 and each fiscal year thereafter.’’. 


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1 SEC. 4. COMPTROLLER GENERAL OF THE UNITED STATES 

2 REPORT ON FRAUD, WASTE, AND ABUSE OF 

3 THE DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS 

4 BENEFICIARY TRAVEL PROGRAM. 

5 (a) STUDY AND REPORT REQUIRED.—Not later than 

6 three years after the date of the enactment of this Act, 

7 the Comptroller General of the United States shall— 

8 (1) complete a study on fraud, waste, and abuse 

9 of the benefits furnished under section 111 of title 

10 38, United States Code, that may have occurred 

11 during the five-year period ending on the date of the 

12 enactment of this Act; and 

13 (2) submit to the Committee on Veterans’ Af14 fairs of the Senate and the Committee on Veterans’ 

15 Affairs of the House of Representatives a report on 

16 the findings of the Comptroller General with respect 

17 to the study completed under paragraph (1). 

18 (b) ELEMENTS.—Study conducted under subsection 

19 (a)(1) shall cover the following: 

20 (1) The quantity and monetary amount of 

21 claims that have been adjudicated as fraudulent or 

22 improper, disaggregated, to the extent possible, by 

23 general health care travel and by special mode of 

24 transportation. 

25 (2) Instances of potential fraud or improper 

26 payments that may have occurred but were not deVerDate Sep 11 2014 02:32 Aug 07, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S2627.IS S2627

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1 tected, disaggregated, to the extent possible, by gen2 eral health care travel and by special mode of trans3 portation. 

4 (3) The efforts of the Secretary of Veterans Af5 fairs to mitigate fraud and the effectiveness of the 

6 efforts of the Secretary. 

7 (4) Assessment of communication and training 

8 provided by the Department of Veterans Affairs to 

9 employees and contractors handling claims filed 

10 under section 111 of such title regarding fraud. 

11 (5) Such recommendations as the Comptroller 

12 General may have for further mitigation of fraud, 

13 waste, and abuse. 

14 SEC. 5. COMPTROLLER GENERAL STUDY AND REPORT ON 

15 EFFECTIVENESS OF DEPARTMENT OF VET16 ERANS AFFAIRS BENEFICIARY TRAVEL PRO17 GRAM MILEAGE REIMBURSEMENT AND DE18 DUCTIBLE AMOUNTS. 

19 Not later than one year after the date of the enact20 ment of this Act, the Comptroller General of the United 

21 States shall— 

22 (1) complete a study on— 

23 (A) the efficacy of the current mileage re24 imbursement rate under subsection (a) of sec25 tion 111 of title 38, United States Code, in 


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1 mitigating the financial burden of transpor2 tation costs for traveling to and from Depart3 ment of Veterans Affairs medical facilities for 

4 medical care; 

5 (B) the origins of the amount of the de6 ductible under subsection (c) of such section 

7 and its impact on the efficacy of the benefits 

8 provided under such section in mitigating finan9 cial burden on veterans seeking medical care; 

10 and 

11 (C) developing such recommendations as 

12 the Comptroller General may have for how the 

13 this program or another transportation assist14 ance program could further encourage veterans, 

15 especially low-income veterans, to seek medical 

16 care, especially mental health care; and 

17 (2) submit to the Committee on Veterans’ Af18 fairs of the Senate and the Committee on Veterans’ 

19 Affairs of the House of Representatives a report on 

20 the findings of the Comptroller General with respect 

21 to the study completed under paragraph (1). 


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1 SEC. 6. DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS TRANSPOR2 TATION PILOT PROGRAM FOR LOW INCOME 

3 VETERANS. 

4 (a) PILOT PROGRAM REQUIRED.—Not later than one 

5 year after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Sec6 retary of Veterans Affairs shall commence carrying out a 

7 pilot program to assess the feasibility and advisability of 

8 providing payments authorized under subsection (a) of 

9 section 111 of title 38, United States Code, 48 hours in 

10 advance of travel to eligible appointments to veterans and 

11 other eligible individuals who are also eligible for a deduc12 tion waiver as provided by paragraphs (3) and (4) of sub13 section (c) of such section. 

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

15 pilot program during the five-year period beginning on the 

16 date of the commencement of the pilot program. 

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

18 pilot program at not fewer than five locations selected by 

19 the Secretary for purposes of the pilot program. 

20 (d) REPORT.— 

21 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 180 days 

22 after the date of the completion of the pilot pro23 gram, the Secretary shall submit to Congress a re24 port on the findings of the Secretary with respect to 

25 the pilot program. 


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1 (2) CONTENTS.—The report submitted under 

2 paragraph (1) shall include the following: 

3 (A) The number of individuals who bene4 fitted from the pilot program broken, 

5 disaggregated by geographic location, race or 

6 ethnicity, age, disability rating, and gender. 

7 (B) Average distance traveled by partici8 pants to appointments and average funds pro9 vided per appointment, disaggregated by geo10 graphic region. 

11 (C) A description of any impediments to 

12 carrying out the pilot program. 

13 (D) An account of payments provided for 

14 travel that did not occur or was authorized in15 correctly. 

16 (E) An account of any attempts to retrieve 

17 such payment. 

18 (F) Recommendations of the Secretary for 

19 legislative or administrative action to reduce 

20 improper payments. 

21 (G) An assessment of the feasibility and 

22 advisability of providing payments as described 

23 in subsection (a). 


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1 SEC. 7. PILOT PROGRAM FOR TRAVEL COST REIMBURSE2 MENT FOR ACCESSING READJUSTMENT 

3 COUNSELING SERVICES. 

4 (a) PILOT PROGRAM REQUIRED.—Not later than 180 

5 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Sec6 retary shall establish and commence a pilot program, with7 in the Readjustment Counseling Services of the Veterans 

8 Health Administration, to assess the feasibility and advis9 ability of paying the actual necessary expenses of travel 

10 or allowances for travel to and from the nearest Vet Cen11 ter. 

12 (b) PARTICIPATION.— 

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

14 program required by subsection (a), the Secretary 

15 shall limit participation— 

16 (A) by individuals pursuant to paragraph 

17 (2); and 

18 (B) by Vet Centers pursuant to paragraph 

19 (3). 

20 (2) PARTICIPATION BY INDIVIDUALS.— 

21 (A) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall 

22 limit participation in the pilot program of indi23 viduals to individuals who are eligible for serv24 ices at a participating Vet Center and experi25 encing financial hardship. 


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1 (B) FINANCIAL HARDSHIP.—The Secretary 

2 shall determine the meaning of ‘‘financial hard3 ship’’ for purposes of subparagraph (A). 

4 (3) PARTICIPATION OF VET CENTERS.—Vet 

5 Centers participating in the program shall be chosen 

6 by the Secretary from among those serving individ7 uals in areas designated by the Secretary as rural or 

8 highly rural or Tribal lands. 

9 (c) TRAVEL ALLOWANCES AND REIMBURSEMENTS.— 

10 (1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in para11 graph (2), under the pilot program required by sub12 section (a), the Secretary shall provide a partici13 pating individual a travel allowance or reimburse14 ment a minimum of 48 hours before the partici15 pating individual is scheduled to be at a partici16 pating Vet Center. 

17 (2) SPECIAL CASE.—For appointments sched18 uled less than 48 hours in advance, reimbursements 

19 shall be made available under the pilot program for 

20 a participating individual at the earliest time pos21 sible. 

22 (d) DURATION.—The Secretary shall carry out the 

23 pilot program required by subsection (a) during the five24 year period beginning on the date of the commencement 

25 of the pilot program. 


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1 (e) LOCATIONS.—The Secretary shall carry out the 

2 pilot program at not fewer than five locations selected by 

3 the Secretary for purposes of the pilot program. 

4 (f) ANNUAL REPORTS.— 

5 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than one year 

6 after the date of the commencement of the pilot pro7 gram required by subsection (a) and each year 

8 thereafter for the duration of the pilot program, the 

9 Secretary shall submit to the Committee on Vet10 erans’ Affairs of the Senate and the Committee on 

11 Veterans’ Affairs of the House of Representatives a 

12 report on the findings of the Secretary with respect 

13 to the pilot program. 

14 (2) CONTENTS.—Each report submitted under 

15 paragraph (1) shall include the following: 

16 (A) The number of individuals who bene17 fitted from the pilot program, disaggregated by 

18 age, race or ethnicity, and gender, to the extent 

19 possible. 

20 (B) The average distance traveled by each 

21 individual per each Vet Center. 

22 (C) The definition of financial hardship de23 termined by the Secretary under subsection 

24 (b)(2)(B). 


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1 (D) A description of how the funds are dis2 tributed. 

3 (E) The average amount of funds distrib4 uted per instance, disaggregated by Vet Center. 

5 (F) A description of any impediments to 

6 the Secretary in paying expenses or allowances 

7 under the pilot program. 

8 (G) An assessment of any fraudulent re9 ceipt of payment under the pilot program and 

10 the recommendations of the Secretary for legis11 lative or administrative action to reduce such 

12 fraud. 

13 (H) Such recommendations for legislative 

14 or administrative action as the Secretary con15 siders appropriate with respect to the payment 

16 of expenses or allowances. 

17 (g) VET CENTER DEFINED.—In this section, the 

18 term ‘‘Vet Center’’ means a center for readjustment coun19 seling and related mental health services for veterans 

20 under section 1712A of title 38, United States Code. 

21 SEC. 8. PILOT PROGRAM ON GRANTS TO IMPROVE PUBLIC 

22 TRANSPORTATION SERVICES FOR VETERANS. 

23 (a) GRANT PROGRAM REQUIRED.—Not later than 

24 one year after the date of the enactment of this Act, the 

25 Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall commence carrying out 


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1 a pilot program to assess the feasibility and advisability 

2 of awarding grants to eligible entities to improve public 

3 transportation services for veterans. 

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

5 pilot program during the five-year period beginning on the 

6 date on which the pilot program commences. 

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

8 pilot program at not fewer than five locations selected by 

9 the Secretary for purposes of the pilot program. 

10 (d) AWARD OF GRANTS.— 

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

12 program, the Secretary shall award grants to eligible 

13 entities to expand, retain, or establish public trans14 portation services that provide veterans access to lo15 cations of facilities or organizations that serve vet16 erans, including— 

17 (A) facilities of the Department of Vet18 erans Affairs; and 

19 (B) organizations that provide services to 

20 veterans using funds provided by the Depart21 ment. 

22 (2) ELIGIBLE ENTITIES.—For purposes of this 

23 section, an eligible entity is any State, Tribal, coun24 ty, or city government that— 


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1 (A) is providing public transportation serv2 ices as of the date on which the pilot program 

3 commences; or 

4 (B) has a proven ability and intention to 

5 establish public transportation infrastructure. 

6 (3) INTERVALS OF PAYMENT AND MAXIMUM

7 GRANT AMOUNT.—The Secretary may establish in8 tervals of payment for the administration of grants 

9 under this section and a maximum grant amount to 

10 be awarded, in accordance with the services being 

11 provided and the duration of such services. 

12 (4) COORDINATION AND CONSULTATION.—In 

13 awarding grants under this section, the Secretary 

14 may coordinate and consult with the Secretary of 

15 Transportation. 

16 (5) EQUITABLE DISTRIBUTION.—The Secretary 

17 of Veterans Affairs shall ensure that, to the extent 

18 practicable, grants awarded under this section are 

19 equitably distributed across geographic regions, in20 cluding rural and Tribal communities. 

21 (e) GRANT APPLICATION.— 

22 (1) IN GENERAL.—An eligible entity seeking 

23 the award of a grant under this section shall submit 

24 to the Secretary an application therefor in such 

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1 ments and information as the Secretary considers 

2 necessary to carry out this section. 

3 (2) CONTENTS OF APPLICATION.—Each appli4 cation submitted by an eligible entity under para5 graph (1) shall contain the following: 

6 (A) A description of the public transpor7 tation services that the entity intends to provide 

8 under the grant. 

9 (B) A list of all sites accessed by the pub10 lic transportation services to be provided. 

11 (C) The schedule of such services. 

12 (D) A list of the locations of facilities and 

13 organizations that serve veterans that will be 

14 accessed by such services. 

15 (E) An estimate of the number of veterans 

16 that would use such services. 

17 (F) Evidence of the ability of the entity to 

18 provide such services. 

19 (f) NOTIFICATION TO VETERANS.—Each eligible en20 tity awarded a grant under this section shall notify vet21 erans of the expansion or establishment of public transpor22 tation services to locations of facilities or organizations 

23 that serve veterans and that those services are available 

24 in whole or in part due to funds provided by the Depart25 ment. 


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1 (g) REPORT ON SERVICES PROVIDED.—The Sec2 retary shall require each eligible entity awarded a grant 

3 under this section to submit to the Secretary a report that 

4 describes the expansion, retention, or establishment of 

5 public transportation services provided with amounts 

6 under such grant. 

7 (h) REPORT.— 

8 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than one year 

9 after the date on which the first grant is awarded 

10 under this section, the Secretary shall submit to the 

11 Committee on Veterans’ Affairs of the Senate and 

12 the Committee on Veterans’ Affairs of the House of 

13 Representatives a report on the services provided 

14 under the pilot program. 

15 (2) ELEMENTS.—The report required by para16 graph (1) shall include the following: 

17 (A) The geographic location of each recipi18 ent of a grant under this section. 

19 (B) The estimated number of veterans 

20 served by each such grant recipient. 

21 (C) An assessment of whether use of facili22 ties of the Department has increased due to ac23 cess to public transportation provided under 


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1 grants awarded under this section, if informa2 tion for such an assessment is available. 

Æ 


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