IIB 

114TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. R. 5620 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

SEPTEMBER 15, 2016 

Received; read twice and referred to the Committee on Veterans’ Affairs 

AN ACT 

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

removal or demotion of employees of the Department 

of Veterans Affairs based on performance or misconduct, 

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, 


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1 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS. 

2 (a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the 

3 ‘‘VA Accountability First and Appeals Modernization Act 

4 of 2016’’. 

5 (b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents for 

6 this Act is as follows: 

Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents. 

Sec. 2. References to title 38, United States Code. 

Sec. 3. Removal or demotion of employees based on performance or misconduct. 

Sec. 4. Reduction of benefits for members of the Senior Executive Service within the Department of Veterans Affairs convicted of certain 

crimes. 

Sec. 5. Authority to recoup bonuses or awards paid to employees of Department 

of Veterans Affairs. 

Sec. 6. Authority to recoup relocation expenses paid to or on behalf of employees of Department of Veterans Affairs. 

Sec. 7. Senior executives: personnel actions based on performance or misconduct. 

Sec. 8. Office of Accountability and Whistleblower Protection. 

Sec. 9. Treatment of whistleblower complaints in Department of Veterans Affairs. 

Sec. 10. Appeals reform. 

Sec. 11. Limitation on awards and bonuses paid to senior executive employees 

of Department of Veterans Affairs. 

Sec. 12. Clarification of emergency hospital care furnished by the Secretary of 

Veterans Affairs to certain veterans. 

Sec. 13. Sense of Congress regarding American veterans disabled for life. 

Sec. 14. Establishment of positions of Directors of Veterans Integrated Service 

Networks in Office of Under Secretary for Health of Department of Veterans Affairs and modification of qualifications for 

Medical Directors. 

Sec. 15. Continuing education requirement for employees of Department of 

Veterans Affairs authorized to prescribe medication. 

Sec. 16. Review of whistleblower complaints. 

Sec. 17. Identification of matters relating to part-time employment of members 

of the Armed Forces who are physicians. 

Sec. 18. Recruitment of physicians in Department of Veterans Affairs. 

Sec. 19. Authority to disclose certain medical records of veterans who receive 

non-Department of Veterans Affairs health care. 

Sec. 20. Survey of veteran experiences with Department of Veterans Affairs 

medical care. 

Sec. 21. Annual report on performance of regional offices of the Department 

of Veterans Affairs. 

Sec. 22. Extension of authority of the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to provide 

for the conduct of medical disability examinations by contract 

physicians. 

Sec. 23. Provision of status under law by honoring certain members of the reserve components as veterans. 


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Sec. 24. Provision of rehabilitative equipment and human-powered vehicles to 

certain disabled veterans. 

Sec. 25. Appointment of licensed hearing aid specialists in Veterans Health Administration. 

1 SEC. 2. REFERENCES TO TITLE 38, UNITED STATES CODE. 

2 Except as otherwise expressly provided, whenever in 

3 this Act an amendment or repeal is expressed in terms 

4 of an amendment to, or repeal of, a section or other provi5 sion, the reference shall be considered to be made to a 

6 section or other provision of title 38, United States Code. 

7 SEC. 3. REMOVAL OR DEMOTION OF EMPLOYEES BASED ON 

8 PERFORMANCE OR MISCONDUCT. 

9 (a) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 7 is amended by adding 

10 at the end the following new section: 

11 ‘‘§ 715. Employees: removal or demotion based on 

12 performance or misconduct 

13 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary may remove or 

14 demote an individual who is an employee of the Depart15 ment if the Secretary determines the performance or mis16 conduct of the individual warrants such removal or demo17 tion. If the Secretary so removes or demotes such an indi18 vidual, the Secretary may— 

19 ‘‘(1) remove the individual from the civil service 

20 (as defined in section 2101 of title 5); or 

21 ‘‘(2) demote the individual by means of— 


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1 ‘‘(A) a reduction in grade for which the in2 dividual is qualified and that the Secretary de3 termines is appropriate; or 

4 ‘‘(B) a reduction in annual rate of pay 

5 that the Secretary determines is appropriate. 

6 ‘‘(b) PAY OF CERTAIN DEMOTED INDIVIDUALS.—(1) 

7 Notwithstanding any other provision of law, any individual 

8 subject to a demotion under subsection (a)(2)(A) shall, be9 ginning on the date of such demotion, receive the annual 

10 rate of pay applicable to such grade. 

11 ‘‘(2) An individual so demoted may not be placed on 

12 administrative leave or any other category of paid leave 

13 during the period during which an appeal (if any) under 

14 this section is ongoing, and may only receive pay if the 

15 individual reports for duty. If an individual so demoted 

16 does not report for duty, such individual shall not receive 

17 pay or other benefits pursuant to subsection (e)(5). 

18 ‘‘(c) NOTICE TO CONGRESS.—Not later than 30 days 

19 after removing or demoting an individual under subsection 

20 (a), the Secretary shall submit to the Committees on Vet21 erans’ Affairs of the Senate and House of Representatives 

22 and to each Member of Congress representing a district 

23 in the State or territory where the facility where the indi24 vidual was employed immediately before being removed or 


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1 demoted is located notice in writing of such removal or 

2 demotion and the reason for such removal or demotion. 

3 ‘‘(d) PROCEDURE.—(1) Subsection (b) of section 

4 7513 of title 5 shall apply with respect to a removal or 

5 a demotion under this section, except that the period for 

6 notice and response, which includes the advance notice pe7 riod required by paragraph (1) of such subsection and the 

8 response period required by paragraph (2) of such sub9 section, shall not exceed a total of 10 calendar days. 

10 ‘‘(2) The procedures under chapter 43 of title 5 shall 

11 not apply to a removal or demotion under this section. 

12 ‘‘(3)(A) Subject to subparagraph (B) and subsection 

13 (e), any removal or demotion under subsection (a) may 

14 be appealed to the Merit Systems Protection Board. 

15 ‘‘(B) An appeal under subparagraph (A) of a removal 

16 or demotion may only be made if such appeal is made not 

17 later than 7 days after the date of such removal or demo18 tion. 

19 ‘‘(e) EXPEDITED REVIEW BY MSPB.—(1) Upon re20 ceipt of an appeal under subsection (d)(3)(A), the Merit 

21 Systems Protection Board shall expedite any such appeal 

22 under such section and, in any such case, shall issue a 

23 decision not later than 60 days after the date of the ap24 peal. 


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1 ‘‘(2) Notwithstanding section 7701(c)(1)(B) of title 

2 5, the Merit Systems Protection Board shall uphold the 

3 decision of the Secretary to remove or demote an employee 

4 under subsection (a) if the decision is supported by sub5 stantial evidence. 

6 ‘‘(3) The decision of the Merit Systems Protection 

7 Board under paragraph (1), and any final removal or de8 motion described in paragraph (4), may be appealed to 

9 the United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit 

10 pursuant to section 7703 of title 5. Any decision by such 

11 Court shall be in compliance with section 7462(f)(2) of 

12 this title. 

13 ‘‘(4) In any case in which the Merit Systems Protec14 tion Board cannot issue a decision in accordance with the 

15 60-day requirement under paragraph (1), the removal or 

16 demotion is final. In such a case, the Merit Systems Pro17 tection Board shall, within 14 days after the date that 

18 such removal or demotion is final, submit to Congress and 

19 the Committees on Veterans’ Affairs of the Senate and 

20 House of Representatives and to each Member of Congress 

21 representing a district in the State or territory where the 

22 facility where the individual was employed immediately be23 fore being removed or demoted is located a report that 

24 explains the reasons why a decision was not issued in ac25 cordance with such requirement. 


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1 ‘‘(5) The Merit Systems Protection Board may not 

2 stay any removal or demotion under this section. 

3 ‘‘(6) During the period beginning on the date on 

4 which an individual appeals a removal from the civil serv5 ice under subsection (d) and ending on the date that the 

6 Merit Systems Protection Board issues a final decision on 

7 such appeal, such individual may not receive any pay, 

8 awards, bonuses, incentives, allowances, differentials, stu9 dent loan repayments, special payments, or benefits. 

10 ‘‘(7) To the maximum extent practicable, the Sec11 retary shall provide to the Merit Systems Protection 

12 Board such information and assistance as may be nec13 essary to ensure an appeal under this subsection is expe14 dited. 

15 ‘‘(f) WHISTLEBLOWER PROTECTION.—(1) In the 

16 case of an individual seeking corrective action (or on be17 half of whom corrective action is sought) from the Office 

18 of Special Counsel based on an alleged prohibited per19 sonnel practice described in section 2302(b) of title 5, the 

20 Secretary may not remove or demote such individual 

21 under subsection (a) without the approval of the Special 

22 Counsel under section 1214(f) of title 5. 

23 ‘‘(2) In the case of an individual who has filed a whis24 tleblower complaint, as such term is defined in section 741 

25 of this title, the Secretary may not remove or demote such 


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1 individual under subsection (a) until a final decision with 

2 respect to the whistleblower complaint has been made. 

3 ‘‘(g) TERMINATION OF INVESTIGATIONS BY OFFICE

4 OF SPECIAL COUNSEL.—Notwithstanding any other provi5 sion of law, the Special Counsel (established by section 

6 1211 of title 5) may terminate an investigation of a pro7 hibited personnel practice alleged by an employee or 

8 former employee of the Department after the Special 

9 Counsel provides to the employee or former employee a 

10 written statement of the reasons for the termination of 

11 the investigation. Such statement may not be admissible 

12 as evidence in any judicial or administrative proceeding 

13 without the consent of such employee or former employee. 

14 ‘‘(h) RELATION TO OTHER AUTHORITIES.—The au15 thority provided by this section is in addition to the au16 thority provided by subchapter V of chapter 74 of this 

17 title, subchapter II of chapter 75 of title 5, chapter 43 

18 of such title, and any other authority with respect to dis19 ciplining an individual. 

20 ‘‘(i) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 

21 ‘‘(1) The term ‘individual’ means an individual 

22 occupying a position at the Department but does not 

23 include— 

24 ‘‘(A) an individual, as that term is defined 

25 in section 713(g)(1); or 


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1 ‘‘(B) a political appointee. 

2 ‘‘(2) The term ‘grade’ has the meaning given 

3 such term in section 7511(a) of title 5. 

4 ‘‘(3) The term ‘misconduct’ includes neglect of 

5 duty, malfeasance, or failure to accept a directed re6 assignment or to accompany a position in a transfer 

7 of function. 

8 ‘‘(4) The term ‘political appointee’ means an in9 dividual who is— 

10 ‘‘(A) employed in a position described 

11 under sections 5312 through 5316 of title 5 

12 (relating to the Executive Schedule); 

13 ‘‘(B) a limited term appointee, limited 

14 emergency appointee, or noncareer appointee in 

15 the Senior Executive Service, as defined under 

16 paragraphs (5), (6), and (7), respectively, of 

17 section 3132(a) of title 5; or 

18 ‘‘(C) employed in a position of a confiden19 tial or policy-determining character under 

20 schedule C of subpart C of part 213 of title 5 

21 of the Code of Federal Regulations.’’. 

22 (b) CLERICAL AND CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.— 

23 (1) CLERICAL.—The table of sections at the be24 ginning of chapter 7 is amended by inserting after 


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1 the item relating to section 713 the following new 

2 item: 

‘‘715. Employees: removal or demotion based on performance or misconduct.’’. 

3 (2) CONFORMING.—Section 4303(f) of title 5, 

4 United States Code, is amended— 

5 (A) by striking ‘‘or’’ at the end of para6 graph (2); 

7 (B) by striking the period at the end of 

8 paragraph (3) and inserting ‘‘, or’’; and 

9 (C) by adding at the end the following: 

10 ‘‘(4) any removal or demotion under section 

11 715 of title 38.’’. 

12 SEC. 4. REDUCTION OF BENEFITS FOR MEMBERS OF THE 

13 SENIOR EXECUTIVE SERVICE WITHIN THE 

14 DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS CON15 VICTED OF CERTAIN CRIMES. 

16 (a) REDUCTION OF BENEFITS.— 

17 (1) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 7 is further amend18 ed by inserting after section 715, as added by sec19 tion 3, the following new section: 

20 ‘‘§ 717. Senior executives: reduction of benefits of in21 dividuals convicted of certain crimes 

22 ‘‘(a) REDUCTION OF ANNUITY FOR REMOVED EM23 PLOYEE.—(1) The Secretary shall order that the covered 

24 service of an individual removed from a senior executive 

25 position for performance or misconduct under section 713 


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1 of this title, chapter 43 or subchapter V of chapter 75 

2 of title 5, or any other provision of law shall not be taken 

3 into account for purposes of calculating an annuity with 

4 respect to such individual under chapter 83 or chapter 84 

5 of title 5, if— 

6 ‘‘(A) the individual is convicted of a felony that 

7 influenced the individual’s performance while em8 ployed in the senior executive position; and 

9 ‘‘(B) before such order is made, the individual 

10 is afforded— 

11 ‘‘(i) notice of the order and an opportunity 

12 to respond to the order; and 

13 ‘‘(ii) consistent with paragraph (2), an op14 portunity to appeal the order to another depart15 ment or agency of the Federal Government. 

16 ‘‘(2) If a final decision on an appeal made under 

17 paragraph (1)(B)(ii) is not made by the applicable depart18 ment or agency of the Federal Government within 30 days 

19 after receiving such appeal, the order of the Secretary 

20 under paragraph (1) shall be final and not subject to fur21 ther appeal. 

22 ‘‘(b) REDUCTION OF ANNUITY FOR RETIRED EM23 PLOYEE.—(1) The Secretary may order that the covered 

24 service of an individual who is subject to a removal or 

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1 tion 713 of this title, chapter 43 or subchapter V of chap2 ter 75 of title 5, or any other provision of law but who 

3 leaves employment at the Department prior to the 

4 issuance of a final decision with respect to such action 

5 shall not be taken into account for purposes of calculating 

6 an annuity with respect to such individual under chapter 

7 83 or chapter 84 of title 5, if— 

8 ‘‘(A) the individual is convicted of a felony that 

9 influenced the individual’s performance while em10 ployed in the senior executive position; and 

11 ‘‘(B) before such order is made, the individual 

12 is afforded— 

13 ‘‘(i) notice of the order and an opportunity 

14 to respond to the order; and 

15 ‘‘(ii) an opportunity to appeal the order to 

16 another department or agency of the Federal 

17 Government. 

18 ‘‘(2) The Secretary shall make such an order not 

19 later than 7 days after the date of the conclusion of a 

20 hearing referred to in paragraph (1)(B) that determines 

21 that such order is lawful. 

22 ‘‘(c) ADMINISTRATIVE REQUIREMENTS.—(1) Not 

23 later than 30 days after the Secretary issues an order 

24 under subsection (a) or (b), the Director of the Office of 


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1 Personnel Management shall recalculate the annuity of the 

2 individual. 

3 ‘‘(2) A decision regarding whether the covered service 

4 of an individual shall be taken into account for purposes 

5 of calculating an annuity under subsection (a) or (b) is 

6 final and may not be reviewed by any department or agen7 cy or any court. 

8 ‘‘(d) LUMP-SUM ANNUITY CREDIT.—Any individual 

9 with respect to whom an annuity is reduced under sub10 section (a) or (b) shall be entitled to be paid so much of 

11 such individual’s lump-sum credit as is attributable to the 

12 period of covered service. 

13 ‘‘(e) SPOUSE OR CHILDREN EXCEPTION.—The Sec14 retary, in consultation with the Office of Personnel Man15 agement, shall prescribe regulations that may provide for 

16 the payment to the spouse or children of any individual 

17 referred to in subsection (a) or (b) of any amounts which 

18 (but for this subsection) would otherwise have been non19 payable by reason of such subsections. Any such regula20 tions shall be consistent with the requirements of section 

21 8332(o)(5) and 8411(l)(5) of title 5, as the case may be. 

22 ‘‘(f) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 

23 ‘‘(1) The term ‘covered service’ means, with re24 spect to an individual subject to a removal or trans25 fer for performance or misconduct under section 713 


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1 of this title, chapter 43 or subchapter V of chapter 

2 75 of title 5, or any other provision of law, the pe3 riod of service beginning on the date that the Sec4 retary determines under such applicable provision 

5 that the individual engaged in activity that gave rise 

6 to such action and ending on the date that the indi7 vidual is removed or transferred from the senior ex8 ecutive position or leaves employment at the Depart9 ment prior to the issuance of a final decision with 

10 respect to such action, as the case may be. 

11 ‘‘(2) The term ‘lump-sum credit’ has the mean12 ing given such term in section 8331(8) or section 

13 8401(19) of title 5, as the case may be. 

14 ‘‘(3) The term ‘senior executive position’ has 

15 the meaning given such term in section 713(g)(3) of 

16 this title. 

17 ‘‘(4) The term ‘service’ has the meaning given 

18 such term in section 8331(12) or section 8401(26) 

19 of title 5, as the case may be.’’. 

20 (2) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sec21 tions at the beginning of chapter 7 of such title is 

22 amended by inserting after the item relating to sec23 tion 715, as added by section 3, the following new 

24 item: 

‘‘717. Senior executives: reduction of benefits of individuals convicted of certain 

crimes.’’. 


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1 (b) APPLICATION.—Section 717 of title 38, United 

2 States Code, as added by subsection (a)(1), shall apply 

3 to any action of removal or transfer under section 713 

4 of title 38, United States Code, commencing on or after 

5 the date of the enactment of this Act. 

6 SEC. 5. AUTHORITY TO RECOUP BONUSES OR AWARDS 

7 PAID TO EMPLOYEES OF DEPARTMENT OF 

8 VETERANS AFFAIRS. 

9 (a) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 7 is further amended by 

10 inserting after section 717, as added by section 4, the fol11 lowing new section: 

12 ‘‘§ 719. Recoupment of bonuses or awards paid to em13 ployees of Department 

14 ‘‘(a) RECOUPMENT.—Notwithstanding any other pro15 vision of law, the Secretary may issue an order directing 

16 an employee of the Department to repay the amount, or 

17 a portion of the amount, of any award or bonus paid to 

18 the employee under title 5, including under chapters 45 

19 or 53 of such title, or this title if— 

20 ‘‘(1) the Secretary determines such repayment 

21 appropriate pursuant to regulations prescribed under 

22 subsection (c); and 

23 ‘‘(2) before such repayment, the employee is af24 forded— 


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1 ‘‘(A) notice of the order and an oppor2 tunity to respond to the order; and 

3 ‘‘(B) an opportunity to appeal the order to 

4 another department or agency of the Federal 

5 Government. 

6 ‘‘(b) REVIEW.—(1) Upon the issuance of an order by 

7 the Secretary under subsection (a), the employee shall be 

8 afforded— 

9 ‘‘(A) notice of the order and an opportunity to 

10 respond to the order; and 

11 ‘‘(B) consistent with paragraph (2), an oppor12 tunity to appeal the order to another department or 

13 agency of the Federal Government. 

14 ‘‘(2) If a final decision on an appeal made under 

15 paragraph (1)(B) is not made by the applicable depart16 ment or agency of the Federal Government within 30 days 

17 after receiving such appeal, the order of the Secretary 

18 under subsection (a) shall be final and not subject to fur19 ther appeal. 

20 ‘‘(c) REGULATIONS.—The Secretary shall prescribe 

21 regulations to carry out this section.’’. 

22 (b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sections 

23 at the beginning of such chapter, as amended by section 

24 4, is amended by inserting after the item relating to sec25 tion 717 the following new item: 

‘‘719. Recoupment of bonuses or awards paid to employees of Department.’’. 


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1 (c) EFFECTIVE DATE.—Section 719 of title 38, 

2 United States Code, as added by subsection (a), shall 

3 apply with respect to an award or bonus paid by the Sec4 retary of Veterans Affairs to an employee of the Depart5 ment of Veterans Affairs on or after the date of the enact6 ment of this Act. 

7 (d) CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in this Act or the 

8 amendments made by this Act may be construed to modify 

9 the certification issued by the Office of Personnel Manage10 ment and the Office of Management and Budget regarding 

11 the performance appraisal system of the Senior Executive 

12 Service of the Department of Veterans Affairs. 

13 SEC. 6. AUTHORITY TO RECOUP RELOCATION EXPENSES 

14 PAID TO OR ON BEHALF OF EMPLOYEES OF 

15 DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS. 

16 (a) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 7 is further amended by 

17 adding at the end the following new section: 

18 ‘‘§ 721. Recoupment of relocation expenses paid on 

19 behalf of employees of Department 

20 ‘‘(a) RECOUPMENT.—(1) Notwithstanding any other 

21 provision of law, the Secretary may direct an employee of 

22 the Department to repay the amount, or a portion of the 

23 amount, paid to or on behalf of the employee under title 

24 5 for relocation expenses, including any expenses under 

25 section 5724 or 5724a of such title, or this title if— 


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1 ‘‘(A) the Secretary determines that— 

2 ‘‘(i) the employee has committed an act of 

3 fraud, waste, or malfeasance; and 

4 ‘‘(ii) such repayment is appropriate pursu5 ant to regulations prescribed under subsection 

6 (c); and 

7 ‘‘(B) before such repayment is ordered, the in8 dividual is afforded— 

9 ‘‘(i) notice of the determination of the Sec10 retary and an opportunity to respond to the de11 termination; and 

12 ‘‘(ii) consistent with paragraph (2), an op13 portunity to appeal the determination to an14 other department or agency of the Federal Gov15 ernment. 

16 ‘‘(2) If a final decision on an appeal made under 

17 paragraph (1)(B)(ii) is not made by the applicable depart18 ment or agency of the Federal Government within 30 days 

19 after receiving such appeal, the order of the Secretary 

20 under paragraph (1) shall be final and not subject to fur21 ther appeal. 

22 ‘‘(b) REVIEW.—A decision regarding a repayment by 

23 an employee pursuant to subsection (a)(1)(B)(ii) is final 

24 and may not be reviewed by any department, agency, or 

25 court. 


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1 ‘‘(c) REGULATIONS.—The Secretary shall prescribe 

2 regulations to carry out this section.’’. 

3 (b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sections 

4 at the beginning of such chapter is further amended by 

5 adding at the end the following new item: 

‘‘721. Recoupment of relocation expenses paid to or on behalf of employees of 

Department.’’. 

6 (c) EFFECTIVE DATE.—Section 721 of title 38, 

7 United States Code, as added by subsection (a), shall 

8 apply with respect to an amount paid by the Secretary 

9 of Veterans Affairs to or on behalf of an employee of the 

10 Department of Veterans Affairs for relocation expenses on 

11 or after the date of the enactment of this Act. 

12 (d) CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in this section or the 

13 amendments made by this section may be construed to 

14 modify the certification issued by the Office of Personnel 

15 Management and the Office of Management and Budget 

16 regarding the performance appraisal system of the Senior 

17 Executive Service of the Department of Veterans Affairs. 

18 SEC. 7. SENIOR EXECUTIVES: PERSONNEL ACTIONS BASED 

19 ON PERFORMANCE OR MISCONDUCT. 

20 (a) EXPANSION OF COVERED PERSONNEL AC21 TIONS.—Section 713 is amended in subsection (a)(1) by 

22 inserting after ‘‘such removal.’’ the following: ‘‘If the Sec23 retary determines that the performance or misconduct of 

24 such an individual does not merit removal from the senior 


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1 executive service position, the Secretary may suspend, rep2 rimand, or admonish the individual.’’. 

3 (b) REMOVAL OF APPEAL TO MERIT SYSTEMS PRO4 TECTION BOARD.—Section 713 is further amended— 

5 (1) in subsection (a)— 

6 (A) in paragraph (1), by striking ‘‘so re7 moves’’ and inserting ‘‘removes’’; and 

8 (B) by adding at the end the following: 

9 ‘‘(3) On the date that is 5 days before taking any 

10 personnel action against a senior executive under para11 graph (1), the Secretary shall provide the individual 

12 with— 

13 ‘‘(A) notice in writing of the proposed personnel 

14 action, including the reasons for such action; and 

15 ‘‘(B) an opportunity to respond to the proposed 

16 personnel action within the 5-day period.’’; 

17 (2) in subsection (b)(2)— 

18 (A) by striking ‘‘under this section’’ and 

19 inserting ‘‘under section 723’’; and 

20 (B) by striking the second sentence; 

21 (3) in subsection (c)— 

22 (A) by striking ‘‘30’’ and inserting ‘‘5’’; 

23 and 

24 (B) by striking ‘‘and the reason for such 

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1 son for such removal or transfer, the name and 

2 position of the employee, and all charging docu3 ments and evidence pertaining to such removal 

4 or transfer’’; 

5 (4) by striking subsections (d) and (e) and in6 serting the following: 

7 ‘‘(d) PROCEDURE.—(1) The procedures under title 5 

8 shall not apply to any personnel action under this section. 

9 ‘‘(2) A personnel action under this section— 

10 ‘‘(A) consistent with paragraph (3), may be ap11 pealed to the Senior Executive Disciplinary Appeals 

12 Board under section 723; and 

13 ‘‘(B) may not be appealed to the Merit Systems 

14 Protection Board under section 7701 of title 5. 

15 ‘‘(3) An appeal of a personnel action pursuant to 

16 paragraph (2)(A) must be filed with the Senior Executive 

17 Disciplinary Appeals Board not later than the date that 

18 is 7 days after the date of such action. If such appeal 

19 is not made within the 7-day period, the personnel action 

20 shall be final and not subject to further appeal.’’; 

21 (5) by redesignating subsections (f) and (g) as 

22 subsections (e) and (f), respectively; and 

23 (6) in subsection (f), as redesignated by para24 graph (5), by adding at the end the following: 


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1 ‘‘(4) The term ‘suspend’ means the placing of 

2 an individual in a temporary status without duties 

3 and pay for a period greater than 14 days.’’. 

4 (c) REMOVAL OF EXPEDITED PROCEDURES.—Sec5 tion 707 of the Veterans Access, Choice, and Account6 ability Act of 2014 (38 U.S.C. 713 note) is amended by— 

7 (1) striking subsection (b); and 

8 (2) redesignating subsections (c) and (d) as 

9 subsections (b) and (c), respectively. 

10 (d) SENIOR EXECUTIVE DISCIPLINARY APPEALS

11 BOARD.—Chapter 7 is further amended by inserting after 

12 section 721, as added by section 6, the following new sec13 tion: 

14 ‘‘§ 723. Senior Executive Disciplinary Appeals Board 

15 ‘‘(a) The Secretary shall from time to time appoint 

16 a board to hear appeals of any personnel action taken 

17 under section 713. Such board shall be known as the Sen18 ior Executive Disciplinary Appeals Board (hereinafter re19 ferred to as the ‘Board’). Each Board shall consist of 

20 three employees of the Department. The Board shall have 

21 exclusive jurisdiction to review any personnel action under 

22 section 713. 

23 ‘‘(b) Upon an appeal of such a personnel action, the 

24 Senior Executive Disciplinary Appeals Board shall— 


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1 ‘‘(1) review all evidence provided by the Sec2 retary and the appellant; and 

3 ‘‘(2) issue a decision not later than 21 days 

4 after the date of the appeal. 

5 ‘‘(c) The Board shall afford an employee appealing 

6 a personnel action an opportunity for an oral hearing. If 

7 such a hearing is held, the appellant may be represented 

8 by counsel. 

9 ‘‘(d) The Board shall uphold the decision of the Sec10 retary if— 

11 ‘‘(1) there is substantial evidence supporting 

12 the decision; and 

13 ‘‘(2) the applicable personnel action is within 

14 the tolerable bounds of reasonableness. 

15 ‘‘(e) If the Board issues a decision under this section 

16 that reverses or otherwise mitigates the applicable per17 sonnel action, the Secretary may reverse the decision of 

18 the Board. Consistent with the requirements of subsection 

19 (g), the decision of the Secretary under this subsection 

20 shall be final. 

21 ‘‘(f) In any case in which the Board cannot issue a 

22 decision in accordance with the 21-day requirement under 

23 subsection (b)(2), the personnel action is final. 

24 ‘‘(g) A petition to review a final order or final deci25 sion of the Secretary or the Board under this section shall 


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1 be filed in the United States Court of Appeals for the Fed2 eral Circuit. Any decision by such Court shall be in compli3 ance with section 7462(f)(2) of this title. 

4 ‘‘(h) During the period beginning on the date on 

5 which an individual appeals a removal from the civil serv6 ice under section 713(d) and ending on the date that the 

7 Board or Secretary issues a final decision on such appeal, 

8 such individual may not receive any pay, awards, bonuses, 

9 incentives, allowances, differentials, student loan repay10 ments, special payments, or benefits.’’. 

11 (e) TECHNICAL AND CLERICAL AMENDMENTS.— 

12 (1) TECHNICAL AMENDMENT.—The section 

13 heading of section 713 is amended to read as fol14 lows: Senior executives: personnel actions 

15 based on performance or misconduct. 

16 (2) CLERICAL AMENDMENTS.—The table of 

17 contents for such chapter is further amended— 

18 (A) by striking the item relating to section 

19 713 and inserting the following: 

‘‘713. Senior executives: personnel actions based on performance or misconduct.’’; 

20 and 

21 (B) by adding at the end the following: 

‘‘723. Senior Executive Disciplinary Appeals Board.’’. 

22 (f) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in this sec23 tion or section 731 of title 38, United States Code, (as 


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1 added by subsection (c)) shall be construed to apply to 

2 an appeal of a removal, transfer, or other personnel action 

3 that was pending before the date of the enactment of this 

4 Act. 

5 SEC. 8. OFFICE OF ACCOUNTABILITY AND WHISTLE6 BLOWER PROTECTION. 

7 (a) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 3 of title 38, United 

8 States Code, is amended by adding at the end the fol9 lowing new section: 

10 ‘‘§ 323. Office of Accountability and Whistleblower 

11 Protection 

12 ‘‘(a) ESTABLISHMENT.—There is established in the 

13 Department an office to be known as the Office of Ac14 countability and Whistleblower Protection (in this section 

15 referred to as the ‘Office’). 

16 ‘‘(b) HEAD OF OFFICE.—(1) The head of the Office 

17 shall be responsible for the functions of the Office and 

18 shall be appointed by the President pursuant to section 

19 308(a) of this title. 

20 ‘‘(2) The head of the Office shall be known as the 

21 ‘Assistant Secretary for Accountability and Whistleblower 

22 Protection’. 

23 ‘‘(3) The Assistant Secretary shall report directly to 

24 the Secretary on all matters relating to the Office. 


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1 ‘‘(4) Notwithstanding section 308(b) of this title, the 

2 Secretary may only assign to the Assistant Secretary re3 sponsibilities relating to the functions of the Office set 

4 forth in subsection (c). 

5 ‘‘(c) FUNCTIONS.—(1) The functions of the Office 

6 are as follows: 

7 ‘‘(A) Advising the Secretary on all matters of 

8 the Department relating to accountability, including 

9 accountability of employees of the Department, re10 taliation against whistleblowers, and such matters as 

11 the Secretary considers similar and affect public 

12 trust in the Department. 

13 ‘‘(B) Issuing reports and providing rec14 ommendations related to the duties described in sub15 paragraph (A). 

16 ‘‘(C) Receiving whistleblower complaints. 

17 ‘‘(D) Referring whistleblower complaints re18 ceived under subparagraph (C) for investigation to 

19 the Office of the Medical Inspector, the Office of In20 spector General, or other investigative entity, as ap21 propriate, if the Assistant Secretary has reason to 

22 believe the whistleblower complaint is evidence of a 

23 violation of a provision of law, mismanagement, 

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1 stantial and specific danger to public health and 

2 safety. 

3 ‘‘(E) Receiving and referring complaints from 

4 the Special Counsel for investigation to the Medical 

5 Inspector of the Department, the Inspector General 

6 of the Department, or such other person with inves7 tigatory authority, as the Assistant Secretary con8 siders appropriate. 

9 ‘‘(F) Recording, tracking, reviewing, and con10 firming implementation of recommendations from 

11 audits and investigations carried out by the Inspec12 tor General of the Department, the Medical Inspec13 tor of the Department, the Special Counsel, and the 

14 Comptroller General of the United States, including 

15 the imposition of disciplinary actions and other cor16 rective actions contained in such recommendations. 

17 ‘‘(G) Analyzing data from the Office and the 

18 Office of Inspector General telephone hotlines, other 

19 whistleblower complaints, disaggregated by facility 

20 and area of health care if appropriate, and relevant 

21 audits and investigations to identify trends and issue 

22 reports to the Secretary based on analysis conducted 

23 under this subparagraph. 


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1 ‘‘(H) Receiving, reviewing, and investigating al2 legations of misconduct, retaliation, or poor perform3 ance involving— 

4 ‘‘(i) an individual in a senior executive po5 sition (as defined in section 713(d) of this title) 

6 in the Department; 

7 ‘‘(ii) an individual employed in a confiden8 tial, policy-making, policy-determining, or pol9 icy-advocating position in the Department; or 

10 ‘‘(iii) a supervisory employee. 

11 ‘‘(I) Making such recommendations to the Sec12 retary for disciplinary action as the Assistant Sec13 retary considers appropriate after substantiating any 

14 allegation of misconduct or poor performance pursu15 ant to an investigation carried out as described in 

16 subparagraph (F) or (H). 

17 ‘‘(2) In carrying out the functions of the Office, the 

18 Assistant Secretary shall ensure that the Office maintains 

19 a toll-free telephone number and Internet website to re20 ceive anonymous whistleblower complaints. 

21 ‘‘(3) In any case in which the Assistant Secretary re22 ceives a whistleblower complaint from an employee of the 

23 Department under paragraph (1)(C), the Assistant Sec24 retary may not disclose the identity of the employee with25 out the consent of the employee, except in accordance with 


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1 the provisions of section 552a of title 5, or as required 

2 by any other applicable provision of Federal law. 

3 ‘‘(d) RELATION TO OFFICE OF GENERAL COUN4 SEL.—The Office shall not be established as an element 

5 of the Office of the General Counsel and the Assistant 

6 Secretary may not report to the General Counsel. 

7 ‘‘(e) REPORTS.—(1)(A) Not later than June 30 of 

8 each calendar year, beginning with June 30, 2017, the As9 sistant Secretary shall submit to the Committee on Vet10 erans’ Affairs of the Senate and the Committee on Vet11 erans’ Affairs of the House of Representatives a report 

12 on the activities of the Office during the calendar year 

13 in which the report is submitted. 

14 ‘‘(B) Each report submitted under subparagraph (A) 

15 shall include, for the period covered by the report, the fol16 lowing: 

17 ‘‘(i) A full and substantive analysis of the ac18 tivities of the Office, including such statistical infor19 mation as the Assistant Secretary considers appro20 priate. 

21 ‘‘(ii) Identification of any issues reported to the 

22 Secretary under subsection (c)(1)(G), including such 

23 data as the Assistant Secretary considers relevant to 

24 such issues and any trends the Assistant Secretary 

25 may have identified with respect to such issues. 


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1 ‘‘(iii) Identification of such concerns as the As2 sistant Secretary may have regarding the size, staff3 ing, and resources of the Office and such rec4 ommendations as the Assistant Secretary may have 

5 for legislative or administrative action to address 

6 such concerns. 

7 ‘‘(iv) Such recommendations as the Assistant 

8 Secretary may have for legislative or administrative 

9 action to improve— 

10 ‘‘(I) the process by which concerns are re11 ported to the Office; and 

12 ‘‘(II) the protection of whistleblowers with13 in the Department. 

14 ‘‘(v) Such other matters as the Assistant Sec15 retary considers appropriate regarding the functions 

16 of the Office or other matters relating to the Office. 

17 ‘‘(2) If the Secretary receives a recommendation for 

18 disciplinary action under subsection (c)(1)(I) and does not 

19 take or initiate the recommended disciplinary action before 

20 the date that is 60 days after the date on which the Sec21 retary received the recommendation, the Secretary shall 

22 submit to the Committee on Veterans’ Affairs of the Sen23 ate and the Committee on Veterans’ Affairs of the House 

24 of Representatives a detailed justification for not taking 

25 or initiating such disciplinary action. 


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1 ‘‘(f) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 

2 ‘‘(1) The term ‘supervisory employee’ means an 

3 employee of the Department who is a supervisor as 

4 defined in section 7103(a) of title 5. 

5 ‘‘(2) The term ‘whistleblower’ means one who 

6 makes a whistleblower complaint. 

7 ‘‘(3) The term ‘whistleblower complaint’ means 

8 any disclosure of information by an employee of the 

9 Department or individual applying to become an em10 ployee of the Department which the employee or in11 dividual reasonably believes evidences— 

12 ‘‘(A) a violation of a provision of law; or 

13 ‘‘(B) gross mismanagement, a gross waste 

14 of funds, an abuse of authority, or a substantial 

15 and specific danger to public health or safety.’’. 

16 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—Section 308(b) of 

17 such title is amended by adding at the end the following 

18 new paragraph: 

19 ‘‘(12) The functions set forth in section 323(c) 

20 of this title.’’. 

21 (c) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sections 

22 at the beginning of chapter 3 of such title is amended by 

23 adding at the end the following new item: 

‘‘323. Office of Accountability and Whistleblower Protection.’’. 


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1 SEC. 9. TREATMENT OF WHISTLEBLOWER COMPLAINTS IN 

2 DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS. 

3 (a) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 7 is further amended by 

4 adding at the end the following new subchapter: 

5 ‘‘SUBCHAPTER II—WHISTLEBLOWER 

6 COMPLAINTS 

7 ‘‘§ 741. Whistleblower complaint defined 

8 ‘‘In this subchapter, the term ‘whistleblower com9 plaint’ means a complaint by an employee of the Depart10 ment disclosing, or assisting another employee to disclose, 

11 a potential violation of any law, rule, or regulation, or 

12 gross mismanagement, gross waste of funds, abuse of au13 thority, or substantial and specific danger to public health 

14 and safety. 

15 ‘‘§ 742. Treatment of whistleblower complaints 

16 ‘‘(a) FILING.—(1) In addition to any other method 

17 established by law in which an employee may file a whistle18 blower complaint, an employee of the Department may file 

19 a whistleblower complaint in accordance with subsection 

20 (g) with a supervisor of the employee. 

21 ‘‘(2) Except as provided by subsection (d)(1), in mak22 ing a whistleblower complaint under paragraph (1), an 

23 employee shall file the initial complaint with the imme24 diate supervisor of the employee. 

25 ‘‘(b) NOTIFICATION.—(1) Not later than 4 business 

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1 tleblower complaint by an employee under this section, the 

2 supervisor shall notify, in writing, the employee of whether 

3 the supervisor determines that there is a reasonable likeli4 hood that the complaint discloses a violation of any law, 

5 rule, or regulation, or gross mismanagement, gross waste 

6 of funds, abuse of authority, or substantial and specific 

7 danger to public health and safety. The supervisor shall 

8 retain written documentation regarding the whistleblower 

9 complaint and shall submit to the next-level supervisor a 

10 written report on the complaint. 

11 ‘‘(2) On a monthly basis, the supervisor shall submit 

12 to the appropriate director or other official who is superior 

13 to the supervisor a written report that includes the num14 ber of whistleblower complaints received by the supervisor 

15 under this section during the month covered by the report, 

16 the disposition of such complaints, and any actions taken 

17 because of such complaints pursuant to subsection (c). In 

18 the case in which such a director or official carries out 

19 this paragraph, the director or official shall submit such 

20 monthly report to— 

21 ‘‘(A) the supervisor of the director or official; 

22 ‘‘(B) the Committees on Veterans’ Affairs of 

23 the Senate and House or Representatives; and 


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1 ‘‘(C) each Member of Congress representing a 

2 district in the State or territory where the facility 

3 where the supervisor is employed is located. 

4 ‘‘(c) POSITIVE DETERMINATION.—If a supervisor 

5 makes a positive determination under subsection (b)(1) re6 garding a whistleblower complaint of an employee, the su7 pervisor shall include in the notification to the employee 

8 under such subsection the specific actions that the super9 visor will take to address the complaint. 

10 ‘‘(d) FILING COMPLAINT WITH NEXT-LEVEL SUPER11 VISORS.—(1) If any circumstance described in paragraph 

12 (3) is met, an employee may file a whistleblower complaint 

13 in accordance with subsection (g) with the next-level su14 pervisor who shall treat such complaint in accordance with 

15 this section. 

16 ‘‘(2) An employee may file a whistleblower complaint 

17 with the Secretary if the employee has filed the whistle18 blower complaint to each level of supervisors between the 

19 employee and the Secretary in accordance with paragraph 

20 (1). 

21 ‘‘(3) A circumstance described in this paragraph are 

22 any of the following circumstances: 

23 ‘‘(A) A supervisor does not make a timely de24 termination under subsection (b)(1) regarding a 

25 whistleblower complaint. 


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1 ‘‘(B) The employee who made a whistleblower 

2 complaint determines that the supervisor did not 

3 adequately address the complaint pursuant to sub4 section (c). 

5 ‘‘(C) The immediate supervisor of the employee 

6 is the basis of the whistleblower complaint. 

7 ‘‘(e) TRANSFER OF EMPLOYEE WHO FILES WHIS8 TLEBLOWER COMPLAINT.—If a supervisor makes a posi9 tive determination under subsection (b)(1) regarding a 

10 whistleblower complaint filed by an employee, the Sec11 retary shall— 

12 ‘‘(1) inform the employee of the ability to vol13 unteer for a transfer in accordance with section 

14 3352 of title 5; and 

15 ‘‘(2) give preference to the employee for such a 

16 transfer in accordance with such section. 

17 ‘‘(f) PROHIBITION ON EXEMPTION.—The Secretary 

18 may not exempt any employee of the Department from 

19 being covered by this section. 

20 ‘‘(g) WHISTLEBLOWER COMPLAINT FORM.—(1) A 

21 whistleblower complaint filed by an employee under sub22 section (a) or (d) shall consist of the form described in 

23 paragraph (2) and any supporting materials or docu24 mentation the employee determines necessary. 


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1 ‘‘(2) The form described in this paragraph is a form 

2 developed by the Secretary, in consultation with the Spe3 cial Counsel, that includes the following: 

4 ‘‘(A) An explanation of the purpose of the whis5 tleblower complaint form. 

6 ‘‘(B) Instructions for filing a whistleblower 

7 complaint as described in this section. 

8 ‘‘(C) An explanation that filing a whistleblower 

9 complaint under this section does not preclude the 

10 employee from any other method established by law 

11 in which an employee may file a whistleblower com12 plaint. 

13 ‘‘(D) A statement directing the employee to in14 formation accessible on the Internet website of the 

15 Department as described in section 745(c). 

16 ‘‘(E) Fields for the employee to provide— 

17 ‘‘(i) the date that the form is submitted; 

18 ‘‘(ii) the name of the employee; 

19 ‘‘(iii) the contact information of the em20 ployee; 

21 ‘‘(iv) a summary of the whistleblower com22 plaint (including the option to append sup23 porting documents pursuant to paragraph (1)); 

24 and 

25 ‘‘(v) proposed solutions to complaint. 


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1 ‘‘(F) Any other information or fields that the 

2 Secretary determines appropriate. 

3 ‘‘(3) The Secretary, in consultation with the Special 

4 Counsel, shall develop the form described in paragraph (2) 

5 by not later than 60 days after the date of the enactment 

6 of this section. 

7 ‘‘§ 743. Adverse actions against supervisory employ8 ees who commit prohibited personnel ac9 tions relating to whistleblower com10 plaints 

11 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—(1) In accordance with para12 graph (2), the Secretary shall carry out the following ad13 verse actions against supervisory employees whom the Sec14 retary, an administrative judge, the Merit Systems Protec15 tion Board, the Office of Special Counsel, an adjudicating 

16 body provided under a union contract, a Federal judge, 

17 or the Inspector General of the Department determines 

18 committed a prohibited personnel action described in sub19 section (c): 

20 ‘‘(A) With respect to the first offense, an ad21 verse action that is not less than a 14-day suspen22 sion and not more than removal. 

23 ‘‘(B) With respect to the second offense, re24 moval. 


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1 ‘‘(2)(A) Except as provided by subparagraph (B), 

2 with respect to a supervisory employee subject to an ad3 verse action under this section who is— 

4 ‘‘(i) an individual as that term is defined in sec5 tion 715(i)(1) of this title, the procedures under sub6 sections (d) and (e) of section 715 of this title shall 

7 apply; and 

8 ‘‘(ii) an individual as that term is defined in 

9 section 713(g)(1) of this title, the procedures under 

10 section 713(d) of this title shall apply. 

11 ‘‘(B) An employee who is notified of being the subject 

12 of a proposed adverse action under paragraph (1) may not 

13 be given more than 10 days following such notification to 

14 provide evidence to dispute such proposed adverse action. 

15 If the employee does not provide any such evidence, or 

16 if the Secretary determines that such evidence is not suffi17 cient to reverse the determination to propose the adverse 

18 action, the Secretary shall carry out the adverse action 

19 following such 10-day period. 

20 ‘‘(b) LIMITATION ON OTHER ADVERSE ACTIONS.— 

21 With respect to a prohibited personnel action described in 

22 subsection (c), if the Secretary carries out an adverse ac23 tion against a supervisory employee, the Secretary may 

24 carry out an additional adverse action under this section 

25 based on the same prohibited personnel action if the total 


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1 severity of the adverse actions do not exceed the level spec2 ified in subsection (a). 

3 ‘‘(c) PROHIBITED PERSONNEL ACTION DE4 SCRIBED.—A prohibited personnel action described in this 

5 subsection is any of the following actions: 

6 ‘‘(1) Taking or failing to take a personnel ac7 tion in violation of section 2302 of title 5 against an 

8 employee relating to the employee— 

9 ‘‘(A) filing a whistleblower complaint in ac10 cordance with section 742 of this title; 

11 ‘‘(B) filing a whistleblower complaint with 

12 the Inspector General of the Department, the 

13 Special Counsel, or Congress; 

14 ‘‘(C) providing information or participating 

15 as a witness in an investigation of a whistle16 blower complaint in accordance with section 

17 742 or with the Inspector General of the De18 partment, the Special Counsel, or Congress; 

19 ‘‘(D) participating in an audit or investiga20 tion by the Comptroller General of the United 

21 States; 

22 ‘‘(E) refusing to perform an action that is 

23 unlawful or prohibited by the Department; or 


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1 ‘‘(F) engaging in communications that are 

2 related to the duties of the position or are oth3 erwise protected. 

4 ‘‘(2) Preventing or restricting an employee from 

5 making an action described in any of subparagraphs 

6 (A) through (F) of paragraph (1). 

7 ‘‘(3) Conducting a peer review or opening a re8 taliatory investigation relating to an activity of an 

9 employee that is protected by section 2302 of title 

10 5. 

11 ‘‘(4) Requesting a contractor to carry out an 

12 action that is prohibited by section 4705(b) or sec13 tion 4712(a)(1) of title 41, as the case may be. 

14 ‘‘§ 744. Evaluation criteria of supervisors and treat15 ment of bonuses 

16 ‘‘(a) EVALUATION CRITERIA.—(1) In evaluating the 

17 performance of supervisors of the Department, the Sec18 retary shall include the criteria described in paragraph 

19 (2). 

20 ‘‘(2) The criteria described in this subsection are the 

21 following: 

22 ‘‘(A) Whether the supervisor treats whistle23 blower complaints in accordance with section 742. 

24 ‘‘(B) Whether the appropriate deciding official, 

25 performance review board, or performance review 


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1 committee determines that the supervisor was found 

2 to have committed a prohibited personnel action de3 scribed in section 743(b) by an administrative judge, 

4 the Merit Systems Protection Board, the Office of 

5 Special Counsel, an adjudicating body provided 

6 under a union contract, a Federal judge, or, in the 

7 case of a settlement of a whistleblower complaint 

8 (regardless of whether any fault was assigned under 

9 such settlement), the Secretary. 

10 ‘‘(b) BONUSES.—(1) The Secretary may not pay to 

11 a supervisor described in subsection (a)(2)(B) an award 

12 or bonus under this title or title 5, including under chapter 

13 45 or 53 of such title, during the 1-year period beginning 

14 on the date on which the determination was made under 

15 such subsection. 

16 ‘‘(2) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the 

17 Secretary shall issue an order directing a supervisor de18 scribed in subsection (a)(2)(B) to repay the amount of any 

19 award or bonus paid under this title or title 5, including 

20 under chapter 45 or 53 of such title, if— 

21 ‘‘(A) such award or bonus was paid for per22 formance during a period in which the supervisor 

23 committed a prohibited personnel action as deter24 mined pursuant to such subsection (a)(2)(B); 


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1 ‘‘(B) the Secretary determines such repayment 

2 appropriate pursuant to regulations prescribed by 

3 the Secretary to carry out this section; and 

4 ‘‘(C) before such order is made, the supervisor 

5 is afforded— 

6 ‘‘(i) notice of the order and an opportunity 

7 to respond to the order; and 

8 ‘‘(ii) an opportunity to appeal the order to 

9 another department or agency of the Federal 

10 Government, except that— 

11 ‘‘(I) any such department or agency 

12 shall issue a final decision with respect to 

13 such appeal not later than the date that is 

14 30 days after the date the department or 

15 agency received such appeal; and 

16 ‘‘(II) if such a final decision is not 

17 made by the applicable department or 

18 agency within 30 days after receiving such 

19 appeal, the order of the Secretary shall be 

20 final and not subject to further appeal. 

21 ‘‘§ 745. Training regarding whistleblower complaints 

22 ‘‘(a) TRAINING.—The Secretary, in coordination with 

23 the Whistleblower Protection Ombudsman designated 

24 under section 3(d)(1)(C) of the Inspector General Act of 

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1 ployee of the Department training regarding whistleblower 

2 complaints, including— 

3 ‘‘(1) an explanation of each method established 

4 by law in which an employee may file a whistle5 blower complaint; 

6 ‘‘(2) an explanation of prohibited personnel ac7 tions described by section 743(c) of this title; 

8 ‘‘(3) with respect to supervisors, how to treat 

9 whistleblower complaints in accordance with section 

10 742 of this title; 

11 ‘‘(4) the right of the employee to petition Con12 gress regarding a whistleblower complaint in accord13 ance with section 7211 of title 5; 

14 ‘‘(5) an explanation that the employee may not 

15 be prosecuted or reprised against for disclosing in16 formation to Congress in instances where such dis17 closure is permitted by law, including under sections 

18 5701, 5705, and 7332 of this title, under section 

19 552a of title 5 (commonly referred to as the Privacy 

20 Act), under chapter 93 of title 18, and pursuant to 

21 regulations promulgated under section 264(c) of the 

22 Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act 

23 of 1996 (Public Law 104–191); 

24 ‘‘(6) an explanation of the language that is re25 quired to be included in all nondisclosure policies, 


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1 forms, and agreements pursuant to section 

2 115(a)(1) of the Whistleblower Protection Enhance3 ment Act of 2012 (5 U.S.C. 2302 note); and 

4 ‘‘(7) the right of contractors to be protected 

5 from reprisal for the disclosure of certain informa6 tion under section 4705 or 4712 of title 41. 

7 ‘‘(b) CERTIFICATION.—The Secretary shall annually 

8 provide training on merit system protection in a manner 

9 that the Special Counsel certifies as being satisfactory. 

10 ‘‘(c) PUBLICATION.—(1) The Secretary shall publish 

11 on the Internet website of the Department, and display 

12 prominently at each facility of the Department, the rights 

13 of an employee to file a whistleblower complaint, including 

14 the information described in paragraphs (1) through (7) 

15 of subsection (a). 

16 ‘‘(2) The Secretary shall publish on the Internet 

17 website of the Department, the whistleblower complaint 

18 form described in section 742(g)(2). 

19 ‘‘§ 746. Notice to Congress 

20 ‘‘Not later than 30 days after the date on which the 

21 Secretary receives from the Special Counsel information 

22 relating to a whistleblower complaint pursuant to section 

23 1213 of title 5, the Secretary shall notify the Committees 

24 on Veterans’ Affairs of the House of Representatives and 

25 the Senate, the Committee on Oversight and Government 


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1 Reform of the House of Representatives, and the Com2 mittee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs 

3 of the Senate and each Member of Congress representing 

4 a district in the State or territory where a facility relevant 

5 to the whistleblower complaint is located of such informa6 tion, including the determination made by the Special 

7 Counsel.’’. 

8 (b) CONFORMING AND CLERICAL AMENDMENTS.— 

9 (1) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—Such chapter 

10 is further amended by inserting before section 701 

11 the following: 

12 ‘‘SUBCHAPTER I—GENERAL EMPLOYEE 

13 MATTERS’’. 

14 (2) CLERICAL AMENDMENTS.—The table of sec15 tions at the beginning of such chapter is amended— 

16 (A) by inserting before the item relating to 

17 section 701 the following new item: 

‘‘SUBCHAPTER I—GENERAL EMPLOYEE MATTERS’’; 

18 and 

19 (B) by adding at the end the following new 

20 items: 

‘‘SUBCHAPTER II—WHISTLEBLOWER COMPLAINTS

‘‘741. Whistleblower complaint defined. 

‘‘742. Treatment of whistleblower complaints. 

‘‘743. Adverse actions against supervisory employees who commit prohibited 

personnel actions relating to whistleblower complaints. 

‘‘744. Evaluation criteria of supervisors and treatment of bonuses. 

‘‘745. Training regarding whistleblower complaints. 

‘‘746. Notice to Congress.’’. 


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1 SEC. 10. APPEALS REFORM. 

2 (a) DEFINITIONS.—Section 101 of title 38, United 

3 States Code, is amended by adding at the end the fol4 lowing new paragraphs: 

5 ‘‘(34) The term ‘Agency of Original Jurisdic6 tion’ means the activity which entered the original 

7 determination with regard to a claim for benefits 

8 under this title. 

9 ‘‘(35) The term ‘relevant evidence’ means evi10 dence that tends to prove or disprove a matter in 

11 issue.’’. 

12 (b) NOTICE TO CLAIMANTS OF REQUIRED INFORMA13 TION AND EVIDENCE.—Section 5103 of title 38, United 

14 States Code, is amended— 

15 (1) in subsection (a)(2)(B)(i) by striking ‘‘, a 

16 claim for reopening a prior decision on a claim, or 

17 a claim for an increase in benefits;’’ and inserting 

18 ‘‘or a supplemental claim;’’; and 

19 (2) in subsection (b) by adding at the end the 

20 following new paragraph: 

21 ‘‘(6) Nothing in this section shall require notice 

22 to be sent for a supplemental claim that is filed 

23 within the timeframe set forth in subsections 

24 (a)(2)(B) and (a)(2)(D) of section 5110 of this 

25 title.’’. 


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1 (c) RULE WITH RESPECT TO DISALLOWED

2 CLAIMS.—Section 5103A(f) of title 38, United States 

3 Code, is amended to read as follows: 

4 ‘‘(f) RULE WITH RESPECT TO DISALLOWED

5 CLAIMS.—Nothing in this section shall be construed to re6 quire the Secretary to readjudicate a claim that has been 

7 disallowed except when new and relevant evidence is pre8 sented or secured, as described in section 5108 of this 

9 title.’’. 

10 (d) OTHER MATTERS.—Chapter 51 of title 38, 

11 United States Code, is amended by inserting after section 

12 5103A the following new sections: 

13 ‘‘§ 5103B. Applicability of duty to assist 

14 ‘‘(a) TIME FRAME.—The Secretary’s duty to assist 

15 under section 5103A of this title shall apply only to a 

16 claim, or supplemental claim, for a benefit under a law 

17 administered by the Secretary until the time that a claim18 ant is provided notice of the decision of the agency of 

19 original jurisdiction decision with respect to such claim, 

20 or supplemental claim, under section 5104 of this title. 

21 ‘‘(b) NON-APPLICABILITY TO CERTAIN REVIEWS AND

22 APPEALS.—The Secretary’s duty to assist under section 

23 5103A of this title shall not apply to higher-level review 

24 by the agency of original jurisdiction, pursuant to section 


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1 5104B of this title, or to review on appeal by the Board 

2 of Veterans’ Appeals. 

3 ‘‘(c) CORRECTION OF DUTY TO ASSIST ERRORS.— 

4 (1) If, during review of the decision of the agency of origi5 nal jurisdiction under section 5104B of this title, the high6 er-level reviewer identifies an error on the part of the 

7 agency of original jurisdiction to satisfy its duties under 

8 section 5103A of this title, and that error occurred prior 

9 to the decision of the agency of original jurisdiction being 

10 reviewed, the higher-level reviewer shall return the claim 

11 for correction of such error and readjudication unless the 

12 claim can be granted in full. 

13 ‘‘(2) If the Board, during review on appeal of a deci14 sion of the agency of original jurisdiction decision, identi15 fies an error on the part of the agency of original jurisdic16 tion to satisfy its duties under section 5103A of this title, 

17 and that error occurred prior to the decision of the agency 

18 of original jurisdiction on appeal, the Board shall remand 

19 the claim to the agency of original jurisdiction for correc20 tion of such error and readjudication unless the claim can 

21 be granted in full. Remand for correction of such error 

22 may include directing the agency of original jurisdiction 

23 to obtain an advisory medical opinion under section 5109 

24 of this title. 


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1 ‘‘§ 5104A. Binding nature of favorable findings 

2 ‘‘Any finding favorable to the claimant as described 

3 in section 5104(b)(4) of this title shall be binding on all 

4 subsequent adjudicators within the department, unless 

5 clear and convincing evidence is shown to the contrary to 

6 rebut such favorable finding. 

7 ‘‘§ 5104B. Higher-level review by the agency of origi8 nal jurisdiction 

9 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The claimant may request a re10 view of the decision of the agency of original jurisdiction 

11 by a higher-level adjudicator within the jurisdiction of the 

12 agency of original jurisdiction. 

13 ‘‘(b) TIME AND MANNER OF REQUEST.—A request 

14 for higher-level review by the agency of original jurisdic15 tion must be in writing in the form prescribed by the Sec16 retary and made within 1 year of the notice of the decision 

17 of the agency of original jurisdiction. Such request may 

18 specifically indicate whether such review is requested by 

19 a higher-level adjudicator at the same office within the 

20 agency of original jurisdiction or by an adjudicator at a 

21 different office of the agency of original jurisdiction. 

22 ‘‘(c) DECISION.—Notice of a higher-level review deci23 sion under this section shall be provided in writing. 

24 ‘‘(d) EVIDENTIARY RECORD FOR REVIEW.—The evi25 dentiary record before the higher-level reviewer shall be 


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1 limited to the evidence of record in the decision of the 

2 agency of original jurisdiction being reviewed. 

3 ‘‘(e) DE NOVO REVIEW.—Higher-level review under 

4 this section shall be de novo.’’. 

5 (e) NOTICE OF DECISIONS.—Section 5104(b) of title 

6 38, United States Code, is amended to read as follows: 

7 ‘‘(b) In any case where the Secretary denies a benefit 

8 sought, the notice required by subsection (a) shall also in9 clude— 

10 ‘‘(1) identification of the issues adjudicated; 

11 ‘‘(2) a summary of the evidence considered by 

12 the Secretary; 

13 ‘‘(3) a summary of the applicable laws and reg14 ulations; 

15 ‘‘(4) identification of findings favorable to the 

16 claimant; 

17 ‘‘(5) identification of elements not satisfied 

18 leading to the denial; 

19 ‘‘(6) an explanation of how to obtain or access 

20 evidence used in making the decision; and 

21 ‘‘(7) if applicable, identification of the criteria 

22 that must be satisfied to grant service connection or 

23 the next higher level of compensation.’’. 

24 (f) SUPPLEMENTAL CLAIMS.—Section 5108 of title 

25 38, United States Code, is amended to read as follows: 


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1 ‘‘§ 5108. Supplemental claims 

2 ‘‘If new and relevant evidence is presented or secured 

3 with respect to a supplemental claim, the Secretary shall 

4 readjudicate the claim taking into consideration any evi5 dence added to the record prior to the former disposition 

6 of the claim.’’. 

7 (g) REMANDS FOR MEDICAL OPINIONS.—Section 

8 5109 of title 38, United States Code, is amended by add9 ing at the end the following new subsection: 

10 ‘‘(d) The Board of Veterans’ Appeals may remand 

11 a claim to direct the agency of original jurisdiction to ob12 tain an advisory medical opinion under this section to cor13 rect an error on the part of the agency of original jurisdic14 tion to satisfy its duties under section 5103A of this title 

15 when such error occurred prior to the decision of the agen16 cy of original jurisdiction on appeal. The Board’s remand 

17 instructions shall include the questions to be posed to the 

18 independent medical expert providing the advisory medical 

19 opinion.’’. 

20 (h) EFFECTIVE DATES OF AWARDS.—Section 5110 

21 of title 38, United States Code, is amended— 

22 (1) by striking subsection (a) and inserting the 

23 following new subsection (a): 

24 ‘‘(a)(1) Unless specifically provided otherwise in this 

25 chapter, the effective date of an award based on an initial 

26 claim, or a supplemental claim, of compensation, dependVerDate Sep 11 2014 00:16 Sep 16, 2016 Jkt 059200 PO 00000 Frm 00051 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5620.RFS H5620

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1 ency and indemnity compensation, or pension, shall be 

2 fixed in accordance with the facts found, but shall not be 

3 earlier than the date of receipt of application therefor. 

4 ‘‘(2) For purposes of applying the effective date rules 

5 in this section, the date of application shall be considered 

6 the date of the filing of the initial application for a benefit 

7 provided that the claim is continuously pursued by filing 

8 any of the following either alone or in succession: 

9 ‘‘(A) A request for higher-level review under 

10 section 5104B of this title within 1 year of an agen11 cy of original jurisdiction decision. 

12 ‘‘(B) A supplemental claim under section 5108 

13 of this title within 1 year of an agency of original 

14 jurisdiction decision. 

15 ‘‘(C) A notice of disagreement within 1 year of 

16 an agency of original jurisdiction decision. 

17 ‘‘(D) A supplemental claim under section 5108 

18 of this title within 1 year of a decision of the Board 

19 of Veterans’ Appeals. 

20 ‘‘(3) Except as otherwise provided in this section, for 

21 supplemental claims received more than 1 year after an 

22 agency of original jurisdiction decision or a decision by 

23 the Board of Veterans’ Appeals, the effective date shall 

24 be fixed in accordance with the facts found, but shall not 


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1 be earlier than the date of receipt of the supplemental 

2 claim.’’; and 

3 (2) in subsection (i) by— 

4 (A) striking ‘‘reopened’’ and inserting ‘‘re5 adjudicated’’; 

6 (B) striking ‘‘material’’ and inserting ‘‘rel7 evant’’; and 

8 (C) striking ‘‘reopening’’ and inserting ‘‘re9 adjudication’’. 

10 (i) DEFINITION OF AWARD OR INCREASED RE11 WARD.—Section 5111(d)(1) of title 38, United States 

12 Code, is amended by striking ‘‘or reopened award;’’ and 

13 inserting ‘‘award or award based on a supplemental 

14 claim;’’. 

15 (j) RECOGNITION OF AGENTS AND ATTORNEYS GEN16 ERALLY.—Section 5904 of title 38, United States Code, 

17 is amended— 

18 (1) in subsection (c)(1) by striking ‘‘notice of 

19 disagreement is filed’’ and inserting ‘‘claimant is 

20 provided notice of the initial decision of the agency 

21 of original jurisdiction under section 5104 of this 

22 title’’; and 

23 (2) in subsection (c)(2) by striking ‘‘notice of 

24 disagreement is filed’’ and inserting ‘‘claimant is 

25 provided notice of the initial decision of the agency 


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1 of original jurisdiction under section 5104 of this 

2 title’’. 

3 (k) CORRECTION OF OBVIOUS ERRORS.—Section 

4 7103 of title 38, United States Code, is amended— 

5 (1) in subsection (b)(1)(A) by striking ‘‘heard’’ 

6 and inserting ‘‘decided’’; and 

7 (2) in subsection (b)(1)(B) by striking ‘‘heard’’ 

8 and inserting ‘‘decided’’. 

9 (l) JURISDICTION OF BOARD.—Section 7104(b) of 

10 title 38, United States Code, is amended by striking ‘‘re11 opened’’ and inserting ‘‘readjudicated’’. 

12 (m) FILING OF APPEAL.—Section 7105 of title 38, 

13 United States Code, is amended— 

14 (1) in subsection (a)— 

15 (A) by striking the first sentence and in16 serting ‘‘Appellate review will be initiated by 

17 the filing of a notice of disagreement in the 

18 form prescribed by the Secretary.’’; and 

19 (B) by striking ‘‘hearing and’’; 

20 (2) by amending subsection (b) to read as fol21 lows: 

22 ‘‘(b)(1) Except in the case of simultaneously con23 tested claims, notice of disagreement shall be filed within 

24 1 year from the date of the mailing of notice of the deci25 sion of the agency of original jurisdiction under section 


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1 5104, 5104B, or 5108 of this title. A notice of disagree2 ment postmarked before the expiration of the 1-year pe3 riod will be accepted as timely filed. A question as to time4 liness or adequacy of the notice of disagreement shall be 

5 decided by the Board. 

6 ‘‘(2) Notices of disagreement must be in writing, 

7 must set out specific allegations of error of fact or law, 

8 and may be filed by the claimant, the claimant’s legal 

9 guardian, or such accredited representative, attorney, or 

10 authorized agent as may be selected by the claimant or 

11 legal guardian. Not more than one recognized organiza12 tion, attorney, or agent will be recognized at any one time 

13 in the prosecution of a claim. Notices of disagreement 

14 must be filed with the Board. 

15 ‘‘(3) The notice of disagreement shall indicate wheth16 er the claimant requests a hearing before the Board, re17 quests an opportunity to submit additional evidence with18 out a Board hearing, or requests review by the Board 

19 without a hearing or submission of additional evidence. If 

20 the claimant does not expressly request a Board hearing 

21 in the notice of disagreement, no Board hearing will be 

22 held.’’; 

23 (3) by amending subsection (c) to read as fol24 lows: 


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1 ‘‘(c) If no notice of disagreement is filed in accord2 ance with this chapter within the prescribed period, the 

3 action or decision of the agency of original jurisdiction 

4 shall become final and the claim will not thereafter be re5 adjudicated or allowed, except as may otherwise be pro6 vided by section 5104B or 5108 of this title or regulations 

7 not inconsistent with this title.’’; 

8 (4) by striking subsections (d)(1) through 

9 (d)(5); 

10 (5) by adding a new subsection (d) to read as 

11 follows: 

12 ‘‘(d) The Board of Veterans’ Appeals may dismiss 

13 any appeal which fails to allege specific error of fact or 

14 law in the decision being appealed.’’; and 

15 (6) by striking subsection (e). 

16 (n) SIMULTANEOUSLY CONTESTED CLAIMS.—Sub17 section (b) of section 7105A of title 38, United States 

18 Code, is amended to read as follows: 

19 ‘‘(b) The substance of the notice of disagreement 

20 shall be communicated to the other party or parties in in21 terest and a period of 30 days shall be allowed for filing 

22 a brief or argument in response thereto. Such notice shall 

23 be forwarded to the last known address of record of the 

24 parties concerned, and such action shall constitute suffi25 cient evidence of notice.’’. 


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1 (o) ADMINISTRATIVE APPEALS.—Strike section 7106 

2 of title 38, United States Code. 

3 (p) DOCKETS AND HEARINGS.—Section 7107 of title 

4 38, United States Code, is amended— 

5 (1) by amending subsection (a) to read as fol6 lows: 

7 ‘‘(a) The Board shall maintain two separate dockets. 

8 A non-hearing option docket shall be maintained for cases 

9 in which no Board hearing is requested and no additional 

10 evidence will be submitted. A separate and distinct hearing 

11 option docket shall be maintained for cases in which a 

12 Board hearing is requested in the notice of disagreement 

13 or in which no Board hearing is requested, but the appel14 lant requests, in the notice of disagreement, an oppor15 tunity to submit additional evidence. Except as provided 

16 in subsection (b), each case before the Board will be de17 cided in regular order according to its respective place on 

18 the Board’s non-hearing option docket or the hearing op19 tion docket.’’; 

20 (2) by amending subsection (b) to read as fol21 lows: 

22 ‘‘(b) A case on either the Board’s non-hearing option 

23 docket or hearing option docket, may, for cause shown, 

24 be advanced on motion for earlier consideration and deter25 mination. Any such motion shall set forth succinctly the 


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1 grounds upon which the motion is based. Such a motion 

2 may be granted only— 

3 ‘‘(1) if the case involves interpretation of law of 

4 general application affecting other claims; 

5 ‘‘(2) if the appellant is seriously ill or is under 

6 severe financial hardship; or 

7 ‘‘(3) for other sufficient cause shown.’’; 

8 (3) by amending subsection (c) to read as fol9 lows: 

10 ‘‘(c)(1) For cases on the Board hearing option docket 

11 in which a hearing is requested in the notice of disagree12 ment, the Board shall notify the appellant whether a 

13 Board hearing will be held— 

14 ‘‘(A) at its principal location, or 

15 ‘‘(B) by picture and voice transmission at a fa16 cility of the Department where the Secretary has 

17 provided suitable facilities and equipment to conduct 

18 such hearings. 

19 ‘‘(2)(A) Upon notification of a Board hearing at the 

20 Board’s principal location as described in subsection 

21 (c)(1)(A) of this section, the appellant may alternatively 

22 request a hearing as described in subsection (c)(1)(B) of 

23 this section. If so requested, the Board shall grant such 

24 request. 


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1 ‘‘(B) Upon notification of a Board hearing by picture 

2 and voice transmission as described in subsection 

3 (c)(1)(B) of this section, the appellant may alternatively 

4 request a hearing as described in subsection (c)(1)(A) of 

5 this section. If so requested, the Board shall grant such 

6 request.’’; and 

7 (4) by striking subsections (d) and (e) and re8 designating subsection (f) as subsection (d). 

9 (q) INDEPENDENT MEDICAL OPINIONS.—Strike sec10 tion 7109 of title 38, United States Code. 

11 (r) REVISION OF DECISIONS ON GROUNDS OF CLEAR

12 AND UNMISTAKABLE ERROR.—Section 7111(e) of title 

13 38, United States Code, is amended by striking ‘‘merits, 

14 without referral to any adjudicative or hearing official act15 ing on behalf of the Secretary.’’ and inserting ‘‘merits.’’. 

16 (s) EVIDENTIARY RECORD.—Chapter 71 of title 38, 

17 United States Code, is amended by adding the following 

18 new section: 

19 ‘‘§ 7113. Evidentiary record before the board 

20 ‘‘(a) NON-HEARING OPTION DOCKET.—For cases in 

21 which a Board hearing is not requested in the notice of 

22 disagreement, the evidentiary record before the Board 

23 shall be limited to the evidence of record at the time of 

24 the agency of original jurisdiction decision on appeal. 


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1 ‘‘(b) HEARING OPTION DOCKET.—(1) Except as pro2 vided in paragraph (2), for cases on the hearing option 

3 docket in which a hearing is requested in the notice of 

4 disagreement, the evidentiary record before the Board 

5 shall be limited to the evidence of record at the time of 

6 the agency of original jurisdiction decision on appeal. 

7 ‘‘(2) The evidentiary record before the Board for 

8 cases on the hearing option docket in which a hearing is 

9 requested, shall include each of the following, which the 

10 Board shall consider in the first instance— 

11 ‘‘(A) evidence submitted by the appellant and 

12 his or her representative, if any, at the Board hear13 ing; and 

14 ‘‘(B) evidence submitted by the appellant and 

15 his or her representative, if any, within 90 days fol16 lowing the Board hearing. 

17 ‘‘(3)(A) Except as provided in subparagraph (B) of 

18 this paragraph, for cases on the hearing option docket in 

19 which a hearing is not requested in the notice of disagree20 ment, the evidentiary record before the Board shall be lim21 ited to the evidence considered by the agency of original 

22 jurisdiction in the decision on appeal. 

23 ‘‘(B) The evidentiary record before the Board for 

24 cases on the hearing option docket in which a hearing is 


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1 not requested, shall include each of the following, which 

2 the Board shall consider in the first instance— 

3 ‘‘(i) evidence submitted by the appellant and his 

4 or her representative, if any, with the notice of dis5 agreement; and 

6 ‘‘(ii) evidence submitted by the appellant and 

7 his or her representative, if any, within 90 days fol8 lowing receipt of the notice of disagreement.’’. 

9 (t) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—The heading of sec10 tion 7105 is amended by striking ‘‘notice of disagreement 

11 and’’. 

12 (u) CLERICAL AMENDMENTS.— 

13 (1) CHAPTER 51.—The table of sections at the 

14 beginning of chapter 51 of title 38, United States 

15 Code, is amended— 

16 (A) by inserting after the item relating to 

17 section 5103A the following new item: 

‘‘5103B. Applicability of duty to assist.’’; 

18 (B) by inserting after the item relating to 

19 section 5104 the following new items: 

‘‘5104A. Binding nature of favorable findings. 

‘‘5104B. Higher-level review by the agency of original jurisdiction.’’; 

20 and 

21 (C) by striking the item relating to section 

22 5108 and inserting the following new item: 

‘‘5108. Supplemental claims.’’. 


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1 (2) CHAPTER 71.—The table of sections at the 

2 beginning of chapter 71 of title 38, United States 

3 Code, is amended— 

4 (A) by striking the item relating to section 

5 7105 and inserting the following new item: 

‘‘7105. Filing of appeal.’’; 

6 (B) by striking the item relating to section 

7 7106; 

8 (C) by striking the item relating to section 

9 7109; and 

10 (D) by adding at the end the following new 

11 item: 

‘‘7113. Evidentiary record before the Board.’’. 

12 SEC. 11. LIMITATION ON AWARDS AND BONUSES PAID TO 

13 SENIOR EXECUTIVE EMPLOYEES OF DEPART14 MENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS. 

15 Section 705 of the Veterans Access, Choice, and Ac16 countability Act of 2014 (Public Law 113–146; 38 U.S.C. 

17 703 note) is amended by striking the period at the end 

18 and inserting the following: ‘‘, except that during each of 

19 fiscal years 2017 through 2021, no award or bonus may 

20 be paid to any employee of the Department of Veterans 

21 Affairs who is a member of the Senior Executive Service.’’. 


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1 SEC. 12. CLARIFICATION OF EMERGENCY HOSPITAL CARE 

2 FURNISHED BY THE SECRETARY OF VET3 ERANS AFFAIRS TO CERTAIN VETERANS. 

4 (a) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 17 of title 38, United 

5 States Code, is amended by inserting after section 1730A 

6 the following new section: 

7 ‘‘§ 1730B. Examination and treatment for emergency 

8 medical conditions and women in labor 

9 ‘‘(a) MEDICAL SCREENING EXAMINATIONS.—In car10 rying out this chapter, if any enrolled veteran requests, 

11 or a request is made on behalf of the veteran, for examina12 tion or treatment for a medical condition, regardless of 

13 whether such condition is service-connected, at a hospital 

14 emergency department of a medical facility of the Depart15 ment, the Secretary shall ensure that the veteran is pro16 vided an appropriate medical screening examination within 

17 the capability of the emergency department, including an18 cillary services routinely available to the emergency de19 partment, to determine whether an emergency medical 

20 condition exists. 

21 ‘‘(b) NECESSARY STABILIZING TREATMENT FOR

22 EMERGENCY MEDICAL CONDITIONS AND LABOR.—(1) If 

23 an enrolled veteran comes to a medical facility of the De24 partment and the Secretary determines that the veteran 

25 has an emergency medical condition, the Secretary shall 

26 provide either— 


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1 ‘‘(A) such further medical examination and 

2 such treatment as may be required to stabilize the 

3 medical condition; or 

4 ‘‘(B) for the transfer of the veteran to another 

5 medical facility of the Department or a non-Depart6 ment facility in accordance with subsection (c). 

7 ‘‘(2) The Secretary is deemed to meet the require8 ment of paragraph (1)(A) with respect to an enrolled vet9 eran if the Secretary offers the veteran the further medical 

10 examination and treatment described in such paragraph 

11 and informs the veteran (or an individual acting on behalf 

12 of the veteran) of the risks and benefits to the veteran 

13 of such examination and treatment, but the veteran (or 

14 individual) refuses to consent to the examination and 

15 treatment. The Secretary shall take all reasonable steps 

16 to secure the written informed consent of such veteran (or 

17 individual) to refuse such examination and treatment. 

18 ‘‘(3) The Secretary is deemed to meet the require19 ment of paragraph (1) with respect to an enrolled veteran 

20 if the Secretary offers to transfer the individual to another 

21 medical facility in accordance with subsection (c) of this 

22 section and informs the veteran (or an individual acting 

23 on behalf of the veteran) of the risks and benefits to the 

24 veteran of such transfer, but the veteran (or individual) 

25 refuses to consent to the transfer. The hospital shall take 


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1 all reasonable steps to secure the written informed consent 

2 of such veteran (or individual) to refuse such transfer. 

3 ‘‘(c) RESTRICTION OF TRANSFERS UNTIL VETERAN

4 STABILIZED.—(1) If an enrolled veteran at a medical fa5 cility of the Department has an emergency medical condi6 tion that has not been stabilized, the Secretary may not 

7 transfer the veteran to another medical facility of the De8 partment or a non-Department facility unless— 

9 ‘‘(A)(i) the veteran (or a legally responsible in10 dividual acting on behalf of the veteran), after being 

11 informed of the obligation of the Secretary under 

12 this section and of the risk of transfer, requests in 

13 writing a transfer to another medical facility; 

14 ‘‘(ii) a physician has signed a certification (in15 cluding a summary of the risks and benefits) that, 

16 based upon the information available at the time of 

17 transfer, the medical benefits reasonably expected 

18 from the provision of appropriate medical treatment 

19 at another medical facility outweigh the increased 

20 risks to the veteran and, in the case of labor, to the 

21 unborn child from effecting the transfer; or 

22 ‘‘(iii) if a physician is not physically present in 

23 the emergency department at the time a veteran is 

24 transferred, a qualified medical person (as defined 

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1 cation described in clause (ii) after a physician, in 

2 consultation with the person, has made the deter3 mination described in such clause, and subsequently 

4 countersigns the certification; and 

5 ‘‘(B) the transfer is an appropriate transfer as 

6 described in paragraph (2). 

7 ‘‘(2) An appropriate transfer to a medical facility is 

8 a transfer— 

9 ‘‘(A) in which the transferring medical facility 

10 provides the medical treatment within the capacity 

11 of the facility that minimizes the risks to the health 

12 of the enrolled veteran and, in the case of a woman 

13 in labor, the health of the unborn child; 

14 ‘‘(B) in which the receiving facility— 

15 ‘‘(i) has available space and qualified per16 sonnel for the treatment of the veteran; and 

17 ‘‘(ii) has agreed to accept transfer of the 

18 veteran and to provide appropriate medical 

19 treatment; 

20 ‘‘(C) in which the transferring facility sends to 

21 the receiving facility all medical records (or copies 

22 thereof), related to the emergency condition for 

23 which the veteran has presented, available at the 

24 time of the transfer, including records related to the 

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1 tions of signs or symptoms, preliminary diagnosis, 

2 treatment provided, results of any tests and the in3 formed written consent or certification (or copy 

4 thereof) provided under paragraph (1)(A), and the 

5 name and address of any on-call physician (de6 scribed in subsection (d)(1)(C) of this section) who 

7 has refused or failed to appear within a reasonable 

8 time to provide necessary stabilizing treatment; 

9 ‘‘(D) in which the transfer is effected through 

10 qualified personnel and transportation equipment, as 

11 required including the use of necessary and medi12 cally appropriate life support measures during the 

13 transfer; and 

14 ‘‘(E) that meets such other requirements as the 

15 Secretary may find necessary in the interest of the 

16 health and safety of veterans transferred. 

17 ‘‘(d) CHARGES.—(1) Nothing in this section may be 

18 construed to affect any charges that the Secretary may 

19 collect from a veteran or third party. 

20 ‘‘(2) The Secretary shall treat any care provided by 

21 a non-Department facility pursuant to this section as care 

22 otherwise provided by a non-Department facility pursuant 

23 to this chapter for purposes of paying such non-Depart24 ment facility for such care. 


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1 ‘‘(e) NONDISCRIMINATION.—A medical facility of the 

2 Department or a non-Department facility, as the case may 

3 be, that has specialized capabilities or facilities (such as 

4 burn units, shock-trauma units, neonatal intensive care 

5 units, or (with respect to rural areas) regional referral 

6 centers as identified by the Secretary in regulation) shall 

7 not refuse to accept an appropriate transfer of an enrolled 

8 veteran who requires such specialized capabilities or facili9 ties if the facility has the capacity to treat the veteran. 

10 ‘‘(f) NO DELAY IN EXAMINATION OR TREATMENT.— 

11 A medical facility of the Department or a non-Department 

12 facility, as the case may be, may not delay provision of 

13 an appropriate medical screening examination required 

14 under subsection (a) or further medical examination and 

15 treatment required under subsection (b) of this section in 

16 order to inquire about the method of payment or insurance 

17 status of an enrolled veteran. 

18 ‘‘(g) WHISTLEBLOWER PROTECTIONS.—The Sec19 retary may not take adverse action against an employee 

20 of the Department because the employee refuses to au21 thorize the transfer of an enrolled veteran with an emer22 gency medical condition that has not been stabilized or 

23 because the employee reports a violation of a requirement 

24 of this section. 

25 ‘‘(h) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 


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1 ‘‘(1) The term ‘emergency medical condition’ 

2 means— 

3 ‘‘(A) a medical condition manifesting itself 

4 by acute symptoms of sufficient severity (in5 cluding severe pain) such that the absence of 

6 immediate medical attention could reasonably 

7 be expected to result in— 

8 ‘‘(i) placing the health of the enrolled 

9 veteran (or, with respect to an enrolled vet10 eran who is a pregnant woman, the health 

11 of the woman or her unborn child) in seri12 ous jeopardy; 

13 ‘‘(ii) serious impairment to bodily 

14 functions; or 

15 ‘‘(iii) serious dysfunction of any bodily 

16 organ or part; or 

17 ‘‘(B) with respect to an enrolled veteran 

18 who is a pregnant woman having contractions— 

19 ‘‘(i) that there is inadequate time to 

20 effect a safe transfer to another hospital 

21 before delivery; or 

22 ‘‘(ii) that transfer may pose a threat 

23 to the health or safety of the woman or the 

24 unborn child. 


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1 ‘‘(2) The term ‘enrolled veteran’ means a vet2 eran who is enrolled in the health care system estab3 lished under section 1705(a) of this title. 

4 ‘‘(3) The term ‘to stabilize’ means, with respect 

5 to an emergency medical condition described in 

6 paragraph (1)(A), to provide such medical treatment 

7 of the condition as may be necessary to assure, with8 in reasonable medical probability, that no material 

9 deterioration of the condition is likely to result from 

10 or occur during the transfer of the enrolled veteran 

11 from a facility, or, with respect to an emergency 

12 medical condition described in paragraph (1)(B), to 

13 deliver (including the placenta). 

14 ‘‘(4) The term ‘stabilized’ means, with respect 

15 to an emergency medical condition described in 

16 paragraph (1)(A), that no material deterioration of 

17 the condition is likely, within reasonable medical 

18 probability, to result from or occur during the trans19 fer of the individual from a facility, or, with respect 

20 to an emergency medical condition described in 

21 paragraph (1)(B), that the woman has delivered (in22 cluding the placenta). 

23 ‘‘(5) The term ‘transfer’ means the movement 

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1 ment at the direction of any individual employed by 

2 (or affiliated or associated, directly or indirectly, 

3 with) the Department, but does not include such a 

4 movement of an individual who— 

5 ‘‘(A) has been declared dead; or 

6 ‘‘(B) leaves the facility without the permis7 sion of any such person.’’. 

8 (b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sections 

9 of such chapter is amended by inserting after the item 

10 relating to section 1730A the following new item: 

‘‘1730B. Examination and treatment for emergency medical conditions and 

women in labor.’’. 

11 SEC. 13. SENSE OF CONGRESS REGARDING AMERICAN VET12 ERANS DISABLED FOR LIFE. 

13 (a) FINDINGS.—Congress finds the following: 

14 (1) There are at least 3.6 million veterans cur15 rently living with service-connected disabilities. 

16 (2) As a result of their service, many veterans 

17 are permanently disabled throughout their lives and 

18 in many cases must rely on the support of their fam19 ilies and friends when these visible and invisible bur20 dens become too much to bear alone. 

21 (3) October 5, which is the anniversary of the 

22 dedication of the American Veterans Disabled for 

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1 priate day on which to honor American veterans dis2 abled for life each year. 

3 (b) SENSE OF CONGRESS.—Congress— 

4 (1) expresses its appreciation to the men and 

5 women left permanently wounded, ill, or injured as 

6 a result of their service in the Armed Forces; 

7 (2) supports the annual recognition of Amer8 ican veterans disabled for life; and 

9 (3) encourages the American people to honor 

10 American veterans disabled for life each year with 

11 appropriate programs and activities. 

12 SEC. 14. ESTABLISHMENT OF POSITIONS OF DIRECTORS OF 

13 VETERANS INTEGRATED SERVICE NETWORKS 

14 IN OFFICE OF UNDER SECRETARY FOR 

15 HEALTH OF DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AF16 FAIRS AND MODIFICATION OF QUALIFICA17 TIONS FOR MEDICAL DIRECTORS. 

18 Section 7306(a)(4) of title 38, United States Code, 

19 is amended— 

20 (1) by inserting ‘‘and Directors of Veterans In21 tegrated Service Networks’’ after ‘‘Such Medical Di22 rectors’’; and 

23 (2) by striking ‘‘, who shall be either a qualified 

24 doctor of medicine or a qualified doctor of dental 

25 surgery or dental medicine’’. 


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1 SEC. 15. CONTINUING EDUCATION REQUIREMENT FOR EM2 PLOYEES OF DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AF3 FAIRS AUTHORIZED TO PRESCRIBE MEDICA4 TION. 

5 (a) IN GENERAL.—Subchapter I of chapter 74 of title 

6 38, United States Code, is amended by adding at the end 

7 the following new section: 

8 ‘‘§ 7413. Continuing education requirement for em9 ployees authorized to prescribe medica10 tion 

11 ‘‘(a) REQUIREMENT.—(1) Except as provided in 

12 paragraph (2), the Secretary shall require each covered 

13 employee of the Department to complete not less than one 

14 accredited course of continuing education on pain manage15 ment once every 2 years. Such course shall include infor16 mation on safe prescribing practices and disposal of con17 trolled substances, principles of pain management, identi18 fication of potential substance use disorders and addiction 

19 treatment. 

20 ‘‘(2) Paragraph (1) shall not apply to a covered em21 ployee if the covered employee is licensed or certified by 

22 a State licensure or specialty board that requires the com23 pletion of continuing education relative to pain manage24 ment or substance use disorder management. 

25 ‘‘(b) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 


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1 ‘‘(1) The term ‘covered employee’ means any 

2 employee of the Department authorized to prescribe 

3 any controlled substance, including an employee 

4 hired under section 7405 of this title. 

5 ‘‘(2) The term ‘controlled substance’ has the 

6 meaning given such term in section 102 of the Con7 trolled Substances Act (21 U.S.C. 802). 

8 ‘‘(c) APPLICABILITY.—The requirement under sub9 section (a) shall apply with respect to a covered employee 

10 for any 24-month period during which the covered em11 ployee is employed by the Department for at least 180 

12 days.’’. 

13 (b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sections 

14 at the beginning of such chapter is amended by adding 

15 at the end of the items relating to subchapter I of such 

16 chapter the following new item: 

‘‘7413. Continuing education requirement for employees authorized to prescribe 

medication.’’. 

17 (c) APPLICABILITY.—Section 7413 of title 38, United 

18 States Code, as added by subsection (a) shall apply with 

19 respect to a 12-month period that begins on or after the 

20 date of the enactment of this Act. 

21 SEC. 16. REVIEW OF WHISTLEBLOWER COMPLAINTS. 

22 (a) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 7 of title 38, United 

23 States Code, is amended by inserting after section 711 the 

24 following new section: 


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1 ‘‘§ 712. Review of whistleblower complaints 

2 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—During each calendar quarter, 

3 the Secretary shall review each covered whistleblower com4 plaint that is filed during the previous calendar quarter. 

5 ‘‘(b) DELEGATION.—The Secretary may only dele6 gate the authority of the Secretary under subsection (a) 

7 to review a covered whistleblower complaint, without fur8 ther delegation, to— 

9 ‘‘(1) the Deputy Secretary of Veterans Affairs; 

10 ‘‘(2) the Under Secretary for Health; 

11 ‘‘(3) the Under Secretary for Benefits; 

12 ‘‘(4) the Under Secretary for Memorial Affairs; 

13 ‘‘(5) an Assistant Secretary of Veterans Affairs; 

14 ‘‘(6) a Deputy Assistant Secretary of Veterans 

15 Affairs; or 

16 ‘‘(7) a director of the Veterans Integrated Serv17 ice Network. 

18 ‘‘(c) COVERED WHISTLEBLOWER COMPLAINT DE19 FINED.—In this section, the term ‘covered whistleblower 

20 complaint’ means any complaint filed with the Office of 

21 the Special Counsel under subchapter II of chapter 12 of 

22 title 5 with respect to a prohibited personnel practice com23 mitted by an officer or employee of the Department of 

24 Veterans Affairs and described in section 2302(b)(8) or 

25 2302(b)(9)(A)(i), (B), (C), or (D) of such title.’’. 


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1 (b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sections 

2 at the beginning of such chapter is amended by inserting 

3 after the item relating to section 711 the following new 

4 item: 

‘‘712. Review of whistleblower complaints.’’. 

5 SEC. 17. IDENTIFICATION OF MATTERS RELATING TO PART6 TIME EMPLOYMENT OF MEMBERS OF THE 

7 ARMED FORCES WHO ARE PHYSICIANS. 

8 The Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall identify— 

9 (1) the number of members of the Armed 

10 Forces serving on active duty who are physicians 

11 employed at a Department of Veterans Affairs med12 ical facility on a part-time basis; 

13 (2) the process by which the Department hires 

14 such physicians on a part-time basis; 

15 (3) the process by which the Department hires 

16 civilian physicians on a part-time basis; and 

17 (4) the steps the Department is taking to re18 cruit members of the Armed Forces serving on ac19 tive duty who are physicians for employment at De20 partment medical facilities on a part-time basis. 

21 SEC. 18. RECRUITMENT OF PHYSICIANS IN DEPARTMENT 

22 OF VETERANS AFFAIRS. 

23 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 7402(b)(1) of title 38, 

24 United States Code, is amended— 


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1 (1) by inserting ‘‘or to be offered a contingent 

2 appointment to such position,’’ after ‘‘position,’’; and 

3 (2) by striking subparagraph (B) and inserting 

4 the following new subparagraph (B): 

5 ‘‘(B)(i) have completed a residency program 

6 satisfactory to the Secretary; or 

7 ‘‘(ii) with respect to an offer for a contingent 

8 appointment upon the completion of a post-graduate 

9 training program, complete such a residency pro10 gram by not later than 2 years after the date of 

11 such offer; and’’. 

12 (b) OVERSIGHT OF GRADUATE MEDICAL EDUCATION

13 PROGRAMS.—The Secretary shall— 

14 (1) ensure that a recruiter or other similar offi15 cial of each Veterans Integrated Service Network 

16 visits, not less than annually, each allopathic and os17 teopathic teaching institution with a graduate med18 ical education program within the Network to re19 cruit individuals to be appointed to positions in the 

20 Veterans Health Administration; and 

21 (2) submit to Congress an annual report on the 

22 implementation of paragraph (1), including the suc23 cess of such recruiting efforts. 


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1 SEC. 19. AUTHORITY TO DISCLOSE CERTAIN MEDICAL 

2 RECORDS OF VETERANS WHO RECEIVE NON3 DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS 

4 HEALTH CARE. 

5 Section 7332(b)(2) of title 38, United States Code, 

6 is amended by adding at the end the following new sub7 paragraph: 

8 ‘‘(H) To a non-Department entity (including 

9 private entities and other departments or agencies of 

10 the Federal Government) that provides hospital care 

11 or medical treatment to veterans.’’. 

12 SEC. 20. SURVEY OF VETERAN EXPERIENCES WITH DE13 PARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS MEDICAL 

14 CARE. 

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

16 shall seek to enter into a contract with a non-government 

17 entity with significant experience conducting scientifically 

18 verifiable surveys and research to conduct an annual sur19 vey of a statistically significant sample of veterans who 

20 reside in the geographic area served by each of the medical 

21 facilities of the Department of Veterans Affairs to deter22 mine the nature of the experiences of such veterans in ob23 taining hospital care and medical services furnished by the 

24 Secretary at each such medical facility. Each such survey 

25 shall be conducted using scientific and verifiable methods. 

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1 ty shall conduct such annual surveys during the 5-year 

2 period beginning on the date on which the Secretary en3 ters into the contract with the non-government entity. 

4 (b) CONTENTS.—The contract entered into under 

5 subsection (a) shall provide that each survey conducted 

6 pursuant to the contract shall be specific to a medical fa7 cility of the Department and shall include questions relat8 ing to the experiences of veterans in requesting and receiv9 ing appointments for hospital care and medical services 

10 furnished by the Secretary at that medical facility, includ11 ing questions relating to each of the following: 

12 (1) The veteran’s ability to obtain hospital care 

13 and medical services at the facility in a timely man14 ner. 

15 (2) The period of time between the date on 

16 which the veteran requests an appointment at the 

17 facility and the date on which the appointment is 

18 scheduled. 

19 (3) The frequency with which scheduled ap20 pointments are cancelled by the facility. 

21 (4) The quality of hospital care or medical serv22 ices the veteran has received at the facility. 

23 (c) CONSULTATION.—The contract entered into 

24 under subsection (a) shall provide that in designing and 

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1 partment pursuant to such contract, the non-government 

2 entity shall consult with veterans service organizations. 

3 (d) CERTIFICATION.—The contract entered into 

4 under subsection (a) shall provide that— 

5 (1) before conducting a survey pursuant to the 

6 contract, the non-government entity shall submit the 

7 proposed survey to the Comptroller General who 

8 shall assess whether the survey is scientifically valid 

9 and whether the proposed sample size of veterans to 

10 be surveyed is statistically significant; and 

11 (2) the non-government entity may not conduct 

12 such a survey until the Comptroller General provides 

13 such a certification for the survey. 

14 (e) SUBMITTAL OF RESULTS AND PUBLIC AVAIL15 ABILITY OF INFORMATION.—Not later than 30 days after 

16 the completion of the surveys conducted pursuant to a 

17 contract entered into under subsection (a) for a year, the 

18 Secretary shall make the results of the surveys publicly 

19 available on the Internet website of the Department. 

20 (f) PAPERWORK REDUCTION.—Subchapter I of chap21 ter 35 of title 44, United States Code shall not apply to 

22 this section. 

23 (g) DEADLINE FOR IMPLEMENTATION.—The Sec24 retary shall enter into a contract under subsection (a) for 


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1 each medical facility of the Department by not later than 

2 180 days after the date of the enactment of this Act. 

3 SEC. 21. ANNUAL REPORT ON PERFORMANCE OF RE4 GIONAL OFFICES OF THE DEPARTMENT OF 

5 VETERANS AFFAIRS. 

6 Section 7734 of title 38, United States Code, is 

7 amended— 

8 (1) in the first sentence, by inserting before the 

9 period the following: ‘‘and on the performance of 

10 any regional office that fails to meet its administra11 tive goals’’; 

12 (2) in paragraph (2), by striking ‘‘and’’; 

13 (3) by redesignating paragraph (3) as para14 graph (4); and 

15 (4) by inserting after paragraph (2) the fol16 lowing new paragraph (3): 

17 ‘‘(3) in the case of any regional office that, for 

18 the year covered by the report, did not meet the ad19 ministrative goal of no claim pending for more than 

20 125 days and an accuracy rating of 98 percent— 

21 ‘‘(A) a signed statement prepared by the 

22 individual serving as director of the regional of23 fice as of the date of the submittal of the report 

24 containing— 


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1 ‘‘(i) an explanation for why the re2 gional office did not meet the goal; 

3 ‘‘(ii) a description of the additional re4 sources needed to enable the regional office 

5 to reach the goal; and 

6 ‘‘(iii) a description of any additional 

7 actions planned for the subsequent year 

8 that are proposed to enable the regional of9 fice to meet the goal; and 

10 ‘‘(B) a statement prepared by the Under 

11 Secretary for Benefits explaining how the fail12 ure of the regional office to meet the goal af13 fected the performance evaluation of the direc14 tor of the regional office; and’’. 

15 SEC. 22. EXTENSION OF AUTHORITY OF THE SECRETARY 

16 OF VETERANS AFFAIRS TO PROVIDE FOR THE 

17 CONDUCT OF MEDICAL DISABILITY EXAMINA18 TIONS BY CONTRACT PHYSICIANS. 

19 Section 704(c) of the Veterans Benefits Act of 2003 

20 (Public Law 108–183; 38 U.S.C. 5101 note) is amended 

21 by striking ‘‘December 31, 2016’’ and inserting ‘‘Decem22 ber 31, 2017’’. 


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1 SEC. 23. PROVISION OF STATUS UNDER LAW BY HONORING 

2 CERTAIN MEMBERS OF THE RESERVE COM3 PONENTS AS VETERANS. 

4 (a) VETERAN STATUS.— 

5 (1) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 1 of title 38, United 

6 States Code, is amended by inserting after section 

7 107 the following new section: 

8 ‘‘§ 107A. Honoring as veterans certain persons who 

9 performed service in the reserve compo10 nents 

11 ‘‘Any person who is entitled under chapter 1223 of 

12 title 10 to retired pay for nonregular service or, but for 

13 age, would be entitled under such chapter to retired pay 

14 for nonregular service shall be honored as a veteran but 

15 shall not be entitled to any benefit by reason of this sec16 tion.’’. 

17 (2) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sec18 tions at the beginning of such chapter is amended 

19 by inserting after the item relating to section 107 

20 the following new item: 

‘‘107A. Honoring as veterans certain persons who performed service in the reserve components.’’. 

21 (b) CLARIFICATION REGARDING BENEFITS.—No 

22 person may receive any benefit under the laws adminis23 tered by the Secretary of Veterans Affairs solely by reason 


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1 of section 107A of title 38, United States Code, as added 

2 by subsection (a). 

3 SEC. 24. PROVISION OF REHABILITATIVE EQUIPMENT AND 

4 HUMAN-POWERED VEHICLES TO CERTAIN 

5 DISABLED VETERANS. 

6 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 1714(a) of title 38, 

7 United States Code, is amended— 

8 (1) by striking ‘‘Any veteran’’ and inserting 

9 ‘‘(1) Any veteran’’; and 

10 (2) by adding at the end the following new 

11 paragraph: 

12 ‘‘(2)(A) The Secretary may furnish rehabilitative 

13 equipment to any veteran who is entitled to a prosthetic 

14 appliance. 

15 ‘‘(B) In carrying out subparagraph (A), the Secretary 

16 may modify non-rehabilitative equipment owned by a vet17 eran only if the veteran elects for such modification. 

18 ‘‘(C) The Secretary shall annually submit to the 

19 Committees on Veterans’ Affairs of the House of Rep20 resentatives and the Senate a report on rehabilitative 

21 equipment furnished to veterans under subparagraph (A). 

22 Each such report shall include, with respect to the year 

23 covered by the report— 

24 ‘‘(i) the number of veterans eligible to receive 

25 such rehabilitative equipment; 


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1 ‘‘(ii) the number of veterans who received such 

2 rehabilitative equipment; 

3 ‘‘(iii) the number of veterans who elected to re4 ceive modified equipment pursuant to subparagraph 

5 (B); and 

6 ‘‘(iv) any recommendations of the Secretary to 

7 improve furnishing veterans with rehabilitative 

8 equipment. 

9 ‘‘(D) In this paragraph, the term ‘rehabilitative 

10 equipment’ means— 

11 ‘‘(i) rehabilitative equipment, including rec12 reational sports equipment that provide an adaption 

13 or accommodation for the veteran, regardless of 

14 whether such equipment is intentionally designed to 

15 be adaptive equipment; and 

16 ‘‘(ii) includes hand cycles, recumbent bicycles, 

17 medically adapted upright bicycles, and upright bicy18 cles.’’. 

19 (b) NO ADDITIONAL FUNDS.—No additional funds 

20 are authorized to be appropriated to carry out the require21 ments of this section and the amendments made by this 

22 section. Such requirements shall be carried out using 

23 amounts otherwise authorized. 


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1 SEC. 25. APPOINTMENT OF LICENSED HEARING AID SPE2 CIALISTS IN VETERANS HEALTH ADMINIS3 TRATION. 

4 (a) LICENSED HEARING AID SPECIALISTS.— 

5 (1) APPOINTMENT.—Section 7401(3) of title 

6 38, United States Code, is amended by inserting ‘‘li7 censed hearing aid specialists,’’ after ‘‘Audiol8 ogists,’’. 

9 (2) QUALIFICATIONS.—Section 7402(b)(14) of 

10 such title is amended by inserting ‘‘, hearing aid 

11 specialist’’ after ‘‘dental technologist’’. 

12 (b) REQUIREMENTS.—With respect to appointing 

13 hearing aid specialists under sections 7401 and 7402 of 

14 title 38, United States Code, as amended by subsection 

15 (a), and providing services furnished by such specialists, 

16 the Secretary shall ensure that— 

17 (1) a hearing aid specialist may only perform 

18 hearing services consistent with the hearing aid spe19 cialist’s State license related to the practice of fit20 ting and dispensing hearing aids without excluding 

21 other qualified professionals, including audiologists, 

22 from rendering services in overlapping practice 

23 areas; 

24 (2) services provided to veterans by hearing aid 

25 specialists shall be provided as part of the non-med26 ical treatment plan developed by an audiologist; and 


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1 (3) the medical facilities of the Department of 

2 Veterans Affairs provide to veterans access to the 

3 full range of professional services provided by an au4 diologist. 

5 (c) CONSULTATION.—In determining the qualifica6 tions required for hearing aid specialists and in carrying 

7 out subsection (b), the Secretary shall consult with vet8 erans service organizations, audiologists, 

9 otolaryngologists, hearing aid specialists, and other stake10 holder and industry groups as the Secretary determines 

11 appropriate. 

12 (d) ANNUAL REPORT.— 

13 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 1 year after 

14 the date of the enactment of this Act, and annually 

15 thereafter during the 5-year period beginning on the 

16 date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of 

17 Veterans Affairs shall submit to Congress a report 

18 on the following: 

19 (A) Timely access of veterans to hearing 

20 health services through the Department of Vet21 erans Affairs. 

22 (B) Contracting policies of the Department 

23 with respect to providing hearing health serv24 ices to veterans in facilities that are not facili25 ties of the Department. 


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1 (2) TIMELY ACCESS TO SERVICES.—Each re2 port shall, with respect to the matter specified in 

3 paragraph (1)(A) for the 1-year period preceding the 

4 submittal of such report, include the following: 

5 (A) The staffing levels of audiologists, 

6 hearing aid specialists, and health technicians 

7 in audiology in the Veterans Health Adminis8 tration. 

9 (B) A description of the metrics used by 

10 the Secretary in measuring performance with 

11 respect to appointments and care relating to 

12 hearing health. 

13 (C) The average time that a veteran waits 

14 to receive an appointment, beginning on the 

15 date on which the veteran makes the request, 

16 for the following: 

17 (i) A disability rating evaluation for a 

18 hearing-related disability. 

19 (ii) A hearing aid evaluation. 

20 (iii) Dispensing of hearing aids. 

21 (iv) Any follow-up hearing health ap22 pointment. 

23 (D) The percentage of veterans whose total 

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1 up appointment, if applicable, is more than 30 

2 days. 

3 (3) CONTRACTING POLICIES.—Each report 

4 shall, with respect to the matter specified in para5 graph (1)(B) for the 1-year period preceding the 

6 submittal of such report, include the following: 

7 (A) The number of veterans that the Sec8 retary refers to non-Department audiologists 

9 for hearing health care appointments. 

10 (B) The number of veterans that the Sec11 retary refers to non-Department hearing aid 

12 specialists for follow-up appointments for a 

13 hearing aid evaluation, the dispensing of hear14 ing aids, or any other purpose relating to hear15 ing health. 

Passed the House of Representatives September 14, 

2016. 

Attest: KAREN L. HAAS, 

Clerk. 


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