Expanding Care for Female Veterans Act

To direct the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to establish a pilot program to award grants to health care entities to lease, purchase, or build health care facilities for female patients to provide hospital care and medical services to qualified female veterans. 1. Short title This Act may be cited as the Expanding Care for Female Veterans Act 2. Pilot program to provide hospital care and medical services to qualified female veterans (a) Pilot program established The Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall establish a pilot program to award grants to health care entities to lease, purchase, or build health care facilities for female patients to provide hospital care and medical services to qualified female veterans. (b) Duration of pilot program The pilot program shall terminate three years after the date of the enactment of this Act. (c) Application To be selected to receive a grant under the pilot program, a health care entity shall submit to the Secretary an application at such time, in such manner, and containing such information as the Secretary may require. (d) Nature of facilities leased, purchased, or built through use of pilot program grant funds For purposes of providing hospital care and medical services to qualified female veterans, a health care facility leased, purchased, or built under the pilot program shall be deemed to be— (1) an entity specified in section 101(a)(1)(B) of the Veterans Access, Choice, and Accountability Act of 2014 ( 38 U.S.C. 1701 (2) if the authority to carry out the program established under section 101 of such Act is terminated, an entity otherwise authorized to provide hospital care and medical services pursuant to an agreement entered into by the Secretary. (e) Report Not later than three years after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall submit a report to Congress that includes the following: (1) The number of grants awarded under the pilot program. (2) The amount of each grant awarded under the pilot program. (3) A list of the health care entities awarded grants under the pilot program. (4) An assessment of the pilot program. (5) A recommendation as to whether the duration of the pilot program should be extended. (f) Definitions In this section: (1) Hospital care The term hospital care (2) Medical services The term medical services (3) Qualified female veteran The term qualified female veteran (g) Authorization of appropriations There is authorized to be appropriated to the Secretary of Veterans Affairs $10,000,000 for fiscal year 2017 to carry out the pilot program.

Summary: Expanding Care for Female Veterans Act This bill directs the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) to establish a three-year pilot program to award grants to health care entities to lease, purchase, or build health care facilities for female patients in order to provide hospital care and medical services to female veterans enrolled in the VA's patient enrollment system. For purposes of providing such care and services, a facility leased, purchased, or built under the program shall be deemed to be: (1) a non-VA entity that may provide veterans hospital care and medical services as specified in the Veterans Access, Choice, and Accountability Act of 2014; or (2) if the authority to carry out the program is terminated, an entity otherwise authorized to provide hospital care and medical services pursuant to an agreement entered into by the VA.