IIB 
117TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION H. R. 1448 
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 
MAY 13, 2021 
Received; read twice and referred to the Committee on Veterans’ Affairs 
AN ACT 
To direct the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to carry out 
a pilot program on dog training therapy, and to amend 
title 38, United States Code, to authorize the Secretary 
of Veterans Affairs to provide service dogs to veterans 
with mental illnesses who do not have mobility impair-
ments. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
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SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Puppies Assisting 
Wounded Servicemembers for Veterans Therapy Act’’ or 
the ‘‘PAWS for Veterans Therapy Act’’. 
SEC. 2. DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS PILOT PRO-
GRAM ON DOG TRAINING THERAPY. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 180 days after the 
date of the enactment of the Act, the Secretary of Vet-
erans Affairs shall commence the conduct of a pilot pro-
gram to provide canine training to eligible veterans diag-
nosed with post-traumatic stress disorder (in this section 
referred to as ‘‘PTSD’’) as an element of a complementary 
and integrative health program for such veterans. 
(b) DURATION; MEDICAL CENTERS.— 
(1) DURATION.—The Secretary shall carry out 
the pilot program under subsection (a) for a 5-year 
period beginning on the date of the commencement 
of the pilot program. 
(2) MEDICAL
CENTERS.—The Secretary shall 
ensure that such pilot program is carried out by not 
fewer than five medical centers of the Department of 
Veterans Affairs located in geographically diverse 
areas. 
(c) AGREEMENTS WITH ENTITIES.—In carrying out 
the pilot program under subsection (a), the Secretary shall 
seek to enter into agreements with nongovernmental enti-
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ties that the Secretary determines have the demonstrated 
ability to provide the canine training specified in sub-
section (a). 
(d) REQUIRED CONDITIONS.—The Secretary shall in-
clude in any agreement under subsection (c) conditions re-
quiring that the nongovernmental entity seeking to enter 
into the agreement— 
(1) submits to the Secretary certification that 
the entity is an accredited service dog training orga-
nization; 
(2) agrees to ensure that veterans participating 
in the pilot program under subsection (a) receive 
training from certified service dog training instruc-
tors for a period of time determined appropriate by 
the entity; 
(3) agrees to ensure that veterans participating 
in such pilot program are prohibited from having ac-
cess to a dog under such pilot program at any time 
during such participation without the supervision of 
a certified service dog training instructor; 
(4) agrees to ensure that veterans participating 
in such pilot program receive training in skills 
unique to the needs of the veteran to address or al-
leviate PTSD symptoms of the veteran; 
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(5) agrees not to use shock collars or prong col-
lars as training tools and to use positive reinforce-
ment training; and 
(6) agrees to provide any follow-up training 
support specified in subsection (e)(2), as applicable. 
(e) ADOPTION OF DOG.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—A veteran who has partici-
pated in the pilot program under subsection (a) may 
adopt a dog that the veteran assisted in training 
during such pilot program if the veteran and the vet-
eran’s health provider (in consultation with the enti-
ty that provided the canine training with respect to 
the dog under such pilot program) determine that it 
is in the best interest of the veteran. 
(2) FOLLOW-UP TRAINING SUPPORT.—If a vet-
eran adopts a dog under paragraph (1), the entity 
that provided the canine training with respect to the 
dog under the pilot program shall provide follow-up 
training support for the life of the dog. Such sup-
port shall include the provision of a contact plan be-
tween the veteran and the entity that enables the 
veteran to seek and receive assistance from the enti-
ty to ensure the dog is being properly cared for. 
(f) ELIGIBILITY
FOR OTHER CARE
AND TREAT-
MENT.—Participation in the pilot program under sub-
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section (a) may not preclude a veteran from receiving any 
other medical care or treatment for PTSD furnished by 
the Department, including therapy, for which the veteran 
is otherwise eligible. 
(g) COLLECTION OF DATA.—In carrying out this sec-
tion, the Secretary shall— 
(1) develop metrics and other appropriate 
means to measure, with respect to veterans partici-
pating in the pilot program under subsection (a)— 
(A) the number of such veterans partici-
pating; 
(B) the satisfaction of such veterans with 
the pilot program; 
(C) whether participation in the pilot pro-
gram resulted in any clinically relevant improve-
ments for such veterans, as determined by the 
health care provider or clinical team that re-
ferred the veteran to participate in the pilot 
program; and 
(D) such other factors as the Secretary 
may determine appropriate; and 
(2) establish processes to document and track 
the progress of such veterans under the pilot pro-
gram with respect to health benefits and improve-
ments. 
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(h) REPORT BY SECRETARY.—Not later than 1 year 
before the date on which the pilot program under sub-
section (a) terminates, the Secretary shall submit to the 
Committees on Veterans’ Affairs of the House of Rep-
resentatives and the Senate a report containing the rec-
ommendations of the Secretary regarding— 
(1) whether to extend or make permanent the 
pilot program; and 
(2) the feasibility and advisability of expanding 
the pilot program to address mental health condi-
tions other than PTSD. 
(i) GAO BRIEFING AND STUDY.— 
(1) BRIEFING.—Not later than 1 year after the 
date of the commencement of the pilot program 
under subsection (a), the Comptroller General of the 
United States shall provide to the Committees on 
Veterans’ Affairs of the House of Representatives 
and the Senate a briefing on the methodology estab-
lished for the pilot program. 
(2) REPORT.—Not later than 270 days after 
the date on which the pilot program terminates, the 
Comptroller General shall submit to the committees 
specified in paragraph (1) a report on the pilot pro-
gram. Such report shall include an evaluation of the 
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approach and methodology used for the pilot pro-
gram with respect to— 
(A) assisting veterans with PTSD; and 
(B) measuring relevant metrics, such as 
reduction in scores under the Clinician Admin-
istered PTSD Scale (CAPS), improvement in 
psychosocial function, and therapeutic compli-
ance. 
(j) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 
(1) The term ‘‘accredited service dog training 
organization’’ means an organization described in 
section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code of 
1986 that— 
(A) provides service dogs to veterans with 
PTSD; and 
(B) is accredited by an accrediting organi-
zation with demonstrated experience, national 
scope, and recognized leadership and expertise 
in the training of service dogs and education in 
the use of service dogs (as determined by the 
Secretary). 
(2) The term ‘‘eligible veteran’’ means a vet-
eran who— 
(A) is enrolled in the patient enrollment 
system in the Department of Veterans Affairs 
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under section 1705 of title 38, United States 
Code; and 
(B) has been recommended for participa-
tion in the pilot program under subsection (a) 
by a qualified mental health care provider or 
clinical team based on medical judgment that 
the veteran may benefit from such participation 
with respect to the diagnosed PTSD of the vet-
eran. 
(3) The term ‘‘service dog training instructor’’ 
means an instructor who provides the direct training 
of veterans with PTSD in the art and science of 
service dog training and handling. 
SEC. 3. PROVISION OF SERVICE DOGS AND VETERINARY IN-
SURANCE BENEFITS TO VETERANS WITH 
POST-TRAUMATIC STRESS DISORDER WHO 
DO NOT HAVE CERTAIN IMPAIRMENTS. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Section 1714 of title 38, United 
States Code, is amended by adding at the end the fol-
lowing new subsections: 
‘‘(e) The Secretary may provide a service dog to a 
veteran under subsection (c)(3) regardless of whether the 
veteran has a mobility impairment. 
‘‘(f)(1) The Secretary shall provide to any veteran de-
scribed in paragraph (2) a commercially available veteri-
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nary insurance policy for each dog provided to such vet-
eran under subsection (b) or (c). 
‘‘(2) A veteran described in this paragraph is a vet-
eran who— 
‘‘(A) is diagnosed with post-traumatic stress 
disorder or a visual, hearing, or substantial mobility 
impairment; 
‘‘(B) has received a dog under subsection (b) or 
(c) in connection with such disorder or impairment; 
and 
‘‘(C) meets such other requirements as the Sec-
retary may prescribe.’’. 
(b) APPLICABILITY.—Section 1714(f) of title 38, 
United States Code, as added by subsection (a), shall 
apply with respect to a veteran provided a dog by the Sec-
retary of Veterans Affairs on or after the date of the en-
actment of this Act. 
Passed the House of Representatives May 12, 2021. 
Attest: 
CHERYL L. JOHNSON, 
Clerk. 
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