I 
110TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION H. R. 2179 
To amend title 38, United States Code, to direct the Secretary of Veterans 
Affairs to establish traumatic brain injury centers. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
MAY 3, 2007 
Mr. WALZ of Minnesota introduced the following bill; which was referred to 
the Committee on Veterans’ Affairs 
A BILL 
To amend title 38, United States Code, to direct the Sec-
retary of Veterans Affairs to establish traumatic brain 
injury centers. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. TRAUMATIC BRAIN INJURY CENTERS. 
(a) ESTABLISHMENT.—Subchapter II of chapter 73 
of title 38, United States Code, is amended by inserting 
after section 7320 the following new section: 
‘‘§ 7320A. Centers for traumatic brain injury re-
search, education, and clinical activities 
‘‘(a) PURPOSE.—The purpose of this section is to 
provide for the improvement of the provision of health care 
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to eligible veterans with traumatic brain injuries 
through— 
‘‘(1) the conduct of research (including research 
on improving facilities of the Department concen-
trating on traumatic brain injury care and on im-
proving the delivery of traumatic brain injury care 
by the Department); 
‘‘(2) the education and training of health care 
personnel of the Department; and 
‘‘(3) the development of improved models and 
systems for the furnishing of traumatic brain injury 
care by the Department. 
‘‘(b) ESTABLISHMENT OF CENTERS.—(1) The Sec-
retary shall establish and operate centers for traumatic 
brain injury research, education, and clinical activities. 
Such centers shall be established and operated by collabo-
rating Department facilities as provided in subsection 
(c)(1). Each such center shall function as a center for— 
‘‘(A) research on traumatic brain injury; 
‘‘(B) the use by the Department of specific 
models for furnishing traumatic brain injury care; 
‘‘(C) education and training of health-care pro-
fessionals of the Department; and 
‘‘(D) the development and implementation of 
innovative clinical activities and systems of care with 
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respect to the delivery of traumatic brain injury care 
by the Department. 
‘‘(2) The Secretary shall, upon the recommendation 
of the Under Secretary for Health, designate the centers 
under this section. In making such designations, the Sec-
retary shall ensure that the centers designated are located 
in various geographic regions of the United States. The 
Secretary may designate a center under this section only 
if— 
‘‘(A) the proposal submitted for the designation 
of the center meets the requirements of subsection 
(c); 
‘‘(B) the Secretary makes the finding described 
in subsection (d); and 
‘‘(C) the peer review panel established under 
subsection (e) makes the determination specified in 
subsection (e)(3) with respect to that proposal. 
‘‘(3) Not more than five centers may be designated 
under this section. 
‘‘(4) The authority of the Secretary to establish and 
operate centers under this section is subject to the appro-
priation of funds for that purpose. 
‘‘(c) PROPOSALS FOR DESIGNATION OF CENTERS.— 
A proposal submitted for the designation of a center under 
this section shall— 
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‘‘(1) provide for close collaboration in the estab-
lishment and operation of the center, and for the 
provision of care and the conduct of research and 
education at the center, by a Department facility or 
facilities in the same geographic area which have a 
mission centered on traumatic brain injury care and 
a Department facility in that area which has a mis-
sion of providing tertiary medical care; 
‘‘(2) provide that no less than 50 percent of the 
funds appropriated for the center for support of clin-
ical care, research, and education will be provided to 
the collaborating facility or facilities that have a 
mission centered on traumatic brain injury care; and 
‘‘(3) provide for a governance arrangement be-
tween the collaborating Department facilities which 
ensures that the center will be established and oper-
ated in a manner aimed at improving the quality of 
traumatic brain injury care at the collaborating fa-
cility or facilities which have a mission centered on 
traumatic brain injury care. 
‘‘(d) FINDING OF SECRETARY.—The finding referred 
to in subsection (b)(2)(B) with respect to a proposal for 
designation of a site as a location of a center under this 
section is a finding by the Secretary, upon the rec-
ommendation of the Under Secretary for Health, that the 
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facilities submitting the proposal have developed (or may 
reasonably be anticipated to develop) each of the following: 
‘‘(1) An arrangement with an accredited med-
ical school that provides education and training in 
traumatic brain injury care and with which one or 
more of the participating Department facilities is af-
filiated under which medical residents receive edu-
cation and training in traumatic brain injury care 
through regular rotation through the participating 
Department facilities so as to provide such residents 
with training in the diagnosis and treatment of trau-
matic brain injury. 
‘‘(2) An arrangement under which nursing, so-
cial work, counseling, or allied health personnel re-
ceive training and education in traumatic brain in-
jury care through regular rotation through the par-
ticipating Department facilities. 
‘‘(3) The ability to attract scientists who have 
demonstrated achievement in research— 
‘‘(A) into the evaluation of innovative ap-
proaches to the design of traumatic brain injury 
care; or 
‘‘(B) into the causes, prevention, and 
treatment of traumatic brain injury. 
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‘‘(4) The capability to evaluate effectively the 
activities of the center, including activities relating 
to the evaluation of specific efforts to improve the 
quality and effectiveness of traumatic brain injury 
care provided by the Department at or through indi-
vidual facilities. 
‘‘(e) PEER REVIEW PANEL.—(1) In order to provide 
advice to assist the Secretary and the Under Secretary for 
Health to carry out their responsibilities under this sec-
tion, the official within the central office of the Veterans 
Health Administration responsible for traumatic brain in-
jury care shall establish a peer review panel to assess the 
scientific and clinical merit of proposals that are sub-
mitted to the Secretary for the designation of centers 
under this section. 
‘‘(2) The panel shall consist of experts in the fields 
of traumatic brain injury research, education and training, 
and clinical care. Members of the panel shall serve as con-
sultants to the Department. 
‘‘(3) The panel shall review each proposal submitted 
to the panel by the official referred to in paragraph (1) 
and shall submit to that official its views on the relative 
scientific and clinical merit of each such proposal. The 
panel shall specifically determine with respect to each such 
proposal whether that proposal is among those proposals 
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