IB 
Union Calendar No. 400 
110TH CONGRESS 
2D SESSION 
H. R. 5554 
[Report No. 110–639] 
To amend title 38, United States Code, to expand and improve health care 
services available to veterans from the Department of Veterans Affairs 
for substance use disorders, and for other purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
MARCH 6, 2008 
Mr. MICHAUD (for himself, Mr. FILNER, Mr. MILLER of Florida, Ms. 
CORRINE BROWN of Florida, Mr. ALLEN, Mr. BISHOP of Georgia, Mr. 
LEWIS of Georgia, and Mr. COHEN) introduced the following bill; which 
was referred to the Committee on Veterans’ Affairs 
MAY 15, 2008 
Additional sponsors: Ms. BORDALLO, Mr. LEVIN, Mr. HINOJOSA, Mrs. 
NAPOLITANO, Ms. BERKLEY, Mr. KENNEDY, Mr. HINCHEY, Ms. MCCOL-
LUM of Minnesota, and Mr. CAPUANO 
MAY 15, 2008 
Reported with an amendment, committed to the Committee of the Whole 
House on the State of the Union, and ordered to be printed 
[Strike out all after the enacting clause and insert the part printed in italic] 
[For text of introduced bill, see copy of bill as introduced on March 6, 2008] 
A BILL 
To amend title 38, United States Code, to expand and im-
prove health care services available to veterans from the 
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Department of Veterans Affairs for substance use dis-
orders, and for other purposes. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1 SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Justin Bailey Veterans 
Substance Use Disorders Prevention and Treatment Act of 
2008’’. 
SEC. 2. EXPANSION OF VETERANS SUBSTANCE USE DIS-
ORDER PROGRAMS. 
Subsection (d) of section 1720A of title 38, United 
States Code, is amended by adding at the end the following 
new paragraph: 
‘‘(3)(A) Each plan under paragraph (1) shall ensure 
that the medical center provides ready access to a full con-
tinuum of care for substance use disorders for veterans in 
need of such care. 
‘‘(B) In this paragraph, the term ‘full continuum of 
care’ includes all of the following care, treatment, and serv-
ices: 
‘‘(i) Screening for substance use disorder in all 
settings, including primary care settings. 
‘‘(ii) Detoxification and stabilization services. 
‘‘(iii) Intensive outpatient care services. 
‘‘(iv) Relapse prevention services. 
‘‘(v) Outpatient counseling services. 
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‘‘(vi) Residential substance use disorder treat-
ment. 
‘‘(vii) Pharmacological treatment to reduce 
cravings, and opioid substitution therapy referred to 
in paragraph (2). 
‘‘(viii) Coordination with groups providing peer 
to peer counseling. 
‘‘(ix) Short-term, early interventions for sub-
stance use disorders, such as motivational counseling, 
that are readily available and provided in a manner 
to overcome stigma associated with the provision of 
such interventions and related care. 
‘‘(x) Marital and family counseling. 
‘‘(C) The Secretary shall provide for outreach to vet-
erans who served in Operation Enduring Freedom or Oper-
ation Iraqi Freedom to increase awareness of the avail-
ability of care, treatment, and services from the Department 
for substance use disorders.’’. 
SEC. 3. REQUIREMENT FOR ALLOCATION OF DEPARTMENT 
RESOURCES TO ENSURE AVAILABILITY FOR 
ALL VETERANS REQUIRING TREATMENT FOR 
SUBSTANCE USE DISORDERS. 
(a) EQUITABLE ALLOCATION OF FUNDING; ANNUAL 
REPORT.—Section 1720A of title 38, United States Code, 
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as amended by section 2, is further amended by adding at 
the end the following new subsection: 
‘‘(e)(1) The Secretary shall ensure that amounts made 
available for care, treatment, and services provided under 
this section are allocated in such a manner that a full con-
tinuum of care (as defined in subsection (d)(3)(B)) is avail-
able to veterans seeking such care, treatment, or services, 
without regard to the location of the residence of any such 
veterans. 
‘‘(2)(A) In addition to the report required under sec-
tion 1703(c)(1) of this title (relating to furnishing of con-
tract care and services under this section), the Secretary 
shall include in the budget documents which the Secretary 
submits to Congress for any fiscal year a detailed report 
on the care, treatment, and services furnished by the De-
partment under this section during the most recently com-
pleted fiscal year. 
‘‘(B) Each report under subparagraph (A) shall in-
clude data on the following for each medical facility of the 
Department: 
‘‘(i) The number of veterans who have been pro-
vided care, treatment, or services under this section at 
the facility for each 1,000 veterans who have received 
hospital care (if applicable) or medical services at the 
facility. 
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‘‘(ii) The number of veterans for whom substance 
use disorder screening was carried out under sub-
section (d)(3)(B)(i) at the facility. 
‘‘(iii) The number of veterans for whom a sub-
stance use disorder was identified after a screening 
was carried out under subsection (d)(3)(B)(i) at the 
facility. 
‘‘(iv) The number of veterans who were referred 
by the facility for care, treatment, or services for sub-
stance use disorders under this section. 
‘‘(v) The number of veterans who received care, 
treatment or services at the facility for substance use 
disorders under this section. 
‘‘(vi) Availability of the full continuum of care 
(as defined in subsection (d)(3)(B)) at the facility. 
‘‘(C) Each report prepared under subparagraph (A) 
shall be reviewed by the Committee on Care of Severely 
Chronically Mentally Ill Veterans authorized by section 
7321 of this title. The Committee shall provide an inde-
pendent assessment of the care, treatment, and services fur-
nished directly by the Department under this section to vet-
erans. Such assessment shall include a detailed analysis of 
the availability, the barriers to access (if any), and the 
quality of such care, treatment, and services.’’. 
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(b) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendment made by sub-
section (a) shall apply to fiscal years beginning on or after 
October 1, 2009. 
SEC. 4. PILOT PROGRAM FOR INTERNET-BASED SUBSTANCE 
USE DISORDER TREATMENT FOR VETERANS 
OF OPERATION IRAQI FREEDOM AND OPER-
ATION ENDURING FREEDOM. 
(a) FINDINGS.—Congress makes the following findings: 
(1) Stigma associated with seeking treatment for 
mental health disorders has been demonstrated to pre-
vent some veterans from seeking such treatment at a 
medical facility operated by the Department of De-
fense or the Department of Veterans Affairs. 
(2) There is a significant incidence among vet-
erans of post-deployment mental health problems, es-
pecially among members of a reserve component who 
return as veterans to civilian life. 
(3) Computer-based self-guided training has been 
demonstrated 
to 
be 
an 
effective 
strategy 
for 
supplementing the care of psychological conditions. 
(4) Younger veterans, especially those who served 
in Operation Enduring Freedom or Operation Iraqi 
Freedom, are comfortable with and proficient at com-
puter-based technology. 
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(5) Veterans living in rural areas find access to 
treatment for substance use disorder limited. 
(6) Self-assessment and treatment options for 
substance use disorders through an Internet website 
may reduce stigma and provides additional access for 
individuals seeking care and treatment for such dis-
orders. 
(b) IN GENERAL.—Not later than October 1, 2009, the 
Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall initiate a pilot program 
to test the feasibility and advisability of providing veterans 
who seek treatment for substance use disorders access to a 
computer-based self-assessment, education, and specified 
treatment program through a secure Internet website oper-
ated by the Secretary. Participation in the pilot program 
is available on a voluntary basis for those veterans who 
have served in Operation Enduring Freedom or Operation 
Iraqi Freedom. 
(c) ELEMENTS OF PILOT PROGRAM.— 
(1) IN
GENERAL.—In designing and carrying 
out the pilot program under this section, the Sec-
retary of Veterans Affairs shall ensure that— 
(A) access to the Internet website and the 
programs available on the website by a veteran 
(or family member) does not involuntarily gen-
erate an identifiable medical record of that ac-
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cess by that veteran in any medical database 
maintained by the Department; 
(B) the Internet website is accessible from 
remote locations, especially rural areas; and 
(C) the Internet website includes a self-as-
sessment tool for substance use disorders, self- 
guided treatment and educational materials for 
such disorders, and appropriate information and 
materials for family members of veterans. 
(2) CONSIDERATION OF SIMILAR PROJECTS.—In 
designing the pilot program under this section, the 
Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall consider similar 
pilot projects of the Department of Defense for the 
early diagnosis and treatment of post-traumatic stress 
disorder and other mental health conditions estab-
lished under section 741 of the John Warner National 
Defense Authorization Act of Fiscal Year 2007 (Pub-
lic Law 109–364; 120 Stat. 2304). 
(3) LOCATION
OF
PILOT
PROGRAM.—The Sec-
retary shall carry out the pilot program through those 
medical centers of the Department of Veterans Affairs 
that have established Centers for Excellence for Sub-
stance Abuse Treatment and Education or that have 
established a Substance Abuse Program Evaluation 
and Research Center. 
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(4) CONTRACT
AUTHORITY.—The Secretary of 
Veterans Affairs may enter into contracts with quali-
fied entities or organizations to carry out the pilot 
program required under this section. 
(d) DURATION OF PILOT PROGRAM.—The pilot pro-
gram required by subsection (a) shall be carried out during 
the two-year period beginning on the date of the commence-
ment of the pilot program. 
(e) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There are 
authorized to be appropriated to the Secretary of Veterans 
Affairs $1,500,000 for each of fiscal years 2010 and 2011 
to carry out the pilot program under this section. 
(f) REPORT.—Not later than six months after the com-
pletion of the pilot program, the Secretary shall submit to 
Congress a report on the pilot program, and shall include 
in that report an assessment of the feasibility and advis-
ability of the pilot program, of any cost savings or other 
benefits associated with the pilot program, and rec-
ommendations for the continuation or expansion of the pilot 
program. 
SEC. 5. REPORT ON RESIDENTIAL MENTAL HEALTH CARE 
FACILITIES OF THE VETERANS HEALTH AD-
MINISTRATION. 
(a) REVIEW AND REPORT.—Not later than six months 
after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary 
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of Veterans Affairs, acting through the Office of the Medical 
Inspector of the Department of Veterans Affairs, shall— 
(1) conduct a review of all residential mental 
health care facilities, including domiciliary facilities, 
of the Veterans Health Administration; and 
(2) submit to the Committee on Veterans’ Affairs 
of the Senate and the Committee on Veterans’ Affairs 
of the House of Representatives a report on the review 
conducted under paragraph (1). 
(b) ELEMENTS OF REPORT.—The report required by 
subsection (a)(2) shall include the following: 
(1) A description of the availability of care in 
residential mental health care facilities in each Vet-
erans Integrated Service Network (VISN). 
(2) An assessment of the supervision and support 
provided in the residential mental health care facili-
ties of the Veterans Health Administration. 
(3) The ratio of staff members at each residential 
mental health care facility to patients at such facil-
ity. 
(4) An assessment of the appropriateness of rules 
and procedures for the prescription and administra-
tion of medications to patients in such residential 
mental health care facilities. 
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(5) A description of the protocols at each residen-
tial mental health care facility for handling missed 
appointments. 
(6) Any recommendations the Secretary con-
siders appropriate for improvements to such residen-
tial mental health care facilities and the care pro-
vided in such facilities. 
SEC. 6. TRIBUTE TO JUSTIN BAILEY. 
This Act is enacted in tribute to Justin Bailey, who, 
after returning to the United States from service as a mem-
ber of the Armed Forces in Operation Iraqi Freedom, died 
in a domiciliary facility of the Department of Veterans Af-
fairs while receiving care for post-traumatic stress disorder 
and a substance use disorder. 
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Union Calendar No. 400 
110TH CONGRESS 
2D SESSION 
H. R. 5554 
[Report No. 110–639] 
A BILL 
To amend title 38, United States Code, to expand 
and improve health care services available to vet-
erans from the Department of Veterans Affairs 
for substance use disorders, and for other pur-
poses. 
MAY 15, 2008 
Reported with an amendment, committed to the Com-
mittee of the Whole House on the State of the Union, 
and ordered to be printed 
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