I
104TH CONGRESS
2D SESSION
H. R. 3561
To provide greater authority for the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to share
health-care resources of the Department of Veterans Affairs, to provide
enhanced administrative flexibility in carrying out health-care resources
sharing agreements, and for other purposes.
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
MAY 30, 1996
Mr. SMITH of New Jersey introduced the following bill; which was referred
to the Committee on Veterans’ Affairs
A BILL
To provide greater authority for the Secretary of Veterans
Affairs to share health-care resources of the Department
of Veterans Affairs, to provide enhanced administrative
flexibility in carrying out health-care resources sharing
agreements, 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 ‘‘Department of Veter-
ans Affairs Health Care Expansion Act of 1996’’.
SEC. 2. IMPROVED EFFICIENCY IN HEALTH CARE RE-
SOURCE MANAGEMENT.
(a) REPEAL OF SUNSET PROVISION.—Section 204 of
the Veterans Health Care Act of 1992 (Public Law 102–
585; 106 Stat. 4950) is repealed.
(b) COST RECOVERY.—Title II of such Act is further
amended by adding at the end the following new section:
‘‘SEC. 207. AUTHORITY TO BILL HEALTH-PLAN CONTRACTS.
‘‘(a) RIGHT TO RECOVER.—In the case of a primary
beneficiary (as described in section 201(2)(B)) who has
coverage under a health-plan contract, as defined in sec-
tion 1729(i)(1)(A) of title 38, United States Code, and
who is furnished care or services by a Department medical
facility pursuant to this title, the United States shall have
the right to recover or collect charges for such care or
services from such health-plan contract to the extent that
the beneficiary (or the provider of the care or services)
would be eligible to receive payment for such care or serv-
ices from such health-plan contract if the care or services
had not been furnished by a department or agency of the
United States. Any funds received from such health-plan
contract shall be credited to funds that have been allotted
to the facility that furnished the care or services.
‘‘(b) ENFORCEMENT.—The right of the United
States to recover under such a beneficiary’s health-plan
contract shall be enforceable in the same manner as that
provided by subsections (a)(3), (b), (c)(1), (d), (f), (h),
and (i) of section 1729 of title 38, United States Code.’’.
SEC. 3. SHARING AGREEMENTS FOR HEALTH CARE RE-
SOURCES.
(a) REPEAL OF SECTION 8151.—(1) Subchapter IV
of chapter 81 of title 38, United States Code, is amend-
ed—
(A) by striking out section 8151; and
(B) by redesignating sections 8152, 8153,
8154, 8155, 8156, 8157, and 8158 as sections 8151,
8152, 8153, 8154, 8155, 8156, and 8157, respec-
tively.
(2) The table of sections at the beginning of such
chapter is amended—
(A) by striking out the item relating to section
8151; and
(B) by revising the items relating to sections
8152, 8153, 8154, 8155, 8156, 8157, and 8158 to
reflect the redesignations by paragraph (1)(B).
(b) REVISED AUTHORITY
FOR SHARING AGREE-
MENTS.—Section 8152 of such title (as redesignated by
subsection (a)(1)(B)) is amended—
(1) in subsection (a)(1)(A)—
(A) by striking out ‘‘specialized medical re-
sources’’ and inserting in lieu thereof ‘‘health-
care resources’’; and
(B) by striking out ‘‘other’’ and all that
follows through ‘‘medical schools’’ and inserting
in lieu thereof ‘‘any medical school, health-care
provider, health-care plan, insurer, or other en-
tity or individual’’;
(2) in subsection (a)(2) by striking out ‘‘only’’
and all that follows through ‘‘are not’’ and inserting
in lieu thereof ‘‘if such resources are not, or would
not be,’’;
(3) in subsection (b), by striking out ‘‘reciprocal
reimbursement’’ in the first sentence and all that
follows through the period at the end of that sen-
tence and inserting in lieu thereof ‘‘payment to the
Department in accordance with procedures that pro-
vide appropriate flexibility to negotiate payment
which is in the best interest of the Government.’’;
(4) in subsection (d), by striking out ‘‘preclude
such payment, in accordance with—’’ and all that
follows through ‘‘to such facility therefor’’ and in-
serting in lieu thereof ‘‘preclude such payment to
such facility for such care or services’’;