TITLE III—ACCESS TO HEALTH 
CARE 
SEC. 301. EXPANSION OF ELIGIBILITY FOR COUNSELING 
AND TREATMENT FOR MILITARY SEXUAL 
TRAUMA TO INCLUDE ALL FORMER MEM-
BERS OF THE RESERVE COMPONENTS OF 
THE ARMED FORCES. 
Section 1720D of title 38, United States Code, is 
amended by striking subsections (f) and (g) and inserting 
the following new subsection (f): 
‘‘(f) In this section: 
‘‘(1) The term ‘former member of the Armed 
Forces’ means a person who served on active duty, 
active duty for training, or inactive duty training, 
and who was discharged or released therefrom under 
any condition that is not— 
‘‘(A) a discharge by court-martial; or 
‘‘(B) a discharge subject to a bar to bene-
fits under section 5303 of this title. 
‘‘(2) The term ‘military sexual trauma’ means, 
with respect to a former member of the Armed 
Forces, a physical assault of a sexual nature, battery 
of a sexual nature, or sexual harassment which oc-
curred while the former member of the Armed 
Forces was serving on duty, regardless of duty sta-
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tus or line of duty determination (as that term is 
used in section 12323 of title 10). 
‘‘(3) The term ‘sexual harassment’ means unso-
licited verbal or physical contact of a sexual nature 
which is threatening in character.’’. 
SEC. 302. CONNECTION TO VETERANS HEALTH ADMINIS-
TRATION WHEN A DISABILITY CLAIM RE-
LATED TO MILITARY SEXUAL TRAUMA IS SUB-
MITTED TO VETERANS BENEFITS ADMINIS-
TRATION. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 14 days after the 
date on which a veteran submits a claim for disability com-
pensation to the Veterans Benefits Administration for a 
disability related to military sexual trauma, the Secretary 
of Veterans Affairs shall send a communication to the vet-
eran with the following information: 
(1) The contact information for the nearest 
military sexual trauma coordinator for the veteran 
at the Veterans Benefits Administration and a de-
scription of the assistance such coordinator can pro-
vide. 
(2) The contact information for the nearest 
military sexual trauma coordinator for the veteran 
at the Veterans Health Administration and a de-
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scription of the assistance such coordinator can pro-
vide. 
(3) The types of services that survivors of mili-
tary sexual trauma are eligible to receive from the 
Department of Veterans Affairs, including the near-
est locations and the contact information for such 
services. 
(4) The contact information for the Veterans 
Crisis Line established under section 1720F(h) of 
title 38, United States Code. 
(5) Such other information on services, care, or 
resources for military sexual trauma as the Sec-
retary determines appropriate. 
(b) DEFINITION OF MILITARY SEXUAL TRAUMA.— 
In this section, the term ‘‘military sexual trauma’’ has the 
meaning given such term in section 1167(j) of title 38, 
United States Code, as added by section 203(a). 
SEC. 303. STUDY ON ACCESS TO INPATIENT MENTAL 
HEALTH CARE FOR SURVIVORS OF MILITARY 
SEXUAL TRAUMA. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of Veterans Affairs 
shall conduct a study on access to inpatient mental health 
care for current and former members of the Armed Forces 
who are survivors of military sexual trauma. 
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(b) ELEMENTS.—The study required by subsection 
(a) shall include the following: 
(1) An assessment of the availability of bed 
spaces in the mental health residential rehabilitation 
treatment programs of the Department of Veterans 
Affairs for survivors of military sexual trauma, in-
cluding the suitability of those programs for such 
survivors and the wait times for services under those 
programs. 
(2) An assessment of geographic disparities in 
access to those programs for survivors of military 
sexual trauma, including by region and by rural and 
urban areas. 
(3) An assessment of alternative care options 
provided when a survivor of military sexual trauma 
is waiting for inpatient care, the efficacy of those al-
ternatives, and the satisfaction of patients with 
those alternatives. 
(4) Recommendations for reducing the average 
wait time for services under those programs to 14 
days or less, including by increasing bed space or 
addressing staffing needs. 
(5) An assessment of the satisfaction of pa-
tients with the tracks of those programs specific to 
military sexual trauma, the wait times for services 
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under those tracks, and recommendations for in-
creasing or changing the number of locations for 
services under those tracks to better meet the needs 
of survivors of military sexual trauma. 
(c) REPORT.—Not later than one year after the date 
of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall submit 
to the Committee on Veterans’ Affairs of the Senate and 
the Committee on Veterans’ Affairs of the House of Rep-
resentatives a report detailing the findings of the study 
required by subsection (a). 
(d) DEFINITION OF MILITARY SEXUAL TRAUMA.— 
In this section, the term ‘‘military sexual trauma’’ has the 
meaning given such term in section 1720D(f) of title 38, 
United States Code, as added by section 301. 
SEC. 304. PILOT PROGRAM FOR INTERIM ACCESS TO MEN-
TAL HEALTH CARE FOR SURVIVORS OF MILI-
TARY SEXUAL TRAUMA. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Commencing not later than one 
year after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Sec-
retary of Veterans Affairs shall carry out a pilot program 
to provide intensive outpatient mental health care to cur-
rent and former members of the Armed Forces who are 
survivors of military sexual trauma when the wait times 
for inpatient mental health care from the Department of 
Veterans Affairs for the survivor is more than 14 days. 
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(b) DURATION.—The Secretary shall carry out the 
pilot program under subsection (a) for a three-year period 
beginning on the commencement of the pilot program. 
(c) LOCATIONS.— 
(1) IN
GENERAL.—The Secretary shall carry 
out the pilot program under subsection (a) at not 
fewer than four Veterans Integrated Service Net-
works of the Department. 
(2) SELECTION OF LOCATIONS.—In selecting lo-
cations for the pilot program under subsection (a), 
the Secretary shall select locations that have the 
longest wait times for inpatient mental health care, 
particularly for survivors of military sexual trauma. 
(3) NOTIFICATION.—Before commencing the 
pilot program under subsection (a), the Secretary 
shall notify the Committee on Veterans’ Affairs of 
the Senate and the Committee on Veterans’ Affairs 
of the House of Representatives of the locations se-
lected for the pilot program. 
(d) TYPES OF SERVICES.—Subject to the preference 
of the survivor participating in the pilot program under 
subsection (a) and the capacity of facilities of the Depart-
ment, the Secretary may provide services under the pilot 
program via telehealth or at community-based outpatient 
clinics of the Department. 
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meaning given such term in section 1720D(f) of title 38, 
United States Code, as added by section 301. 
SEC. 305. COMPTROLLER GENERAL STUDY ON ACCESS TO 
CARE FOR SURVIVORS OF MILITARY SEXUAL 
TRAUMA AT THE DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS 
AFFAIRS. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—The Comptroller General of the 
United States shall conduct a study on access to mental 
health care for survivors of military sexual trauma at fa-
cilities of the Department of Veterans Affairs. 
(b) ELEMENTS.—The study conducted under sub-
section (a) shall include an assessment of the following: 
(1) The availability of inpatient and outpatient 
services, including wait times and geographic dis-
parities for such services. 
(2) The availability of other types of training 
and support services for survivors of military sexual 
trauma, such as the Parenting STAIR program of 
the Department. 
(3) The communication and advertisement by 
the Department of the care, services, and resources 
available for such survivors. 
(4) The barriers to accessing mental health care 
at a facility of the Department for such survivors, 
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including transportation, child care, lack of tele-
health, and more. 
(5) The barriers to mental health care at facili-
ties of the Department for such survivors of each 
gender, including the unique considerations for male 
survivors versus female survivors. 
(6) The extent to which the Secretary has as-
sessed the quality of the training provided to pro-
viders of the Department on military sexual trauma 
and made any adjustments in response to such as-
sessment. 
(7) The role of Vet Centers in providing care to 
such survivors, including current and former mem-
bers of the Armed Forces. 
(8) The role of military sexual trauma coordina-
tors of the Veterans Health Administration in co-
ordinating and providing care for such survivors at 
facilities of the Department. 
(9) Any current actions by the Secretary to 
strengthen access to high-quality care for such sur-
vivors and such recommendations for improving ac-
cess to care for such survivors as the Comptroller 
General considers appropriate. 
(c) REPORT.—Not later than two years after the date 
of the enactment of this Act, the Comptroller General shall 
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submit to Congress a report on the findings of the study 
conducted under subsection (a). 
(d) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 
(1) MILITARY SEXUAL TRAUMA.—In this sec-
tion, the term ‘‘military sexual trauma’’ has the 
meaning given such term in section 1720D(f) of title 
38, United States Code, as added by section 301. 
(2) VET CENTER.—The term ‘‘Vet Center’’ has 
the meaning given that term in section 1712A(h) of 
title 38, United States Code. 
Æ 
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