I 
111TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION H. R. 1211 
To amend title 38, United States Code, to expand and improve health care 
services available to women veterans, especially those serving in Operation 
Enduring Freedom and Operation Iraqi Freedom, from the Department 
of Veterans Affairs, and for other purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
FEBRUARY 26, 2009 
Ms. HERSETH SANDLIN (for herself, Mr. MORAN of Kansas, Mr. BOOZMAN, 
Ms. GINNY BROWN-WAITE of Florida, Ms. EDDIE BERNICE JOHNSON of 
Texas, Mr. BOSWELL, Mr. WU, Mrs. MALONEY, Mr. MCDERMOTT, and 
Mr. BISHOP of New York) introduced the following bill; which was re-
ferred to the Committee on Veterans’ Affairs 
A BILL 
To amend title 38, United States Code, to expand and im-
prove health care services available to women veterans, 
especially those serving in Operation Enduring Freedom 
and Operation Iraqi Freedom, from the Department of 
Veterans Affairs, 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; TABLE OF CONTENTS. 
(a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the 
‘‘Women Veterans Health Care Improvement Act’’. 
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(b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents of 
this Act is as follows: 
Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents. 
TITLE I—STUDIES AND ASSESSMENTS OF DEPARTMENT OF 
VETERANS AFFAIRS HEALTH SERVICES FOR WOMEN VETERANS 
Sec. 101. Study of barriers for women veterans to health care from the Depart-
ment of Veterans Affairs. 
Sec. 102. Comprehensive assessment of women’s health care programs of the 
Department of Veterans Affairs. 
TITLE II—IMPROVEMENT AND EXPANSION OF HEALTH CARE 
PROGRAMS OF THE DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS FOR 
WOMEN VETERANS 
Sec. 201. Medical care for newborn children of women veterans receiving mater-
nity care. 
Sec. 202. Training and certification for mental health care providers of the De-
partment of Veterans Affairs on care for veterans suffering 
from sexual trauma and post-traumatic stress disorder. 
Sec. 203. Pilot program for provision of child care assistance to certain vet-
erans receiving certain types of health care services at Depart-
ment facilities. 
Sec. 204. Addition of recently separated women and minority veterans to serve 
on advisory committees. 
TITLE I—STUDIES AND ASSESS-
MENTS OF DEPARTMENT OF 
VETERANS AFFAIRS HEALTH 
SERVICES FOR WOMEN VET-
ERANS 
SEC. 101. STUDY OF BARRIERS FOR WOMEN VETERANS TO 
HEALTH CARE FROM THE DEPARTMENT OF 
VETERANS AFFAIRS. 
(a) STUDY REQUIRED.—The Secretary of Veterans 
Affairs shall conduct a comprehensive study of the bar-
riers to the provision of comprehensive health care by the 
Department of Veterans Affairs encountered by women 
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who are veterans. In conducting the study, the Secretary 
shall— 
(1) survey women veterans who seek or receive 
hospital care or medical services provided by the De-
partment of Veterans Affairs as well as women vet-
erans who do not seek or receive such care or serv-
ices; 
(2) build on the work of the study of the De-
partment of Veterans Affairs entitled ‘‘National Sur-
vey of Women Veterans in Fiscal Year 2007–2008’’; 
(3) administer the survey to a representative 
sample of women veterans from each Veterans Inte-
grated Service Network; and 
(4) ensure that the sample of women veterans 
surveyed is of sufficient size for the study results to 
be statistically significant and is a larger sample 
than that of the study of the Department of Vet-
erans Affairs entitled ‘‘National Survey of Women 
Veterans in Fiscal Year 2007–2008’’. 
(b) ELEMENTS OF STUDY.—In conducting the study 
required by subsection (a), the Secretary of Veterans Af-
fairs shall conduct research on the effects of the following 
on the women veterans surveyed in the study: 
(1) The perceived stigma associated with seek-
ing mental health care services. 
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