117TH CONGRESS 
2D SESSION 
H. R. 4673 
AN ACT 
To amend title 38, United States Code, to provide for the 
automatic enrollment of eligible veterans in patient en-
rollment system of 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. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Ensuring Veterans’ 
Smooth Transition Act’’ or the ‘‘EVEST Act’’. 
SEC. 2. AUTOMATIC ENROLLMENT OF ELIGIBLE VETERANS 
IN PATIENT ENROLLMENT SYSTEM OF DE-
PARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Section 1705 of title 38, United 
States Code, is amended by adding at the end the fol-
lowing new subsection: 
‘‘(d)(1) The Secretary shall enroll each veteran de-
scribed in subsection (a) in the patient enrollment system 
under this section by not later than 60 days after receiving 
the information described in paragraph (3) with respect 
to the veteran. 
‘‘(2)(A) Not later than 60 days after enrolling a vet-
eran under paragraph (1), the Secretary shall provide to 
the veteran— 
‘‘(i) notice of the veteran’s enrollment; 
‘‘(ii) instructions for how the veteran may opt 
out of such enrollment, at the election of the vet-
eran; and 
‘‘(iii) instructions for how the veteran may elect 
to enroll at a later date. 
‘‘(B) In carrying out subparagraph (A), the Secretary 
shall consider using, to the extent practical, mass texting 
capabilities through mobile telephones.
‘‘(C) Any notice or instructions required to be pro-
vided under this paragraph shall be provided in the form 
of a physical copy delivered by mail and, to the extent 
practical, in the form of an electronic copy delivered by 
electronic mail. 
‘‘(3) The information described in this paragraph is 
the appropriate information concerning eligibility for en-
rollment in the patient enrollment system under this sec-
tion, as provided by the Defense Manpower Data Center 
of the Department of Defense, or such successor entity 
of the Department.’’. 
(b) APPLICABILITY.—Subsection (d) of section 1705 
of title 38, United States Code, as added by subsection 
(a), shall apply to a veteran who is discharged or sepa-
rated from the Armed Forces on or after the date that 
is 90 days before the date of the enactment of this Act 
and with respect to whom the Secretary receives the infor-
mation described in paragraph (3) of such subsection on 
or after the date of the enactment of this Act. 
(c) ELECTRONIC CERTIFICATES OF ELIGIBILITY FOR 
DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS PATIENT ENROLL-
MENT SYSTEM.—Not later than August 1, 2022, the Sec-
retary of Veterans Affairs shall ensure that any veteran 
who is eligible for automatic enrollment in the patient en-
rollment system under subsection (d) of section 1705 of
section, the strategies used to address such 
challenges, and the effectiveness of such strate-
gies. 
(B) A discussion of any unanticipated chal-
lenges that occurred in implementing such sub-
section, the strategies used to address such 
challenges, and the effectiveness of such strate-
gies. 
(C) Any additional information the Sec-
retary determines appropriate, including infor-
mation that may be useful to other Federal de-
partments and agencies considering the imple-
mentation of similar automatic enrollment pro-
grams. 
(2) FORM
OF
REPORT.—The report required 
under paragraph (1) shall be submitted in unclassi-
fied form, but may include a classified annex. 
SEC. 3. GAO REPORT ON NOTICE OF AUTOMATIC ENROLL-
MENT IN PATIENT ENROLLMENT SYSTEM OF 
DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS. 
Not later than 180 days after the date of the enact-
ment of this Act, the Comptroller General of the United 
States shall submit to Congress a report containing the 
results of a study to determine the best methods for the 
Secretary of Veterans Affairs to provide notice under
paragraph (2) of subsection (d) of section 1705 of title 
38, United States Code, as added by section 2. In making 
such determination, the Comptroller General shall con-
sider needs of veterans based on— 
(1) age; 
(2) residence in urban areas; and 
(3) residence in rural areas. 
Passed the House of Representatives January 20, 
2022. 
Attest: 
Clerk.
117TH CONGRESS 
2D SESSION 
H. R. 4673 
AN ACT 
To amend title 38, United States Code, to provide 
for the automatic enrollment of eligible veterans 
in patient enrollment system of Department of 
Veterans Affairs, and for other purposes.