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(2) the reasons for failing to provide such infor-
mation.
SEC. 1579. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.
There are authorized to be appropriated such sums as
may be necessary to carry out this subtitle.
TITLE XVI—WOUNDED WARRIOR
MATTERS
SEC. 1601. SHORT TITLE.
This title may be cited as the ‘‘Dignified Treatment
of Wounded Warriors Act’’.
SEC. 1602. GENERAL DEFINITIONS.
In this title:
(1) The term ‘‘appropriate committees of Con-
gress’’ means—
(A) the Committees on Armed Services and
Veterans’ Affairs of the Senate; and
(B) the Committees on Armed Services and
Veterans’ Affairs of the House of Representatives.
(2) The term ‘‘covered member of the Armed
Forces’’ means a member of the Armed Forces, includ-
ing a member of the National Guard or a Reserve,
who is undergoing medical treatment, recuperation,
or therapy, is otherwise in medical hold or medical
holdover status, or is otherwise on the temporary dis-
ability retired list for a serious injury or illness.
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(3) The term ‘‘family member’’, with respect to
a member of the Armed Forces or a veteran, has the
meaning given that term in section 411h(b) of title
37, United States Code.
(4) The term ‘‘medical hold or medical holdover
status’’ means—
(A) the status of a member of the Armed
Forces, including a member of the National
Guard or Reserve, assigned or attached to a
military hospital for medical care; and
(B) the status of a member of a reserve com-
ponent of the Armed Forces who is separated,
whether 
pre-deployment 
or 
post-deployment,
from the member’s unit while in need of health
care based on a medical condition identified
while the member is on active duty in the Armed
Forces.
(5) The term ‘‘serious injury or illness’’, in the
case of a member of the Armed Forces, means an in-
jury or illness incurred by the member in line of duty
on active duty in the Armed Forces that may render
the member medically unfit to perform the duties of
the member’s office, grade, rank, or rating.
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(6) The term ‘‘TRICARE program’’ has the
meaning given that term in section 1072(7) of title
10, United States Code.
Subtitle A—Policy on Care, Man-
agement, 
and 
Transition 
of
Servicemembers With Serious In-
juries or Illnesses
SEC. 1611. COMPREHENSIVE POLICY ON CARE, MANAGE-
MENT, AND TRANSITION OF MEMBERS OF
THE ARMED FORCES WITH SERIOUS INJU-
RIES OR ILLNESSES.
(a) COMPREHENSIVE POLICY REQUIRED.—
(1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than January 1,
2008, the Secretary of Defense and the Secretary of
Veterans Affairs shall, to the extent feasible, jointly
develop and implement a comprehensive policy on the
care and management of members of the Armed
Forces who are undergoing medical treatment, recu-
peration, or therapy, are otherwise in medical hold or
medical holdover status, or are otherwise on the tem-
porary disability retired list for a serious injury or
illness (hereafter in this section referred to as a ‘‘cov-
ered servicemembers’’).
(2) SCOPE OF POLICY.—The policy shall cover
each of the following:
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(A) The care and management of covered
servicemembers while in medical hold or medical
holdover status or on the temporary disability
retired list.
(B) The medical evaluation and disability
evaluation of covered servicemembers.
(C) The return of covered servicemembers to
active duty when appropriate.
(D) 
The 
transition 
of 
covered
servicemembers from receipt of care and services
through the Department of Defense to receipt of
care and services through the Department of Vet-
erans Affairs.
(3) CONSULTATION.—The Secretary of Defense
and the Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall develop the
policy in consultation with the heads of other appro-
priate departments and agencies of the Federal Gov-
ernment and with appropriate non-governmental or-
ganizations having an expertise in matters relating to
the policy.
(4) UPDATE.—The Secretary of Defense and the
Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall jointly update the
policy on a periodic basis, but not less often than an-
nually, in order to incorporate in the policy, as ap-
propriate, the results of the reviews under subsections
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(b) and (c) and the best practices identified through
pilot programs under section 1654.
(b) REVIEW
OF CURRENT POLICIES
AND PROCE-
DURES.—
(1) REVIEW REQUIRED.—In developing the pol-
icy required by this section, the Secretary of Defense
and the Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall, to the ex-
tent necessary, jointly and separately conduct a re-
view of all policies and procedures of the Department
of Defense and the Department of Veterans Affairs
that apply to, or shall be covered by, the policy.
(2) PURPOSE.—The purpose of the review shall
be to identify the most effective and patient-oriented
approaches to care and management of covered
servicemembers for purposes of—
(A) incorporating such approaches into the
policy; and
(B) extending such approaches, where ap-
plicable, to care and management of other in-
jured or ill members of the Armed Forces and
veterans.
(3) ELEMENTS.—In conducting the review, the
Secretary of Defense and the Secretary of Veterans Af-
fairs shall—
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(A) identify among the policies and proce-
dures described in paragraph (1) best practices
in approaches to the care and management de-
scribed in that paragraph;
(B) identify among such policies and proce-
dures existing and potential shortfalls in such
care and management (including care and man-
agement of covered servicemembers on the tem-
porary disability retired list), and determine
means of addressing any shortfalls so identified;
(C) determine potential modifications of
such policies and procedures in order to ensure
consistency and uniformity among the military
departments and the regions of the Department
of Veterans Affairs in their application and dis-
charge; and
(D) develop recommendations for legislative
and administrative action necessary to imple-
ment the results of the review.
(4) DEADLINE
FOR
COMPLETION.—The review
shall be completed not later than 90 days after the
date of the enactment of this Act.
(c) CONSIDERATION
OF
FINDINGS, RECOMMENDA-
TIONS, AND PRACTICES.—In developing the policy required
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by this section, the Secretary of Defense and the Secretary
of Veterans Affairs shall take into account the following:
(1) The findings and recommendations of appli-
cable studies, reviews, reports, and evaluations that
address matters relating to the policy, including, but
not limited, to the following:
(A) The Independent Review Group on Re-
habilitative Care and Administrative Processes
at Walter Reed Army Medical Center and Na-
tional Naval Medical Center appointed by the
Secretary of Defense.
(B) The Secretary of Veterans Affairs Task
Force on Returning Global War on Terror He-
roes appointed by the President.
(C) The President’s Commission on Care for
America’s Returning Wounded Warriors.
(D) The Veterans’ Disability Benefits Com-
mission established by title XV of the National
Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2004
(Public Law 108–136; 117 Stat. 1676; 38 U.S.C.
1101 note).
(E) The President’s Commission on Vet-
erans’ Pensions, of 1956, chaired by General
Omar N. Bradley.
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(F) The Report of the Congressional Com-
mission on Servicemembers and Veterans Transi-
tion Assistance, of 1999, chaired by Anthony J.
Principi.
(G) The President’s Task Force to Improve
Health Care Delivery for Our Nation’s Veterans,
of March 2003.
(2) The experience and best practices of the De-
partment of Defense and the military departments on
matters relating to the policy.
(3) The experience and best practices of the De-
partment of Veterans Affairs on matters relating to
the policy.
(4) Such other matters as the Secretary of De-
fense and the Secretary of Veterans Affairs consider
appropriate.
(d) PARTICULAR ELEMENTS OF POLICY.—The policy
required by this section shall provide, in particular, the fol-
lowing:
(1) 
RESPONSIBILITY
FOR
COVERED
SERVICEMEMBERS
IN
MEDICAL
HOLD
OR
MEDICAL
HOLDOVER
STATUS
OR
ON
TEMPORARY
DISABILITY
RETIRED LIST.—Mechanisms to ensure responsibility
for covered servicemembers in medical hold or medical
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holdover status or on the temporary disability retired
list, including the following:
(A) Uniform standards for access of covered
servicemembers to non-urgent health care services
from the Department of Defense or other pro-
viders under the TRICARE program, with such
access to be—
(i) for follow-up care, within 2 days of
request of care;
(ii) for specialty care, within 3 days of
request of care;
(iii) for diagnostic referrals and stud-
ies, within 5 days of request; and
(iv) for surgery based on a physician’s
determination of medical necessity, within
14 days of request.
(B) Requirements for the assignment of ade-
quate numbers of personnel for the purpose of re-
sponsibility for and administration of covered
servicemembers in medical hold or medical hold-
over status or on the temporary disability retired
list.
(C) Requirements for the assignment of ade-
quate numbers of medical personnel and non-
medical personnel to roles and responsibilities
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for caring for and administering covered
servicemembers in medical hold or medical hold-
over status or on the temporary disability retired
list, and a description of the roles and respon-
sibilities of personnel so assigned.
(D) Guidelines for the location of care for
covered servicemembers in medical hold or med-
ical holdover status or on the temporary dis-
ability retired list, which guidelines shall address
the assignment of such servicemembers to care
and residential facilities closest to their duty sta-
tion or home of record or the location of their
designated caregiver at the earliest possible time.
(E) Criteria for work and duty assignments
of covered servicemembers in medical hold or
medical holdover status or on the temporary dis-
ability retired list, including a prohibition on
the assignment of duty to a servicemember which
is incompatible with the servicemember’s medical
condition.
(F) Guidelines for the provision of care and
counseling for eligible family members of covered
servicemembers in medical hold or medical hold-
over status or on the temporary disability retired
list.
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(G) Requirements for case management of
covered servicemembers in medical hold or med-
ical holdover status or on the temporary dis-
ability retired list, including qualifications for
personnel providing such case management.
(H) Requirements for uniform quality of
care 
and 
administration 
for 
all 
covered
servicemembers in medical hold or medical hold-
over status or on the temporary disability retired
list, whether members of the regular components
of the Armed Forces or members of the reserve
components of the Armed Forces.
(I) Standards for the conditions and acces-
sibility of residential facilities for covered
servicemembers in medical hold or medical hold-
over status or on the temporary disability retired
list who are in outpatient status, and for their
immediate family members.
(J) Requirements on the provision of trans-
portation 
and 
subsistence 
for 
covered
servicemembers in medical hold or medical hold-
over status or on the temporary disability retired
list, whether in inpatient status or outpatient
status, to facilitate obtaining needed medical
care and services.