Veterans Emergency Care Reimbursement Act of 2021
Bill: S.2692 | Sponsor: Sen. Blumenthal, Richard (D-CT)
Policy area: Armed Forces and National Security

Summary:
Veterans Emergency Care Reimbursement Act of 2021
This bill modifies the limitation on reimbursement for emergency treatment of amounts a veteran owes to a third party or owes under a health plan contract. Specifically, the bill allows the Department of Veterans Affairs to reimburse copayments of $100 or more and excludes deductibles and coinsurance from the limitation.
This modification must apply with respect to any reimbursement claim for emergency treatment furnished on or after February 1, 2010, including claims submitted by a member of the certified class seeking relief in Wolfe v. McDonough.

To amend title 38, United States Code, to modify the limitation on 
reimbursement for emergency treatment of amounts owed to a third party 
 or for which the veteran is responsible under a health-plan contract.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Veterans Emergency Care 
Reimbursement Act of 2021''.

SEC. 2. MODIFICATION OF LIMITATION ON REIMBURSEMENT FOR EMERGENCY 
              TREATMENT OF AMOUNTS OWED TO A THIRD PARTY OR FOR WHICH 
              THE VETERAN IS RESPONSIBLE UNDER A HEALTH-PLAN CONTRACT.

    (a) In General.--Section 1725(c)(4)(D) of title 38, United States 
Code, is amended--
            (1) by striking ``The Secretary'' and inserting ``(i) The 
        Secretary'';
            (2) in clause (i), as designated by paragraph (1), by 
        striking ``or similar payment'' and inserting ``of less than 
        $100''; and
            (3) by adding at the end the following new clause:
    ``(ii) In this subparagraph, the term `copayment' means a fixed 
amount paid by an individual for a covered health service received by 
the individual and does not include any amount paid for a deductible or 
coinsurance.''.
    (b) Application of Amendment.--The amendments made by subsection 
(a) shall apply with respect to any reimbursement claim under section 
1725 of such title submitted to the Department of Veterans Affairs for 
emergency treatment furnished on or after February 1, 2010, including 
any such claim submitted by a member of the certified class seeking 
relief in Wolfe v. McDonough, No. 18-6091 (U.S. Vet. App.).
    (c) Definitions.--In this section:
            (1) Emergency treatment; health-plan contract.--The terms 
        ``emergency treatment'' and ``health-plan contract'' have the 
        meanings given those terms in section 1725(f) of title 38, 
        United States Code.
            (2) Reimbursement claim.--The term ``reimbursement claim'' 
        includes any claim by a veteran for reimbursement of a 
        copayment, deductible, coinsurance, or any other type of cost 
        share for emergency treatment furnished to the veteran in a 
        non-Department of Veterans Affairs facility and made by a 
        veteran who had coverage under a health-plan contract, 
        including any claim for the reasonable value of emergency 
        treatment that was rejected or denied by the Department of 
        Veterans Affairs, whether the rejection or denial was final or 
        not.
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