Title: Veterans Health Care Freedom Act
Policy area: Armed Forces and National Security

Summary:
Veterans Health Care Freedom Act
This bill amends the Veterans Access, Choice, and Accountability Act of 2014 to make the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Choice Program permanent.
Eligibility requirements under the program are revised.
The VA shall submit an annual report to Congress that includes: (1) any increase or decrease in the number of veterans seeking hospital care or medical services at each VA medical facility, and (2) facility budget recommendations based upon such increase or decrease.

[Congressional Bills 115th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 2037 Introduced in House (IH)]

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115th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 2037

To amend the Veterans Access, Choice, and Accountability Act of 2014 to 
 expand and make permanent the Veterans Choice Program, and for other 
                               purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             April 6, 2017

  Mr. Lance introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
                     Committee on Veterans' Affairs

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
To amend the Veterans Access, Choice, and Accountability Act of 2014 to 
 expand and make permanent the Veterans Choice Program, and for other 
                               purposes.

    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 Health Care Freedom Act''.

SEC. 2. MODIFICATION TO VETERANS CHOICE PROGRAM.

    (a) Expansion.--
            (1) In general.--Subsection (b) of section 101 of the 
        Veterans Access, Choice, and Accountability Act of 2014 (38 
        U.S.C. 1701 note) is amended to read as follows:
    ``(b) Eligible Veterans.--A veteran is an eligible veteran for 
purposes of this section if the veteran is enrolled in the patient 
enrollment system of the Department of Veterans Affairs established and 
operated under section 1705 of title 38, United States Code, including 
any such veteran who has not received hospital care or medical services 
from the Department and has contacted the Department seeking an initial 
appointment from the Department for the receipt of such care or 
services.''.
            (2) Choice of provider.--Such section is amended--
                    (A) in subsection (a)--
                            (i) by striking paragraph (2); and
                            (ii) by redesignating paragraph (3) as 
                        paragraph (2); and
                    (B) by striking subsection (c) and inserting the 
                following new subsection (c):
    ``(c) Choice of Provider.--An eligible veteran who receives 
hospital care or medical services under this section may select a 
provider of such care or services from among the entities specified in 
paragraph (1)(B) that are accessible to the veteran.''.
            (3) Conforming amendments.--Such section is further 
        amended--
                    (A) in subsection (f)(1), by striking ``subsection 
                (b)(1)'' and inserting ``subsection (b)'';
                    (B) in subsection (g)(3), by striking ``under 
                subparagraph (B), (C), or (D) of subsection (b)(2)''; 
                and
                    (C) in subsection (q)(2)(A)--
                            (i) by striking ``, disaggregated by--'' 
                        and inserting a period; and
                            (ii) by striking clauses (i) through (iv).
    (b) Permanent Program.--
            (1) Removal of sunset.--Subsection (p) of such section is 
        amended to read as follows:
    ``(p) Authority To Furnish Care and Services.--The Secretary may 
furnish care and services under this section subject to the 
availability of funds in the Veterans Choice Fund established by 
section 802 or otherwise appropriated to carry out this section.''.
            (2) Conforming amendments.--Section 101 of such Act is 
        further amended--
                    (A) in subsection (i)(2), by striking ``is 
                authorized to carry out this section pursuant to 
                subsection (p)'' and inserting ``carries out this 
                section''; and
                    (B) in subsection (q)(2), as amended by subsection 
                (a)(2)(D) of this section, by striking subparagraph 
                (F).
    (c) Annual Reports.--Not later than one year after the date of the 
enactment of this Act, and annually thereafter, the Secretary of 
Veterans Affairs shall submit to Congress a report that includes the 
following:
            (1) With respect to each medical facility of the Department 
        of Veterans Affairs, any increase or decrease in the number of 
        veterans seeking hospital care or medical services at such 
        facility during the one-year period covered by the report.
            (2) In light of the increase or decrease of veterans 
        seeking hospital care or medical services at each medical 
        facility of the Department as identified under paragraph (1), 
        recommendations by the Secretary with respect to the proposed 
        budget for such facility for the fiscal year following the date 
        of the report.
            (3) How the Secretary is ensuring compliance with all 
        requirements of chapter 39 of title 31, United States Code 
        (commonly referred to as the ``Prompt Payment Act''), 
        including, for the one-year period covered by the report--
                    (A) the average amount of time taken by the 
                Secretary to pay a non-Department health care provider 
                after receiving an invoice; and
                    (B) a description of each instance in which the 
                Secretary paid interest to such a non-Department health 
                care provider pursuant to such chapter 39.
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