Title: Veterans' Access to Child Care Act
Policy area: Armed Forces and National Security

Summary:
Veterans' Access to Child Care Act
This bill directs the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) to provide child care assistance to an eligible veteran for any period that the veteran (1) receives covered health care services at a VA facility, and (2) is required to travel to and return from such facility for the receipt of such services.
The bill defines covered health care services to mean regular mental health care services, intensive mental health care services, or such other intensive health care services that the VA determines would be more accessible to veterans if child care assistance is provided.
The term eligible veteran is defined as a veteran who is the primary caretaker of a child and who is (1) receiving covered health care services from the VA, or (2) needs and would receive such services from the VA but for the lack of child care.
The bill provides for various types of child care assistance, as the VA considers appropriate.


[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 840 Introduced in House (IH)]

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[[Page 1]]


116th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 840

   To amend title 38, United States Code, to direct the Secretary of 
Veterans Affairs to provide child care assistance to veterans receiving 
    certain medical services provided by the Department of Veterans 
                                Affairs.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                            January 29, 2019

 Ms. Brownley of California (for herself and Mr. Higgins of New York) 
 introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on 
                           Veterans' Affairs

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
   To amend title 38, United States Code, to direct the Secretary of 
Veterans Affairs to provide child care assistance to veterans receiving 
    certain medical services provided by the Department of Veterans 
                                Affairs.

    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' Access to Child Care 
Act''.

[[Page 2]]

SEC. 2. CHILD CARE ASSISTANCE FOR VETERANS RECEIVING MENTAL HEALTH CARE 
              AND OTHER INTENSIVE HEALTH CARE SERVICES PROVIDED BY THE 
              DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS.

    (a) In General.--Subchapter III of chapter 17 of title 38, United 
States Code, is amended by adding at the end the following new section:
``Sec. 1730D. Child care assistance for veterans receiving mental 
              health care and other intensive health care services
    ``(a) In General.--The Secretary shall provide child care 
assistance to an eligible veteran for any period that the veteran--
            ``(1) receives covered health care services at a facility 
        of the Department; and
            ``(2) is required travel to and return from such facility 
        for the receipt of such health care services.
    ``(b) Child Care Assistance.--(1) Child care assistance provided 
under this section may include any of the following:
            ``(A) A stipend for the payment of child care offered by a 
        licensed child care center (either directly or through a 
        voucher program) which shall be, to the extent practicable, 
        modeled after the Depart

[[Page 3]]

        ment of Veterans Affairs Child Care Subsidy Program established 
        pursuant to section 590 of title 40.
            ``(B) Direct provision of child care at an on-site facility 
        of the Department.
            ``(C) A payment made directly to a private child care 
        agency.
            ``(D) A collaboration with a facility or program of another 
        Federal department or agency.
            ``(E) Such other form of assistance as the Secretary 
        considers appropriate.
    ``(2) In the case that child care assistance under this section is 
provided as a stipend under paragraph (1)(A), such stipend shall cover 
the full cost of such child care.
    ``(c) Definitions.--In this section:
            ``(1) The term `eligible veteran' means a veteran who--
                    ``(A) is the primary caretaker of a child or 
                children; and
                    ``(B) is--
                            ``(i) receiving covered health care 
                        services from the Department; or
                            ``(ii) in need of covered health care 
                        services, and but for lack of child care 
                        services, would receive such covered health 
                        care services from the Department.

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            ``(2) The term `covered health care services' means--
                    ``(A) regular mental health care services;
                    ``(B) intensive mental health care services; or
                    ``(C) such other intensive health care services 
                that the Secretary determines that provision of 
                assistance to the veteran to obtain child care would 
                improve access to such health care services by the 
                veteran.''.
    (b) Clerical Amendment.--The table of sections at the beginning of 
such chapter is amended by inserting after the item relating to section 
1730C the following new item:

``1730D. Child care assistance for veterans receiving mental health 
                            care and other intensive health care 
                            services.''.
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