Title: Veterans Residential Care Choice Act
Policy area: Armed Forces and National Security

Summary:
Veterans Residential Care Choice Act
This bill authorizes the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) to place certain veterans in licensed or certified residential care facilities at the request of such veterans. Specifically, the bill concerns veterans to whom the VA is required to provide domiciliary, nursing home, adult day health, or hospital care. Licensed or certified residential care facilities include, but are not limited to, assisted living facilities, basic care facilities, community residences, enriched housing programs, homes for the aged, personal care homes, and shared housing establishments.
Under the bill, the VA may enter into a contract or agreement with a licensed or certified residential care facility if the cost of the facility is less than the cost of providing care to such veterans through any other available option.

[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 4985 Introduced in House (IH)]

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116th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 4985

   To amend title 38, United States Code, to direct the Secretary of 
  Veterans Affairs to furnish, at the request of an eligible veteran, 
  nursing home care and hospital care at State licensed or certified 
                      residential care facilities.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                            November 5, 2019

Ms. DeLauro (for herself, Mr. Himes, Mr. Larson of Connecticut, and Mr. 
  Courtney) 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 furnish, at the request of an eligible veteran, 
  nursing home care and hospital care at State licensed or certified 
                      residential care facilities.

    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 Residential Care Choice 
Act''.

SEC. 2. DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS PROVISION OF NURSING HOME CARE 
              AND HOSPITAL CARE AT STATE LICENSED OR CERTIFIED 
              RESIDENTIAL CARE FACILITIES.

    (a) In General.--Subchapter II of chapter 17 of title 38, United 
States Code, is amended by adding at the end the following new section:
``Sec. 1720J. State licensed or certified residential care facilities
    ``(a) In General.--At the request of an eligible veteran for whom 
the Secretary is required to provide domiciliary, nursing home, adult 
day health, or hospital care under this chapter, or whom the Secretary 
determines is in need of such care, the Secretary may place the veteran 
in a State licensed or certified residential care facility that meets 
Department standards, at the expense of the United States, pursuant to 
a contract or agreement entered into between the Secretary and the 
facility for such purpose, if the cost of providing such care to such 
veteran through such facility is less than the cost of providing such 
care to the veteran through any other available option. A veteran who 
is placed in such a facility under this section shall agree, as a 
condition of such placement, to accept home health services furnished 
by the Secretary under section 1717 of this title.
    ``(b) Eligibility.--For purposes of this section, an eligible 
veteran is a veteran who is eligible for hospital care or medical 
services under section 1710 of this title.
    ``(c) Definition of State Licensed or Certified Residential Care 
Facility.--In this section, the term `State licensed or certified 
residential care facility' means any assisted living facility, basic 
care facility, community residence, enriched housing program, home for 
the aged, personal care home, shared housing establishment, or other 
similar licensed or certified facility.''.
    (b) Clerical Amendment.--The table of sections at the beginning of 
such chapter is amended by adding at the end of the items relating to 
such subchapter the following new item:

``1720J. State licensed or certified residential care facilities.''.
    (c) Applicability.--Section 1720J of title 38, United States Code, 
as added by subsection (a), shall take effect on the date of the 
enactment of this Act and shall apply with respect to any veteran who 
is eligible under subsection (b) of that section, including such a 
veteran who, as of the date of the enactment of this Act, resides in a 
State licensed or certified residential care facility, as such term is 
defined in subsection (c) of such section.
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