Fulfilling Our Duty to America's Veterans Act of 2005

Bill: 109-s-13
Sponsor: Sen. Akaka, Daniel K. [D-HI]
Introduced: 2005-01-24 in the Senate
Policy area: Armed Forces and National Security
Subjects: Access to health care
Administrative procedure
Afghanistan
Ambulatory care
Armed forces abroad
Case management
Coinsurance
Community health services
Congress
Congressional investigations
Congressional reporting requirements
Counseling
Defense budgets
Department of Defense
Department of Veterans Affairs
Disabled
Drugs
Economics and Public Finance
Education
Electronic data interchange
Electronic government information
Environmental Protection
Epidemiology
Families
Finance and Financial Sector
Government Operations and Politics
Governmental investigations
Health
Health information systems
Higher education
Indexing (Economic policy)
Iraq
Iraq compilation
Labor and Employment
Law
Legislation
Legislative resolutions
Medical records
Medical research
Mental health services
Middle East and North Africa
Military dependents
Military medicine
Military operations
Military pensions
Pharmacies
Physical examinations
Post-traumatic stress disorder
Psychiatrists
Science, Technology, Communications
Social Welfare
South Asia
Student aid
Veterans' disability compensation
Veterans' education
Veterans' medical care
Veterans' rehabilitation
Vocational rehabilitation

Summary:
action_date: 2005-01-24
text: 
Fulfilling Our Duty to America's Veterans Act of 2005 - States that, upon enactment, funding for the programs, functions, and activities of the Veterans Health Administration shall be provided through a combination of discretionary and mandatory funding in order to ensure access to health care for all veterans. Requires: (1) the Comptroller General to report to Congress on the extent to which such funding has achieved its objectives; and (2) congressional consideration of such report via the joint resolution process.
 
Provides for: (1) post-traumatic stress disorder treatment for veterans of service in Afghanistan and Iraq and the Global War on Terrorism; and (2) a review by each military department of the sufficiency of its military health care programs.
 
Authorizes Department of Veterans Affairs pharmacies to dispense medications to Medicare-eligible veterans on prescriptions written by private practitioners.
 
Retired Pay Restoration Act of 2005 - Requires the full concurrent payment of military retired pay and service-connected disability compensation.
 
Requires a joint report from the Secretaries of Defense and Veterans Affairs on the development of interoperable electronic records for military personnel and veterans that are utilized by both departments. Expands preseparation physical examination and counseling requirements. Authorizes such Secretaries to carry out epidemiological studies relating to health conditions that develop as a result of occupational exposure during military service. Requires such Secretaries to develop protocols to facilitate the sharing of members' and veterans' duty assignments and medical conditions information.
 
Increased Government Commitment to Veterans' Education Act - Provides for the: (1) exclusion of basic pay contributions for participation in veterans' educational assistance from computations used to determine eligibility for student financial aid; and (2) opportunity to enroll in a basic educational assistance program for certain individuals who participated, or were eligible to participate, in the post-Vietnam era veterans' educational assistance program.


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2005-01-24
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Veterans' Affairs. (text of measure as introduced: CR S169-174)
action_date: 2005-01-24
text: Sponsor introductory remarks on measure. (CR S168-169)
action_date: 2005-01-24
text: Introduced in Senate