Parity in Veterans Health Care Rights Act

Bill: 116-s-1934
Sponsor: full_name: Sen. Tester, Jon [D-MT]
Introduced: 2019-06-20
Policy area: Armed Forces and National Security
Subjects: Disability assistance

Health care quality

Hospital care

Veterans' medical care

Veterans' pensions and compensation
Latest action: action_date: 2019-06-20
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Veterans' Affairs.

Summaries:
action_date: 2019-06-20
action_desc: Introduced in Senate
text: <p><b>Parity in Veterans Health Care Rights Act</b></p> <p>This bill expands eligibility for Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) benefits (including dependency and indemnity compensation) in situations where a veteran has been disabled or died as a result of medical treatment or vocational rehabilitation. </p> <p>Under the bill, the VA must award such benefits if a disability or death of a veteran was caused by hospital care, a medical service, or an extended care service furnished by a non-VA provider as part of the Veterans Community Care Program. The proximate cause of the disability or death in these situations must have been (1) carelessness, negligence, lack of proper skill, error in judgment, or a similar instance of fault on the part of the provider; or (2) an event that was not reasonably foreseeable.</p>

tv_txt: II 116th CONGRESS 1st Session S. 1934 IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES June 20, 2019 Mr. Tester (for himself, Mrs. Murray , and Mr. Brown ) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Veterans' Affairs A BILL To amend title 38, United States Code, to provide benefits from the Department of Veterans Affairs for persons disabled by treatment under the Veterans Community Care Program, and for other purposes.

1. Short title This Act may be cited as the Parity in Veterans Health Care Rights Act . 2. Benefits for persons disabled by treatment under Veterans Community Care Program Subsection (a) of section 1151 of title 38, United States Code, is amended— (1) by redesignating paragraph (2) as paragraph (3); (2) in paragraph (1)(B), by striking or at the end; and (3) by inserting after paragraph (1) the following new paragraph (2): (2) the disability or death was caused by hospital care, a medical service, or an extended care service furnished the veteran by a non-Department provider under section 1703 of this title and the proximate cause of the disability or death was— (A) carelessness, negligence, lack of proper skill, error in judgment, or similar instance of fault on the part of the provider in furnishing the hospital care, medical or surgical treatment, or examination; or (B) an event not reasonably foreseeable; or .