Caring for Veterans and Strengthening National Security Act
Officially: “Caring for Veterans and Strengthening National Security Act” Read the full text
What it does
Read it in plain language
1Short title
This section would let the Act be called the Caring for Veterans and Strengthening National Security Act.
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1. Short title This Act may be cited as the Caring for Veterans and Strengthening National Security Act .
2Requirement to provide certain services to veterans in the Freely Associated States
This section is about providing services to veterans in the Freely Associated States, as stated in the bill's title and in this section's own heading. It would make three changes tied to title 38 of the United States Code. First, it would add a new provision to section 1724(f)(1) requiring that, not later than one year after this Act becomes law, the Secretary of Veterans Affairs furnish telehealth benefits and mail order pharmacy benefits to the veterans already described in subparagraph (A) of that same law, subject to the same agreements already referenced there. Second, it would change section 111(h)(1), which currently says the Secretary 'may' make certain beneficiary travel payments, so that the Secretary instead 'shall' make those payments, beginning not later than one year after this Act becomes law. Third, it would require the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to submit a report to Congress, not less often than quarterly, on the status of putting these two changes into effect and on the cost of doing so. The report would go to the Committee on Veterans' Affairs and the Committee on Appropriations of the Senate, and to the Committee on Veterans' Affairs and the Committee on Appropriations of the House of Representatives.
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2. Requirement to provide certain services to veterans in the Freely Associated States (a) Telehealth and mail order pharmacy benefits Section 1724(f)(1) of title 38, United States Code, is amended by adding at the end the following: (C) Not later than one year after the date of the enactment of the Caring for Veterans and Strengthening National Security Act , the Secretary shall furnish to veterans described in subparagraph (A), subject to agreements described in such subparagraph, telehealth benefits and mail order pharmacy benefits. . (b) Beneficiary travel Section 111(h)(1) of such title is amended by striking the Secretary may make payments and inserting beginning not later than one year after the date of the enactment of the Caring for Veterans and Strengthening National Security Act , the Secretary shall make payments . (c) Quarterly report (1) In general Not less frequently than quarterly, the Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall submit to the appropriate committees of Congress a report on the status of implementation of the amendments made by this section and the cost of such implementation. (2) Appropriate committees of Congress defined In this subsection, the term appropriate committees of Congress means— (A) the Committee on Veterans’ Affairs and the Committee on Appropriations of the Senate; and (B) the Committee on Veterans’ Affairs and the Committee on Appropriations of the House of Representatives.
3Extension of certain limits on payments of pension
This section would change section 5503(d)(7) of title 38, United States Code, by replacing the date January 31, 2033 with March 31, 2033. This would extend by two months the end date of the pension payment limit set out in that provision.
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3. Extension of certain limits on payments of pension Section 5503(d)(7) of title 38, United States Code, is amended by striking January 31, 2033 and inserting March 31, 2033 .
Where it is
In the Senate.