H.R. 9237

Take Care of America’s Veterans Act

Sponsor: Mike Bost

30 cosponsors
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Official summary

Written by the Congressional Research Service.

Take Care of America's Veterans Act

This bill addresses veterans’ benefits, health care, counseling, Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) personnel, VA infrastructure, and the Veterans Community Care Program (VCCP).

The bill modifies various compensation programs for veterans, including by (1) allowing concurrent receipt of disability compensation and military retired pay for certain retirees with a combat-related disability, (2) extending entitlement for various benefits and services to remarried surviving spouses, (3) increasing the rate of dependency and indemnity compensation, and (4) establishing a supplemental monthly allowance for certain disabled veterans.

The bill also addresses VA education and training benefits, including by (1) modifying which independent study programs are covered under veterans’ educational assistance benefits, (2) requiring Transition Assistance Program counseling to include a presentation about VA benefits, and (3) increasing the housing allowance rate for individuals pursuing apprenticeships.

The bill revises health care provisions, including by (1) expanding support and assistance provided to family caregivers, (2) extending the Staff Sergeant Parker Gordon Fox Suicide Prevention Grant Program, and (3) expanding the scope of VA mental health research.

Among other elements, the bill

  • revises VA disability ratings for sleep apnea and tinnitus;
  • expands eligibility for a memorial headstone or marker for the spouse, surviving spouse, child, or dependent of a veteran or member of the Armed Forces;
  • addresses the administration of the VCCP and codifies the eligibility standards;
  • establishes a standardized screening process for priority or routine admission to certain mental health care programs; and
  • addresses VA personnel, hiring, and infrastructure matters.

Text of the bill

Expand all

I Compensation

II Education and Economic Opportunity

III Health Care

Sec. 323. Lactation spaces in medical centers of the Department of Veterans Affairs

(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:

Text this section adds to the law

1720M. Lactation spaces in medical centers of the Department

(a) Lactation space required. The Secretary shall ensure that each medical center of the Department contains a lactation space.

(b) No unauthorized entry. Nothing in this section shall be construed to authorize an individual to enter a medical center of the Department or portion thereof that the individual is not otherwise authorized to enter.

(c) Lactation space defined. In this section, the term lactation space means a hygienic place, other than a bathroom, that—

(1) is shielded from view;

(2) is free from intrusion;

(3) is accessible to disabled individuals (including such individuals who use wheelchairs);

(4) contains a chair and a working surface;

(5) is easy to locate;

(6) is clearly identified with signage; and

(7) is available for use by women veterans and members of the public to express breast milk.

(b) Clerical amendment. The table of sections at the beginning of such chapter is amended by inserting after the item related to section 1720L the following new item:

Text this section adds to the law

1720M. Lactation spaces in medical centers of the Department.

(c) Implementation. The Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall ensure that—

(1) not later than two years after the date of the enactment of this Act, not fewer than 80 percent of medical centers of the Department of Veterans Affairs are in compliance with section 1720M of title 38, United States Code, as added by subsection (a); and

(2) not later than three years after such date of enactment, all medical centers of the Department are in compliance with such section.

(d) Report

(1) In general. Not later than one year after the date of the enactment of this Act, and annually thereafter, the Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall submit to the Committee on Veterans’ Affairs of the Senate and the Committee on Veterans’ Affairs of the House of Representatives a report on the progress of the Secretary in meeting the requirements under section 1720M of title 38, United States Code, as added by subsection (a), including—

(A) a list of which medical centers of the Department of Veterans Affairs currently have a lactation space;

(B) a list of which medical centers of the Department do not have a lactation space; and

(C) for each medical center listed under subparagraph (B), a description of actions the Department has taken to design and plan a lactation space and a timeline for such lactation space to be fully functional and open for use within the time periods specified under subsection (c).

(2) Termination. The Secretary is not required to submit a report under paragraph (1) on or after the date on which the Secretary confirms in a report submitted under such paragraph that each medical center of the Department contains a lactation space.

IV Organization

V Memorial Affairs

VI Veterans’ Assuring Critical Care Expansions to Support Servicemembers

A Improvement of Veterans Community Care Program

B Mental Health Treatment Programs

C Staffing Matters

D Optimization of Workforce

E Veterans Infrastructure and Transformation

F Other Health Care Matters