To amend title 38, United States Code, to provide eligibility for Department of Veterans Affairs health care for certain Filipino World War II veterans residing in the United States.

Requires (current law authorizes) the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to furnish hospital and nursing home care and medical services, on the same basis as provided to veterans, to a Commonwealth Army veteran or new Philippine Scout who resides in the United States as a citizen or lawfully admitted alien, provided that the Secretary first certifies that sufficient resources are available at the facilities at which the majority of such veterans or Scouts would receive such care and services.

[Congressional Bills 108th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 2352 Introduced in House (IH)]






108th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 2352

   To amend title 38, United States Code, to provide eligibility for 
 Department of Veterans Affairs health care for certain Filipino World 
             War II veterans residing in the United States.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                              June 5, 2003

  Mr. Simmons (for himself, Mr. Filner, Mr. Rodriguez, Mr. Evans, Mr. 
Cunningham, Mr. Abercrombie, Mr. Rohrabacher, Mrs. Davis of California, 
 Mr. Issa, and Mr. Smith of New Jersey) introduced the following bill; 
        which was referred to the Committee on Veterans' Affairs

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
   To amend title 38, United States Code, to provide eligibility for 
 Department of Veterans Affairs health care for certain Filipino World 
             War II veterans residing in the United States.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. ELIGIBILITY FOR DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS HEALTH CARE 
              OF CERTAIN FILIPINO WORLD WAR II VETERANS RESIDING IN THE 
              UNITED STATES.

    (a) Eligibility.--The text of section 1734 of title 38, United 
States Code, is amended to read as follows:
    ``(a) The Secretary shall furnish hospital and nursing home care 
and medical services to any individual described in subsection (b) in 
the same manner, and subject to the same terms and conditions, as apply 
to the furnishing of such care and services to individuals who are 
veterans as defined in section 101(2) of this title. Any disability of 
an individual described in subsection (b) that is a service-connected 
disability for purposes of this subchapter (as provided for under 
section 1735(2) of this title) shall be considered to be a service-
connected disability for purposes of furnishing care and services under 
the preceding sentence.
    ``(b) Subsection (a) applies to any individual who is a 
Commonwealth Army veteran or new Philippine Scout and who--
            ``(1) is residing in the United States; and
            ``(2) is a citizen of the United States or an alien 
        lawfully admitted to the United States for permanent 
        residence.''.
    (b) Limitation.--(1) The amendment made by subsection (a) shall 
take effect on the date on which the Secretary of Veterans Affairs 
submits to the Committees on Veterans' Affairs of the Senate and House 
of Representatives and publishes in the Federal Register a 
certification described in paragraph (2).
    (2) A certification referred to in paragraph (1) is a certification 
that sufficient resources are available for the fiscal year during 
which the certification is submitted to carry out section 1734 of title 
38, United States Code, as amended by such amendment, during that 
fiscal year at each significantly affected health care facility of the 
Department of Veterans Affairs.
    (3) For purposes of paragraph (2), the term ``significantly 
affected health care facilty'' means a health care facility at which, 
as determined by the Secretary, it is reasonably foreseeable that the 
implementation of the provisions of section 1734 of title 38, United 
States Code, as amended by subsection (a), will result in a significant 
increase in the use of health care resources due to the number of 
veterans described in subsection (b) of that section who are considered 
to be likely to seek hospital or nursing home care or medical services, 
as authorized by subsection (a) of that section, at that facility.
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