Veterans Road to Health Care Act of 2005

Veterans Road to Health Care Act of 2005 - Directs the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to pay the travel expenses of a veteran whose travel is in connection with treatment or care for a non-service-connected disability at a non-Department of Veterans Affairs facility if the treatment or care: (1) is provided upon the recommendation of Department medical personnel; and (2) is not available at the Department medical center or clinic at which the recommendation is made.

Requires the Secretary, in calculating travel expenses under the Veterans Beneficiary Travel Program, to utilize the current Federal mileage reimbursement rates for the use on official business of privately owned vehicles.

[Congressional Bills 109th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 3147 Introduced in House (IH)]






109th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 3147

    To amend title 38, United States Code, to improve the Veterans 
   Beneficiary Travel Program of the Department of Veterans Affairs.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             June 30, 2005

Ms. Ginny Brown-Waite of Florida (for herself, Mr. Green of Wisconsin, 
Mr. Owens, Mr. Foley, Ms. Harris, Mr. Fitzpatrick of Pennsylvania, and 
 Mr. Jones of North Carolina) introduced the following bill; which was 
             referred to the Committee on Veterans' Affairs

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
    To amend title 38, United States Code, to improve the Veterans 
   Beneficiary Travel Program of the Department of Veterans Affairs.

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

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Veterans Road to Health Care Act of 
2005''.

SEC. 2. IMPROVEMENT OF VETERANS BENEFICIARY TRAVEL PROGRAM.

    (a) Payments for Certain Additional Medical Care.--
            (1) In general.--Section 111(b)(1) of title 38, United 
        States Code, is amended by adding at the end the following:
            ``(G) A veteran whose travel is in connection with 
        treatment or care for a non-service-connected disability at a 
        non-Department facility, if the treatment or care--
                    ``(i) is provided upon the recommendation of 
                medical personnel of a Department medical center or 
                clinic; and
                    ``(ii) is not available at the Department medical 
                center or clinic at which such recommendation is 
                made.''.
            (2) Effective date.--Subparagraph (G) of section 111(b)(1) 
        of title 38, United States Code, as added by paragraph (1), 
        shall apply only with respect to travel performed on or after 
        the later of--
                    (A) October 1, 2005; or
                    (B) the date of the enactment of this Act.
    (b) Calculation of Expenses of Travel.--
            (1) In general.--Notwithstanding any other provision of 
        law, in calculating expenses of travel for purposes of the 
        Veterans Beneficiary Travel Program, the Secretary of Veterans 
        Affairs shall use the mileage reimbursement rates for the use 
        of privately owned vehicles by Government employees on official 
        business, as prescribed by the Administrator of General 
        Services under section 5707(b) of title 5, United States Code.
            (2) Definition.--In this subsection, the term ``Veterans 
        Beneficiary Travel Program'' means the program of payment or 
        reimbursement for necessary expenses of travel of veterans and 
        their beneficiaries prescribed under sections 111 and 1728 of 
        title 38, United States Code, and under any other provision of 
        law administered by the Secretary of Veterans Affairs for 
        payment or reimbursement for such expenses of travel.
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