Military Sexual Trauma Claims Administration Reform and Eligibility Act

Military Sexual Trauma Claims Administration Reform and Eligibility Act - Establishes a presumption, for the purpose of determining a veteran's eligibility for disability compensation, that a veteran's mental health condition was incurred in or aggravated by military sexual trauma if the veteran so certifies, despite a lack of evidence that such condition or trauma occurred during such service. Makes that presumption rebuttable.

Defines "military sexual trauma" as psychological trauma that, in the judgment of a mental health professional, resulted from a physical assault or battery of a sexual nature or sexual harassment that occurred while the veteran was serving on active duty or active duty for training in the Armed Forces.

[Congressional Bills 113th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 4344 Introduced in House (IH)]

113th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 4344

 To amend title 38, United States Code, to establish a presumption of 
  service connection for mental health conditions related to military 
                             sexual trauma.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             March 27, 2014

Ms. Titus (for herself, Ms. DeLauro, Ms. Pingree of Maine, Ms. Brown of 
    Florida, Ms. Kuster, Ms. Brownley of California, Ms. Frankel of 
 Florida, Mr. Lowenthal, Mr. Tonko, Mrs. Napolitano, Mr. O'Rourke, and 
 Ms. Jackson Lee) introduced the following bill; which was referred to 
                   the Committee on Veterans' Affairs

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
 To amend title 38, United States Code, to establish a presumption of 
  service connection for mental health conditions related to military 
                             sexual trauma.

    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 ``Military Sexual Trauma Claims 
Administration Reform and Eligibility Act''.

SEC. 2. PRESUMPTION OF SERVICE CONNECTION FOR MENTAL HEALTH CONDITIONS 
              RELATED TO MILITARY SEXUAL TRAUMA.

    (a) Presumption.--
            (1) In general.--Subchapter II of chapter 11 of title 38, 
        United States Code, is amended by adding at the end the 
        following new section:

``SEC. 1119. PRESUMPTION OF SERVICE CONNECTION FOR MENTAL HEALTH 
              CONDITIONS RELATED TO MILITARY SEXUAL TRAUMA.

    ``(a) In General.--For purposes of section 1110 of this title, and 
subject to section 1113 of this title, a mental health condition of a 
veteran that a veteran certifies to the Secretary as being incurred in 
or aggravated by military sexual trauma shall be considered to have 
been incurred in or aggravated by the service of the veteran, 
notwithstanding that there is no record of evidence of such mental 
health condition or such military sexual trauma occurring during such 
service.
    ``(b) Military Sexual Trauma Defined.--In this section, the term 
`military sexual trauma' means, with respect to a veteran, 
psychological trauma, which in the judgment of a mental health 
professional, resulted from a physical assault of a sexual nature, 
battery of a sexual nature, or sexual harassment (as defined in section 
1720D of this title) which occurred during a period of serving in the 
Armed Forces on active duty or active duty for training.''.
            (2) Clerical amendment.--The table of sections at the 
        beginning of chapter 11 of such title is amended by inserting 
        after the item relating to section 1118 the following new item:

``1119. Presumption of service connection for mental health conditions 
                            related to military sexual trauma.''.
    (b) Presumption Rebuttable.--Section 1113 of title 38, United 
States Code, is amended by striking ``or 1118'' each place it appears 
and inserting ``1118, or 1119''.
    (c) Presumption During Peacetime Service.--Section 1137 of title 
38, United States Code, is amended by striking ``and 1113'' and 
inserting ``1113, and 1119''.
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