Deborah Sampson Act
This bill directs the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) to carry out a three-year pilot program to assess the feasibility of peer-to-peer assistance for women veterans who are separating or newly separated from the Armed Forces), with emphasis placed on women who suffered service-related sexual trauma or who are at risk of becoming homeless.
Additionally, the VA shall:
The bill makes funds available for: (1) primary care and emergency care clinicians' participation in the women veterans health care mini-residency program, and (2) organizations that focus on providing assistance to women veterans and their families.
The bill: (1) provides for reintegration and readjustment services to veterans and family members in group retreat settings, and (2) expresses the sense of Congress that the VA's motto should be more inclusive.
[Congressional Bills 115th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 2452 Introduced in House (IH)]
<DOC>
115th CONGRESS
1st Session
H. R. 2452
To amend title 38, United States Code, to improve the benefits and
services provided by the Department of Veterans Affairs to women
veterans, and for other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
May 16, 2017
Ms. Esty of Connecticut (for herself, Ms. McSally, Mr. Walz, Mrs.
Walorski, Mr. Takano, Mrs. Radewagen, Ms. Brownley of California, Miss
Gonzalez-Colon of Puerto Rico, Ms. Kuster of New Hampshire, Mr. Lance,
Mr. O'Rourke, Mr. Costello of Pennsylvania, Miss Rice of New York, Mr.
Sablan, Ms. Gabbard, Ms. Pingree, Mr. Moulton, and Mr. Peters)
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 benefits and
services provided by the Department of Veterans Affairs to women
veterans, and for other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS.
(a) Short Title.--This Act may be cited as the ``Deborah Sampson
Act''.
(b) Table of Contents.--The table of contents for this Act is as
follows:
Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents.
TITLE I--PEER-TO-PEER ASSISTANCE
Sec. 101. Pilot program on peer-to-peer assistance for women veterans
separating or newly separated from service
in the Armed Forces.
Sec. 102. Expansion of capabilities of Women Veterans Call Center to
include text messaging.
Sec. 103. Provision of reintegration and readjustment services to
veterans and family members in group
retreat settings.
TITLE II--LEGAL AND SUPPORTIVE SERVICES
Sec. 201. Department of Veterans Affairs public-private partnership on
legal services for women veterans.
Sec. 202. Additional amount for Supportive Services for Veteran
Families grant program to support
organizations that have a focus on
providing assistance to women veterans and
their families.
TITLE III--NEWBORN CARE
Sec. 301. Extension of period of eligibility for care for newborn
children from the Department of Veterans
Affairs.
Sec. 302. Source of amounts for medically necessary travel paid by the
Department of Veterans Affairs in
connection with care for newborn children.
TITLE IV--ELIMINATING BARRIERS TO ACCESS
Sec. 401. Women Veterans Retrofit Initiative.
Sec. 402. Staffing of women's health primary care providers at medical
facilities of the Department of Veterans
Affairs.
Sec. 403. Staffing of Women Veteran Program Manager program at medical
centers of the Department of Veterans
Affairs.
Sec. 404. Additional funding for primary care and emergency care
clinicians in Women Veterans Health Care
Mini-Residency Program.
TITLE V--DATA COLLECTION AND REPORTING
Sec. 501. Requirement for collection and analysis of data on Department
of Veterans Affairs benefits and services
and disaggregation of such data by sex and
minority status.
Sec. 502. Report on availability of prosthetics for women veterans from
the Department of Veterans Affairs.
Sec. 503. Requirement for Department of Veterans Affairs Internet
website to provide information on services
available to women veterans.
Sec. 504. Sense of Congress on changing motto of Department of Veterans
Affairs to be more inclusive.
TITLE I--PEER-TO-PEER ASSISTANCE
SEC. 101. PILOT PROGRAM ON PEER-TO-PEER ASSISTANCE FOR WOMEN VETERANS
SEPARATING OR NEWLY SEPARATED FROM SERVICE IN THE ARMED
FORCES.
(a) Pilot Program Required.--Commencing not later than January 1,
2018, the Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall carry out a pilot program
to assess the feasibility and advisability of facilitating peer-to-peer
assistance for women veterans who are separating or newly separated
from service in the Armed Forces.
(b) Peer-to-Peer Assistance.--Peer-to-peer assistance under the
pilot program shall consist of the following:
(1) Provision of information about services and benefits
provided under laws administered by the Secretary of Veterans
Affairs.
(2) Employment mentoring.
(c) Duration.--The Secretary shall carry out the pilot program
during the three-year period beginning on the date of the commencement
of the pilot program.
(d) Emphasis.--In carrying out the pilot program, the Secretary
shall emphasize facilitating peer-to-peer assistance for women
described in subsection (a) who suffered sexual trauma while serving in
the Armed Forces, have post-traumatic stress disorder or suffer from
another mental health condition, or are otherwise at risk of becoming
homeless.
(e) Outreach.--As part of the pilot program, the Secretary conduct
a program of outreach to inform women veterans about the pilot program
and the assistance available under the pilot program.
(f) Coordination.--
(1) With government and community organizations.--Under the
pilot program, the Secretary shall facilitate engagement and
coordination with such community organizations, State and local
governments, institutions of higher education, chambers of
commerce, local business organizations, organizations that
provide legal assistance, and other organizations as the
Secretary considers appropriate to facilitate the transition of
women described in subsection (a) into their communities.
(2) With transition assistance program.--To the degree
practicable, the Secretary shall coordinate facilitation of
assistance under the pilot program with the program carried out
under section 1144 of title 10, United States Code.
(g) Authorization of Appropriations.--
(1) In general.--There are authorized to be appropriated to
the Secretary such funds as may be necessary to carry out the
pilot program.
(2) Limitation.--Of the amounts appropriated under
paragraph (1), the Secretary may not expend more than $100,000
on training and developing training materials for peer
counselors.
SEC. 102. EXPANSION OF CAPABILITIES OF WOMEN VETERANS CALL CENTER TO
INCLUDE TEXT MESSAGING.
The Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall expand the capabilities of
the Women Veterans Call Center of the Department of Veterans Affairs to
include a text messaging capability.
SEC. 103. PROVISION OF REINTEGRATION AND READJUSTMENT SERVICES TO
VETERANS AND FAMILY MEMBERS IN GROUP RETREAT SETTINGS.
(a) In General.--Section 1712A of title 38, United States Code, is
amended--
(1) in subsection (a)(1)(B)--
(A) in clause (ii), by redesignating subclauses (I)
and (II) as items (aa) and (bb);
(B) by redesignating clauses (i) and (ii) as
subclauses (I) and (II); and
(C) in the matter preceding subclause (I), as
redesignated by subparagraph (B), by striking
``Counseling'' and inserting ``(i) Counseling''; and
(D) by adding at the end the following new clause:
``(ii)(I) Except as provided in subclause (IV), counseling
furnished to an individual under subparagraph (A) may include
reintegration and readjustment services described in subclause (II)
furnished in group retreat settings.
``(II) Reintegration and readjustment services described in this
subclause are the following:
``(aa) Information on reintegration of the individual into
family, employment, and community.
``(bb) Financial counseling.
``(cc) Occupational counseling.
``(dd) Information and counseling on stress reduction.
``(ee) Information and counseling on conflict resolution.
``(ff) Such other information and counseling as the
Secretary considers appropriate to assist the individual in
reintegration into family, employment, and community.
``(III) In furnishing reintegration and readjustment services under
subclause (I), the Secretary shall offer women the opportunity to
receive such services in group retreat settings in which the only
participants are women.
``(IV) An individual referred to in subparagraph (C)(v) may receive
reintegration and readjustment services under subclause (I) only if the
individual receives such services with a family member described in
subclause (I) or (II) of such subparagraph.''.
(b) Request for Services.--Subsection (a)(2) of such section is
amended--
(1) by striking ``Upon'' and inserting ``(A) Upon'';
(2) by striking ``paragraph (1)(B)'' and inserting
``paragraph (1)(B)(i)''; and
(3) by adding at the end the following new subparagraph:
``(B) Upon the request of an individual described in paragraph
(1)(C), the Secretary shall furnish the individual reintegration and
readjustment services in group retreat settings under paragraph
(1)(B)(ii).''.
TITLE II--LEGAL AND SUPPORTIVE SERVICES
SEC. 201. DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS PUBLIC-PRIVATE PARTNERSHIP ON
LEGAL SERVICES FOR WOMEN VETERANS.
(a) Partnership Required.--The Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall
establish a partnership with at least one nongovernmental organization
to provide legal services to women veterans.
(b) Focus.--The focus of the partnership established under
subsection (a) shall be on the 10 highest unmet needs of women veterans
as set forth in the most recently completed Community Homelessness
Assessment, Local Education and Networking Groups for Veterans (CHALENG
for Veterans) survey.
SEC. 202. ADDITIONAL AMOUNT FOR SUPPORTIVE SERVICES FOR VETERAN
FAMILIES GRANT PROGRAM TO SUPPORT ORGANIZATIONS THAT HAVE
A FOCUS ON PROVIDING ASSISTANCE TO WOMEN VETERANS AND
THEIR FAMILIES.
Section 2044(e) of title 38, United States Code, is amended--
(1) in paragraph (1)--
(A) in subparagraph (E), by striking ``2017'' and
inserting ``2016''; and
(B) by adding at the end the following new
subparagraph:
``(F) $340,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2017 and
2018.''; and
(2) by adding at the end the following new paragraph:
``(4) Not less than $20,000,000 shall be available under paragraph
(1)(F) for the provision of financial assistance under subsection (a)
to organizations that have a focus on providing assistance to women
veterans and their families.''.
TITLE III--NEWBORN CARE
SEC. 301. EXTENSION OF PERIOD OF ELIGIBILITY FOR CARE FOR NEWBORN
CHILDREN FROM THE DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS.
Section 1786(a) of title 38, United States Code, is amended, in the
matter preceding paragraph (1), by striking ``seven days'' and
inserting ``14 days''.
SEC. 302. SOURCE OF AMOUNTS FOR MEDICALLY NECESSARY TRAVEL PAID BY THE
DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS IN CONNECTION WITH CARE
FOR NEWBORN CHILDREN.
Section 1786 of title 38, United States Code, is amended by adding
at the end the following new subsection:
``(c) Source of Amounts for Travel.--Amounts paid by the Department
for medically necessary travel in connection with health care services
furnished under this section shall be derived from the Medical Services
appropriations account of the Department.''.
TITLE IV--ELIMINATING BARRIERS TO ACCESS
SEC. 401. WOMEN VETERANS RETROFIT INITIATIVE.
(a) In General.--The Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall retrofit
existing medical facilities of the Department of Veterans Affairs with
fixtures, materials, and other outfitting measures to support the
provision of care to women veterans at such facilities.
(b) Plan.--Not later than 180 days after the date of the enactment
of this Act, the Secretary shall submit to the Committee on Veterans'
Affairs of the Senate and the Committee on Veterans' Affairs of the
House of Representatives a plan to address deficiencies in environment
of care for women veterans at medical facilities of the Department.
(c) Authorization of Appropriations.--There is authorized to be
appropriated to the Secretary $20,000,000 to carry out subsection (a)
in addition to amounts otherwise made available to the Secretary for
the purposes set forth in such subsection.
SEC. 402. STAFFING OF WOMEN'S HEALTH PRIMARY CARE PROVIDERS AT MEDICAL
FACILITIES OF THE DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS.
The Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall ensure that each medical
facility of the Department of Veterans Affairs has not fewer than one
full-time or part-time women's health primary care provider whose
duties include, to the extent possible, providing training to other
health care providers of the Department on the needs of women veterans.
SEC. 403. STAFFING OF WOMEN VETERAN PROGRAM MANAGER PROGRAM AT MEDICAL
CENTERS OF THE DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS.
(a) In General.--The Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall ensure
that the Women Veteran Program Manager program of the Department of
Veterans Affairs is supported at each medical center of the Department
with a Women Veteran Program Manager and a Women Veteran Program
Ombudsman.
(b) Training.--The Secretary shall ensure that the staff required
under subsection (a) receive the proper training to carry out their
duties.
SEC. 404. ADDITIONAL FUNDING FOR PRIMARY CARE AND EMERGENCY CARE
CLINICIANS IN WOMEN VETERANS HEALTH CARE MINI-RESIDENCY
PROGRAM.
(a) In General.--There is authorized to be appropriated to the
Secretary of Veterans Affairs $1,000,000 for each fiscal year for the
Women Veterans Health Care Mini-Residency Program of the Department of
Veterans Affairs to provide opportunities for participation in such
program for primary care and emergency care clinicians.
(b) Treatment of Amounts.--The amounts authorized to be
appropriated under subsection (a) shall be in addition to amounts
otherwise made available to the Secretary for the purposes set forth in
such subsection.
TITLE V--DATA COLLECTION AND REPORTING
SEC. 501. REQUIREMENT FOR COLLECTION AND ANALYSIS OF DATA ON DEPARTMENT
OF VETERANS AFFAIRS BENEFITS AND SERVICES AND
DISAGGREGATION OF SUCH DATA BY SEX AND MINORITY STATUS.
The Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall--
(1) collect and analyze data on each program of the
Department of Veterans Affairs that provides a service or
benefit to a veteran, including the program carried out under
section 1144 of title 10, United States Code;
(2) disaggregate such data by sex and minority status, when
the data lends itself to such disaggregation; and
(3) publish the data collected and analyzed under paragraph
(1), except for such cases in which the Secretary determines
that some portions of the data would undermine the anonymity of
a veteran.
SEC. 502. REPORT ON AVAILABILITY OF PROSTHETICS FOR WOMEN VETERANS FROM
THE DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS.
Not later than one year after the date of the enactment of this
Act, 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 availability from the
Department of Veterans Affairs of prosthetics made for women veterans,
including an assessment of the availability of such prosthetics at each
medical facility of the Department.
SEC. 503. REQUIREMENT FOR DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS INTERNET
WEBSITE TO PROVIDE INFORMATION ON SERVICES AVAILABLE TO
WOMEN VETERANS.
(a) In General.--The Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall survey the
Internet websites and information resources of the Department of
Veterans Affairs in effect on the day before the date of the enactment
of this Act and publish an Internet website that serves as a
centralized source for the provision to women veterans of information
about the benefits and services available to them under laws
administered by the Secretary.
(b) Elements.--The Internet website published under subsection (a)
shall provide to women veterans information regarding all of the
services available in the district in which that the veteran is seeking
such services, including, with respect to each medical center and
community-based outpatient clinic in the applicable Veterans Integrated
Service Network--
(1) the name and contact information of each women's health
coordinator;
(2) a list of appropriate staff for other benefits
available from the Veterans Benefits Administration, the
National Cemetery Administration, and such other entities as
the Secretary considers appropriate; and
(3) such other information as the Secretary considers
appropriate.
(c) Updated Information.--The Secretary shall ensure that the
information described in subsection (b) that is published on the
Internet website required by subsection (a) is updated not less
frequently than once every 90 days.
(d) Outreach.--In carrying out this section, the Secretary shall
ensure that the outreach conducted under section 1720F(i) of title 38,
United States Code, includes information regarding the Internet website
required by subsection (a).
(e) Derivation of Funds.--Amounts used by the Secretary to carry
out this section shall be derived from amounts made available to the
Secretary to publish Internet websites of the Department.
SEC. 504. SENSE OF CONGRESS ON CHANGING MOTTO OF DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS
AFFAIRS TO BE MORE INCLUSIVE.
In is the sense of Congress that the Secretary of Veterans Affairs
should change the motto of the Department of Veterans Affairs to be
more inclusive.
<all>
Introduced in House
Introduced in House
Referred to the Subcommittee on Health.
Referred to the House Committee on Veterans' Affairs.
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