Hire Veteran Health Heroes Act of 2021

Hire Veteran Health Heroes Act of 2021

This bill requires the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) to consult with the Department of Defense to identify members of the Armed Forces in health care occupations who are separating from the Armed Forces.

The VA must refer interested members to a recruiter for consideration of open positions in the member's specialty and geography of interest.

[Congressional Bills 117th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 2151 Introduced in House (IH)]

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117th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 2151

 To identify and refer members of the Armed Forces with a health care 
   occupation who are separating from the Armed Forces for potential 
   employment with the Department of Veterans Affairs, and for other 
                               purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             March 23, 2021

   Mr. Latta (for himself and Miss Rice of New York) introduced the 
   following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Veterans' 
                                Affairs

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
 To identify and refer members of the Armed Forces with a health care 
   occupation who are separating from the Armed Forces for potential 
   employment with the Department of Veterans Affairs, 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.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Hire Veteran Health Heroes Act of 
2021''.

SEC. 2. IDENTIFICATION AND REFERRAL OF MEMBERS OF THE ARMED FORCES WITH 
              A HEALTH CARE OCCUPATION FOR POTENTIAL EMPLOYMENT WITH 
              THE DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS DURING SEPARATION FROM 
              THE ARMED FORCES.

    (a) Identification.--The Secretary of Veterans Affairs, in 
consultation with the Secretary of Defense, shall identify members of 
the Armed Forces in a health care occupation during the separation of 
such members from the Armed Forces.
    (b) Referral of Interested Individuals.--
            (1) In general.--If a member of the Armed Forces identified 
        under subsection (a) expresses an interest in working in a 
        health care occupation within the Department of Veterans 
        Affairs, the Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall refer the 
        member to a recruiter of the Department for consideration of 
        open positions in the specialty and geography of interest of 
        the member.
            (2) Timing.--Any referral of a member of the Armed Forces 
        conducted under paragraph (1) shall be made not earlier than 
        one year before the separation of the member from the Armed 
        Forces.
    (c) Rule of Construction.--Any identification of a member of the 
Armed Forces under subsection (a) or referral of such member under 
subsection (b) shall not be construed as a guarantee of employment of 
such member with the Department of Veterans Affairs.
    (d) Reports.--Not later than each of one year and two years after 
the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Veterans 
Affairs, in consultation with the Secretary of Defense, shall submit to 
the appropriate committees of Congress a report on the efficacy of the 
identification and referral of separating members of the Armed Forces 
under this section.
    (e) Definitions.--In this section:
            (1) Appropriate committees of congress.--The term 
        ``appropriate committees of Congress'' means--
                    (A) The Committee on Armed Services and the 
                Committee on Veterans' Affairs of the Senate; and
                    (B) The Committee on Armed Services and the 
                Committee on Veterans' Affairs of the House of 
                Representatives.
            (2) Health care occupation.--The term ``health care 
        occupation'' means an occupation for which an individual may be 
        appointed for employment with the Department of Veterans 
        Affairs under section 7401 of title 38, United States Code.
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