House Approves Two Bills Related To Veterans' Health Care

Main Category: Veterans / Ex-Servicemen
Article Date: 01 Apr 2009 - 7:00 PDT

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The House on Monday approved two bills that would make improvements in health care services for military veterans, CQ Today reports. Summaries appear below.

• HR 1377, sponsored by House Committee on Veterans' Affairs Chair Bob Filner (D-Calif.), would require the Department of Veterans Affairs to reimburse veterans for emergency care they have received at non-VA facilities. VA also would be expected to cover the cost of treating conditions not related to military service in the event a third-party insurer does not cover the full cost of care. The measure is retroactive, which would allow for reimbursement of the costs of emergency treatment received at any time before its enactment. According to CQ Today, the Congressional Budget Office estimates that VA would pay on average about $730 per claim next year and about $900 in 2014, for a total annual cost of $1 million.
  
  
• HR 1513, sponsored by Rep. Ann Kirkpatrick (D-Ariz.), would provide a cost-of-living adjustment and increase the rates of disability compensation for veterans with service-related disabilities. The measure also would increase the rates of dependency and indemnity compensation for survivors of veterans with certain service-related disabilities. The compensation increments would be based on the cost-of-living increase provided to Social Security recipients, CQ Today reports. CBO does not expect such an increase in 2010, according to CQ Today (Johnson, CQ Today, 3/30).

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