US Codex
Pub. L.
Notes

Title III — Disability and Memorial Affairs Matters

118th Congress · Approved Jan 2, 2025 · 138 Stat. 2706

TITLE III Disability and Memorial Affairs Matters

SEC. 301. Burial Allowance for Certain Veterans Who Die at Home While in Receipt of Hospice Care Furnished by Department of Veterans Affairs.

(a)
In General.— The Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall treat a veteran described in subsection (b) as a veteran described in subparagraph (A) of section 2303(a)(2) of title 38, United States Code.
(b)
Veteran Described.— A veteran described in this subsection is a veteran who dies in a home or other setting at which the deceased veteran was, at the time of death, receiving hospice care pursuant to section 1717(a) of such title if such care was directly preceded by the Secretary furnishing to the veteran hospital care or nursing home care described in clause (ii) of such subparagraph.
(c)
Effective Date; Applicability.— This section shall apply with respect to deaths that occur—
(1)
on or after the date that is 180 days after the date of the enactment of this Act; and
(2)
before October 1, 2026.

SEC. 302. Authority for Secretary of Veterans Affairs to Award Grants to States and Indian Tribes to Improve Outreach to Veterans.

(a)
In General.— Chapter 63 of title 38, United States Code, is amended—
(1)
by redesignating sections 6307 and 6308 as sections 6308 and 6309, respectively; and
(2)
by inserting after section 6306 the following new section 6307:

Ҥ 6307. Grants to States and Indian Tribes to improve outreach to veterans

“(a) Purpose.—It is the purpose of this section to provide for assistance by the Secretary to States and Indian Tribes to carry out programs that improve covered outreach and assistance to veterans and the spouses, children, and parents of veterans, to ensure that such individuals are fully informed about, and assisted in applying for, any veterans and veterans-related benefits and programs (including veterans programs of a State or Indian Tribe) for which they may be eligible and facilitate opportunities for such individuals to receive competent, qualified services in the preparation, presentation and prosecution of veterans benefits claims.

“(b) Authority.—The Secretary may award grants to States and Indian Tribes—

“(1) to carry out, coordinate, improve, or otherwise enhance—

“(A) covered outreach activities; or

“(B) activities to assist in the development and submittal of claims for veterans and veterans-related benefits; or

“(2) to increase the number of county or Tribal veterans service officers serving in the State by hiring new, additional such officers.

“(c) Application.—

(1) To be eligible for a grant under this section, a State or Indian Tribe shall submit to the Secretary an application therefor at such time, in such manner, and containing such information as the Secretary may require.

“(2) Each application submitted under paragraph (1) shall include the following:

“(A) A detailed plan for the use of the grant.

“(B) A description of the programs through which the State or Indian Tribe will meet the outcome measures developed by the Secretary under subsection (j).

“(C) A description of how the State or Indian Tribe will distribute grant amounts equitably among counties or Tribal lands with varying levels of urbanization.

“(D) A plan for how the grant will be used to meet the unique needs of American Indian veterans, Alaska Native veterans, or Native Hawaiian veterans, elderly veterans, and veterans from other underserved communities.

“(d) Distribution.—The Secretary shall seek to ensure that grants awarded under this section are equitably distributed among States and Indian Tribes with varying levels of urbanization.

“(e) Set-aside.—Of the amounts authorized to be appropriated or otherwise made available for grants under this section for any fiscal year, the Secretary shall ensure that not less than five percent is used to make grants to Indian Tribes.

“(f) Priority.—The Secretary shall prioritize awarding grants under this section that will serve the following areas:

“(1) Areas with a critical shortage of county or Tribal veterans service officers.

“(2) Areas with high rates of—

“(A) suicide among veterans; or

“(B) referrals to the Veterans Crisis Line.

“(g) Use of County or Tribal Veterans Service Officers.—A State or Indian Tribe that receives a grant under this section to carry out an activity described in subsection (b)(1) shall carry out the activity through—

“(1) a county or Tribal veterans service officer of the State; or

“(2) if the State or Indian Tribe does not have a county or Tribal veterans service officer, or if the county or Tribal veterans service officers of the State or Indian Tribe cover only a portion of that State or Indian Tribe, an appropriate entity of a State, local, or Tribal government, as determined by the Secretary.

“(h) Required Activities.—Any grant awarded under this section shall be used—

“(1) to expand existing programs, activities, and services;

“(2) to hire new, additional county or Tribal veterans service officers; or

“(3) for travel and transportation to facilitate carrying out paragraph (1) or (2).

“(i) Authorized Activities.—A grant under this section may be used to provide education and training, including on-the-job training, for State, county, local, and Tribal government employees who provide (or when trained will provide) covered outreach services in order for those employees to obtain accreditation in accordance with procedures approved by the Secretary.

“(j) Outcome Measures.—

(1) The Secretary shall develop and provide to each State or Indian Tribe that receives a grant under this section written guidance on the following:

“(A) Outcome measures.

“(B) Policies of the Department.

“(2) In developing outcome measures under paragraph (1), the Secretary shall consider the following goals:

“(A) Increasing the use of veterans and veterans-related benefits, particularly among vulnerable populations.

“(B) Increasing the number of county and Tribal veterans service officers recognized by the Secretary for the representation of veterans under chapter 59 of this title.

“(k) Tracking Requirements.—

(1) With respect to each grant awarded under this section, the Secretary shall track the use of veterans and veterans-related benefits among the population served by the grant, including the average period of time between the date on which a veteran applies for such a benefit and the date on which the veteran receives the benefit, disaggregated by type of benefit.

“(2) Not less frequently than annually during the life of the grant program established under this section, the Secretary shall submit to Congress a report on—

“(A) the information tracked under paragraph (1);

“(B) how the grants awarded under this section serve the unique needs of American Indian veterans, Alaska Native veterans, or Native Hawaiian veterans, elderly veterans, and veterans from other underserved communities; and

“(C) other information provided by States and Indian Tribes pursuant to the grant reporting requirements.

“(l) Performance Review.—The Secretary shall—

“(1) review the performance of each State or Indian Tribe that receives a grant under this section; and

“(2) make information regarding such performance publicly available.

“(m) Remediation Plan.—

(1) In the case of a State or Indian Tribe that receives a grant under this section and does not meet the outcome measures developed by the Secretary under subsection (j), the Secretary shall require the State or Indian Tribe to submit a remediation plan under which the State shall describe how and when it plans to meet such outcome measures.

“(2) The Secretary may not award a subsequent grant under this section to a State or Indian Tribe described in paragraph (1) unless the Secretary approves the remediation plan submitted by the State or Indian Tribe.

“(n) Definitions.—In this section:

“(1) The term ‘county or Tribal veterans service officer’ includes a local equivalent veterans service officer.

“(2) The term ‘covered outreach’ means outreach with respect to—

“(A) benefits administered by the Under Secretary for Benefits; or

“(B) similar benefits administered by a State or Indian Tribe.

“(3) The term ‘Indian Tribe’ has the meaning given such term in section 4 of the Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act (25 U.S.C. 5304).

“(4) The term ‘State’ includes the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, and any territory or possession of the United States.

“(5) The term ‘Veterans Crisis Line’ means the toll-free hotline for veterans established under section 1720F(h) of this title.”

(b)
Clerical Amendment.— The table of sections at the beginning of chapter 63 of such title is amended by striking the items relating to sections 6307 and 6308 and inserting the following new items:

“6307. Grants to States and Indian Tribes to improve outreach to veterans.

“6308. Outreach for eligible dependents.

“6309. Biennial report to Congress.”.

(c)
Authorization of Appropriations.— There is authorized to be appropriated to the Secretary of Veterans Affairs for each of fiscal years 2026 and 2027, $10,000,000 to carry out section 6307 of title 38, United States Code, as added by subsection (a).

SEC. 303. Definition of Surviving Spouse.

Paragraph (3) of section 101 of title 38, United States Code, is amended to read as follows:

“(3) The term ‘surviving spouse’ means (except for purposes of chapter 19 of this title) a person who was the spouse of a veteran at the time of the veteran’s death, and who lived with the veteran continuously from the date of marriage to the date of the veteran’s death (except where there was a separation which was due to the misconduct of, or procured by, the veteran without the fault of the spouse) and who has not remarried.”

SEC. 304. Ensuring Only Licensed Health Care Professionals Perform Medical Disability Examinations under Certain Department of Veterans Affairs Pilot Program.

(a)
Prohibition on Use of Certain Health Care Professionals.— Section 504(c)(1) of the Veterans’ Benefits Improvements Act of 1996 (Public Law 104–275; 38 U.S.C. 5101 note) is amended by inserting “ only” before “ a health care professional”.
(b)
Remedies.— The Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall take such actions as the Secretary considers appropriate to ensure compliance with section 504(c) of the Veterans’ Benefits Improvements Act of 1996 (Public Law 104–275; 38 U.S.C. 5101 note), as amended by subsection (a).
(c)
Annual Report.— Not later than one year after the date of the enactment of this Act and not less frequently than once each year thereafter, 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 report on—
(1)
the conduct of the pilot program established under section 504 of the Veterans’ Benefits Improvements Act of 1996 (Public Law 104–275; 38 U.S.C. 5101 note); and
(2)
the actions of the Secretary under subsection (b).
(d)
Technical Corrections.— Section 504 of the Veterans’ Benefits Improvements Act of 1996 (Public Law 104–275; 38 U.S.C. 5101 note) is amended, in the section heading, by striking “ physicians” and inserting “ health care professionals”.

SEC. 305. Provision of Information Regarding an Agent or Attorney to a Licensed Health Care Professional Who Performs a Medical Disability Examination under Certain Department of Veterans Affairs Pilot Program.

(a)
In General.— Section 504 of the Veterans’ Benefits Improvements Act of 1996 (Public Law 104–275; 38 U.S.C. 5101 note), as amended by section 304, is further amended by adding at the end the following new subsection:

“(f) Certain Information Provided to Health Care Professional.—The Secretary shall provide to a health care professional who performs an examination under subsection (a), or a contractor performing a contract under such subsection, the contact information of any agent or attorney recognized by the Secretary under chapter 59 of title 38, United States Code, with regards to a claim for benefits that gives rise to such examination.”

(b)
Applicability.— The amendment made by this section shall apply to an examination described in subsection (a) of such section that is performed on or after the date of the enactment of this Act.

SEC. 306. Modernization of Department of Veterans Affairs Disability Benefit Questionnaires.

(a)
Requirement for Transmission of Certain Information in Machine-readable Format.—
(1)
Requirement.— Not later than 180 days after enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall require all disability benefit questionnaire data collected in the course of medical disability examinations made by covered non-Department providers to be transmitted to the Department in a machine-readable format.
(2)
Issuance of standards.— Not later than 90 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall issue standards for the transmission of disability benefit questionnaire data in a machine-readable format as required under paragraph (1).
(3)
Updates.— In making updates to disability benefit questionnaires after the date specified in paragraph (1), the Secretary shall—
(A)
ensure that the updates are made in a manner that allows for the data collected under the questionnaires to be in a machine-readable format as of the date on which the update goes into effect; and
(B)
not later than 30 days before an update goes into effect, notify the covered non-Department providers (or the contractor performing a contract under section 504 of the Veterans Benefits Improvement Act of 1996 (Public Law 104–275; 38 U.S.C. 5101 note)) described in such paragraph of such updates.
(b)
Plan for Information Technology System Modification.— Not later than 180 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall submit to the Committees on Veterans’ Affairs of the Senate and House of Representatives a plan to modify the information technology systems and processes of the Department to enable a non-Department health care professional, assigned to or selected by a claimant, to transmit to the Department, in a machine-readable format, disability benefit questionnaire data, including complete disability benefit questionnaires rather than partial questionnaires or elements of medical evidence.
(c)
Public Availability of Information.— The Secretary shall make publicly available on the internet website of the Department referred to in section 5101(d) of title 38, United States Code—
(1)
a description of the standards issued under subsection (a)(2); and
(2)
the plan required under subsection (b).
(d)
Definitions.— In this section:
(1)
The term “claimant” has the meaning given such term in section 5100 of title 38, United States Code.
(2)
The term “covered non-Department provider” means a health care provider who—
(A)
is not an employee of the Department of Veterans Affairs; and
(B)
pursuant to a contract under section 504 of the Veterans Benefits Improvement Act of 1996 (Public Law 104–275; 38 U.S.C. 5101 note), as amended by sections 304 and 305, examines a claimant for a medical disability.

SEC. 307. Department of Veterans Affairs Automatic Processing of Certain Claims for Temporary Disability Ratings.

(a)
In General.— Not later than one year after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall modify the information technology systems of the Department of Veterans Affairs to use automation technology for claims for temporary disability ratings for veterans described in section 1156(a)(1)(C) of title 38, United States Code.
(b)
Additional Requirements.— In carrying out subsection (a), the Secretary shall ensure that—
(1)
medical evidence is obtained from the corporate data warehouse of the Department or other sources of data, the Secretary determines appropriate;
(2)
employees of the Department continue to determine whether a veteran is entitled to a temporary disability rating under section 1156(a)(1)(C) of title 38, United States Code; and
(3)
claims may be processed manually if the evidence of record is not sufficient to decide the claim or if the medical evidence is provided in a format that is not compatible with the system developed under subsection (a).