[Congressional Bills 118th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 5269 Introduced in Senate (IS)]
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118th CONGRESS
2d Session
S. 5269
To amend title 38, United States Code, to establish a commission to
review operations at the Veterans Health Administration and submit to
Congress reports with respect to that review, and for other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
September 25, 2024
Mr. Cassidy (for himself and Ms. Hirono) introduced the following bill;
which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Veterans' Affairs
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To amend title 38, United States Code, to establish a commission to
review operations at the Veterans Health Administration and submit to
Congress reports with respect to that review, 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 ``VetPAC Act of 2024''.
SEC. 2. ESTABLISHMENT OF VETERANS HEALTH ADMINISTRATION POLICY ADVISORY
COMMISSION.
(a) In General.--Subchapter I of chapter 73 of title 38, United
States Code, is amended by adding at the end the following new section:
``Sec. 7310B. Veterans Health Administration Policy Advisory Commission
``(a) Establishment.--There is established the Veterans Health
Administration Policy Advisory Commission (in this section referred to
as the `Commission').
``(b) Membership.--
``(1) Composition.--The Commission shall be composed of 17
members appointed by the Comptroller General of the United
States, of which not fewer than 2 shall be veterans.
``(2) Qualifications.--
``(A) In general.--An individual is eligible for
appointment to the Commission under paragraph (1) if
the individual has significant expertise in operating
or advising large medical systems, including expertise
in quality of care, staffing issues, information
technology, artificial intelligence in health care,
medical supply chains, procurement of medical supplies,
medical facility construction or leasing, medical
facility architecture or engineering, medical research,
and managed care plans and networks.
``(B) Experience of members.--In appointing members
under paragraph (1), the Comptroller General shall
select individuals from backgrounds that reflect the
broad diversity of health care received by veterans,
including nonprofit health systems, public and private
health systems, care furnished by the Veterans Health
Administration, and care furnished by the Department of
Defense.
``(3) Ethical disclosure.--A member of the Commission shall
be considered an employee of Congress whose compensation is
disbursed by the Secretary of the Senate for purposes of
applying subchapter I of chapter 131 of title 5, United States
Code, except that a member of the Commission is required to
file public financial disclosure reports without regard to
their number of days of service or rate of pay.
``(c) Period of Appointment; Vacancies.--
``(1) Terms.--A member of the Commission shall be appointed
under subsection (b)(1) for a term of 5 years, except that the
Comptroller General shall designate staggered terms for the
members first appointed.
``(2) Vacancies.--
``(A) In general.--A vacancy on the Commission
shall be filled in the manner in which the original
appointment was made and shall be subject to any
conditions that applied with respect to the original
appointment.
``(B) Filling unexpired term.--An individual chosen
to fill a vacancy shall be appointed for the unexpired
term of the member replaced.
``(3) Expiration of terms.--The term of any member shall
not expire before the date on which the member's successor
takes office.
``(d) Meetings.--
``(1) Frequency.--The Commission shall meet at the call of
the Chairman, but not less frequently than once per year.
``(2) Quorum.--A majority of the members of the Commission
shall constitute a quorum, but a lesser number of members may
hold meetings.
``(e) Chairman and Vice Chairman.--The Comptroller General shall
designate one member of the Commission as Chairman and one member of
the Commission as Vice Chairman, at the time of appointment of such
member and for the term of appointment of such member, except that in
the case of vacancy of the Chairmanship or Vice Chairmanship, the
Comptroller General may designate another member for the remainder of
that member's term.
``(f) Duties of the Commission.--
``(1) Review.--The Commission shall--
``(A) review operations at the Veterans Health
Administration; and
``(B) prepare reports for Congress based on such
review, including recommendations to Congress.
``(2) Topics to be reviewed.--In conducting a review under
paragraph (1)(A), the Commission shall include periodic reviews
of the following, taking into consideration other independent
assessments in selecting topics to limit duplicative efforts:
``(A) Information technology infrastructure at
medical facilities of the Department, including with
respect to electronic health record systems.
``(B) Referrals to care at facilities of the
Department and under the Veterans Community Care
Program under section 1703 of this title, and factors
impacting those referrals.
``(C) Access and wait times at medical facilities
of the Department and under the Veterans Community Care
Program, including both primary and specialty care, and
factors impacting those wait times.
``(D) The quality of health care furnished by the
Department and through the Veterans Community Care
Program.
``(E) Workforce issues, including workforce
performance, recruitment, and retention factors.
``(F) Patient satisfaction and customer service at
medical facilities of the Department and through the
Veterans Community Care Program.
``(G) The training of health care providers and the
standards of care at facilities of the Department and
in the Veterans Community Care Program.
``(H) The long-term budgetary outlook of the
Veterans Health Administration, as well as key
components driving budgetary changes over time.
``(I) Procurement of supplies at medical facilities
of the Department.
``(J) The research program of the Department,
including both internal and external research.
``(K) Hospital construction, leasing, and capital
requirements.
``(L) The interaction of care under the Medicare
program under title XVIII of the Social Security Act
(42 U.S.C. 1395 et seq.), the Medicaid program under
title XIX of such Act (42 U.S.C. 1396 et seq.), the
TRICARE program under chapter 55 of title 10, and
commercial health care plans with care furnished by the
Veterans Health Administration.
``(3) Issues regarding veteran health care delivery
generally.--In carrying out the requirements of this
subsection, the Commission shall review the effect of policies
under this title on the delivery of health care services to
veterans and assess the implications of changes in health care
delivery for veterans in the United States.
``(4) Transmittal of certain reports.--If the Secretary or
the Inspector General of the Department of Veterans Affairs
submits to Congress (or a committee of Congress) a report that
is required by law and that relates to policies for health care
furnished under the laws administered by the Secretary, the
Secretary shall transmit a copy of that report to the
Commission.
``(5) Consultation and additional reviews and studies.--
``(A) Consultation.--In carrying out the
requirements of this subsection, the Commission shall
consult periodically with the chairmen and ranking
members of the Committee on Veterans' Affairs of the
Senate and the Committee on Veterans' Affairs of the
House of Representatives regarding the agenda of the
Commission and progress towards achieving that agenda.
``(B) Additional reviews and reports.--The
Commission may conduct additional reviews, and may
submit additional reports to the Committee on Veterans'
Affairs of the Senate and the Committee on Veterans'
Affairs of the House of Representatives, from time to
time on such topics relating to the activities of the
Commission as may be requested by the Chairman and
members and as the Commission determines appropriate.
``(C) Special studies.--The Commission may conduct
special studies requested by the chairman or ranking
member of the Committee on Veterans' Affairs of the
Senate or the Committee on Veterans' Affairs of the
House of Representatives and as the Commission
determines appropriate.
``(6) Budgetary considerations.--Before making any
recommendations to Congress, the Commission shall examine the
budget consequences of such recommendations, directly or
through consultation with appropriate expert entities.
``(7) Report.--
``(A) In general.--By not later than March 15 of
each year, the Commission shall submit to Congress a
report containing the results and recommendations from
the review conducted under paragraph (1).
``(B) Inclusion of recommendations.--A
recommendation may be included in a report under
subparagraph (A) if a simple majority of the members of
the Commission vote to include the recommendation in
the report.
``(g) Powers of Commission.--
``(1) In general.--The Commission may--
``(A) employ and fix the compensation of an
Executive Director (at a rate of pay not greater than
that provided for level III of the Executive Schedule
under section 5314 of title 5) and such other personnel
as may be necessary to carry out the duties of the
Commission, without regard to the provisions of title 5
governing appointments in the competitive service;
``(B) seek such assistance and support as may be
required in the performance of its duties from
appropriate departments and agencies of the United
States or departments or agencies of a State;
``(C) enter into contracts or make other
arrangements, as may be necessary for the conduct of
the work of the Commission (without regard to section
3709 of the Revised Statutes (41 U.S.C. 5));
``(D) make advance, progress, and other payments
that relate to the work of the Commission;
``(E) provide transportation and subsistence for
individuals serving the Commission without
compensation; and
``(F) prescribe such rules and regulations as the
Commission determines necessary with respect to the
internal organization and operation of the Commission.
``(2) Data collection.--In order to carry out its
functions, the Commission shall--
``(A) utilize existing information, both published
and unpublished, if possible, collected and assessed
either by its own staff or under other arrangements
made in accordance with this section;
``(B) carry out, or award grants or contracts for,
original research and experimentation, if existing
information is inadequate; and
``(C) adopt procedures allowing any interested
party to submit information for use by the Commission
in making reports and recommendations.
``(3) Information from federal agencies.--
``(A) In general.--The Commission may secure
directly from any relevant department or agency of the
United States health care information the Chairman
determines would be helpful to enable the Commission to
carry out this section.
``(B) Timing.--Upon request of the Chairman, the
head of a department or agency of the United States
shall furnish information requested under subparagraph
(A) to the Commission on an agreed upon schedule or not
later than 180 days after the date of the request.
``(h) Compensation.--
``(1) Members.--
``(A) In general.--While conducting the business of
the Commission (including travel time), a member of the
Commission shall be entitled to compensation at the per
diem equivalent of the rate provided for level IV of
the Executive Schedule under section 5315 of title 5.
``(B) Travel expenses.--While conducting the
business of the Commission away from home and the
regular place of business of the member, a member may
be allowed travel expenses, as authorized by the
Chairman.
``(2) Physician comparability allowance for personnel.--The
Commission may provide a physician comparability allowance to
physicians serving as personnel of the Commission in the same
manner as physicians of the Federal Government may be provided
such an allowance by an agency under section 5948 of title 5,
and for such purpose, subsection (i) of such section shall
apply to the Commission in the same manner as it applies to the
Tennessee Valley Authority.
``(3) Treatment of personnel.--For purposes of pay (other
than pay of members of the Commission) and employment benefits,
rights, and privileges, all personnel of the Commission shall
be treated as if they were employees of the United States
Senate.
``(i) Detail of Federal Employees.--An employee of the Federal
Government may be detailed to the Commission without reimbursement and
without interruption or loss of civil service status or privileges.
``(j) Access of Congressional Support Agencies to Information.--The
Commission shall provide to the Comptroller General, the Congressional
Research Service, and the Congressional Budget Office unrestricted
access to all deliberations, records, and nonproprietary data of the
Commission not later than 30 days after such access is requested.
``(k) Authorization of Appropriations.--
``(1) Request for appropriations.--The Commission shall
submit requests for appropriations in the same manner as the
Comptroller General submits requests for appropriations, but
amounts appropriated for the Commission shall be separate from
amounts appropriated for the Comptroller General.
``(2) Authorization.--There are authorized to be
appropriated such sums as may be necessary to carry out this
section.''.
(b) Clerical Amendment.--The table of sections at the beginning of
such chapter is amended by inserting after the item relating to section
7310A the following new item:
``7310B. Veterans Health Administration Policy Advisory Commission.''.
(c) Initial Appointment.--Not later than 280 days after the date on
which amounts are first appropriated to the Veterans Health
Administration Policy Advisory Commission established under section
7310B of title 38, United States Code, as added by subsection (a), the
Comptroller General of the United States shall make initial
appointments of members to the Commission under subsection (b)(1) of
such section.
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