To require the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to replace with a more equitable formula the current formula, known as the Veterans Equitable Resource Allocation (VERA), for the allocation of funds appropriated to the Department of Veterans Affairs for medical care to different geographic regions of the Nation, and for other purposes.

January 8, 2003

Mr. FRELINGHUYSEN (for himself, Mr. PALLONE, Mrs. MCCARTHY of New York, Mr. CROWLEY, Mr. HINCHEY, Mr. MCNULTY, Mrs. KELLY, Mr. PAYNE, Mr. KING of New York, and Mr. SANDERS) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Veterans' Affairs

To require the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to replace with a more equitable formula the current formula, known as the Veterans Equitable Resource Allocation (VERA), for the allocation of funds appropriated to the Department of Veterans Affairs for medical care to different geographic regions of the Nation, 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 `Veterans Equal Treatment Act'.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

Congress makes the following findings:

(1) The Veterans Equitable Resource Allocation (VERA) formula, established by the Department of Veterans Affairs pursuant to section 429 of the fiscal year 1997 VA/HUD appropriations Act (Public Law 104-204; 110 Stat. 2929), has proved to be an ineffective means of allocating veterans medical care dollars fairly across the 22 national service regions, known as Veterans Integrated Service Networks (VISNs), of the Department of Veterans Affairs.

(2) The VERA formula has resulted in a system of inequitable care at veterans hospitals in different regions of the country.

(3) The VERA formula has resulted in a system in which veterans in some regions of the country are forced to compete with veterans in other regions for critical medical care dollars, when the system should be providing funding to all veterans, regardless of where they live, to ensure that all veterans have access to the level and quality of care that they have all earned and deserve.

(4) The VERA formula should be replaced with a new funding formula that puts the funds provided to the Department of Veterans Affairs for medical care into the Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Centers that are treating patients.

SEC. 3. REVISION TO MEDICAL CARE FUNDING ALLOCATION FORMULA FOR DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS.

(a) TERMINATION OF VERA FORMULA- The funding allocation formula for the Department of Veterans Affairs medical care system known as the Veterans Equitable Resource Allocation system, established pursuant to section 429 of Public Law 104-204 (110 Stat. 2929), shall be discontinued by the Secretary of Veterans Affairs effective at the end of the fiscal year during which this Act is enacted.

(b) DEVELOPMENT OF REPLACEMENT FORMULA- The Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall develop a new formula for the allocation of funds appropriated to the Department of Veterans Affairs for Medical Care to the national service regions, known as Veterans Integrated Service Networks (VISNs), of the Department. In developing such formula, the Secretary shall take the following requirements into account:

(1) For any fiscal year for which the amount appropriated for Medical Care is an increase from the preceding year, the funding level provided under the new formula to any VISN may not be less than the amount provided for the preceding year.

(2) The new formula shall take into account additional costs incurred by a VISN due to any of the following factors at that VISN being in excess of the median for all VISNs:

(A) The number of veterans moving into the geographic area of that VISN.

(B) The median age of veterans in that VISN.

(C) The number of veterans in that VISN requiring complex care or nursing home care.

(D) The age of Department of Veterans Affairs health care facilities in that VISN.

(c) TRANSITION FORMULA- If as of the date specified in subsection (a) for the termination of the funding allocation formula referred to in that subsection the Secretary of Veterans Affairs has not implemented a replacement funding allocation formula in accordance with subsection (b), then effective as of that date and until such a replacement funding allocation formula is implemented, the funding allocation formula to be applied to amounts appropriated for veterans medical care shall be the formula in effect before the formula referred to in subsection (a).

SEC. 4. AUTHORIZATIONS OF APPROPRIATIONS.

(a) AUTHORIZATION FOR REPLACEMENT ALLOCATION FORMULA- There is authorized to be appropriated to the Department of Veterans Affairs for fiscal year 2003 the amount of $10,000,000 for development and implementation of a replacement funding allocation formula in accordance with section 3(b).

(b) ADDITIONAL `MEDICAL CARE' AUTHORIZATIONS- There is authorized to be appropriated to the Department of Veterans Affairs for fiscal year 2003 the amount of $100,000,000 for `Medical Care' for the Department of Veterans Affairs. Such amount is in addition to any other amount authorized to be appropriated to the Department of Veterans Affairs for fiscal year 2003 and shall be allocated by the Secretary to the national service regions, known as Veterans Integrated Service Networks (VISNs), of the Department of Veterans Affairs on the basis of need, as follows:

(1) First, to the VISN that has experienced the greatest reduction in funding from the funding levels for fiscal year 1997.

(2) Second, to any other VISN that has experienced an overall five-year funding decrease.

(3) Third, if any amount appropriated pursuant to such authorization remains after allocations pursuant to paragraphs (1) and (2), such amount shall be allocated equally among the remaining 22 VISNs before implementation of the new formula.

END