Helping Veterans Exposed to Burn Pits Act

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Never voted on. It didn't reach a floor vote before the 114th Congress ended, so it expired. A bill has to be introduced again to be considered in a new Congress.

D EstySponsor

24 cosponsors · 19 D, 5 R

1 signed on when it was introduced; the rest joined later. Cosponsors who withdrew aren't shown.

This bill directs the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) to establish a center of excellence in the prevention, diagnosis, mitigation, treatment, and rehabilitation of health conditions relating to exposure to open burn pits and other environmental exposures in Afghanistan or Iraq.

What it does: CRS summary · Introduced in House · May 5, 2015

Helping Veterans Exposed to Burn Pits Act

The VA shall, in selecting the site, consider entities that:

are equipped with the specialized equipment needed to study, diagnose, and treat health conditions relating to such exposure;
have a publication track record of post-deployment health exposures among veterans who served in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom and Operation Enduring Freedom;
have collaborated with a geosciences department that has a medical geology division;
have developed animal models and in vitro models of dust immunology and lung injury consistent with the injuries of members of the Armed Forces who served in support of such Operations; and
have expertise in allergy and immunology, pulmonary diseases, and industrial and management engineering.

The VA shall ensure that the center collaborates with the Department of Defense (DOD), institutions of higher education, and other appropriate public and private entities to:

provide for dissemination within the VA of best practices for the treatment of such conditions and the training of health professionals;
provide guidance for the VA and DOD health systems in determining the personnel required to provide quality health care for members of the Armed Forces and veterans with such conditions;
establish, implement, and oversee a comprehensive program to train VA and DOD health professionals in the treatment of such conditions;
facilitate advancements in the study of the short-term and long-term effects of such exposure;
conduct basic science and translational research on such conditions for the purposes of understanding the etiology of such conditions and developing preventive interventions and new treatments; and
provide medical treatment to all veterans identified as part of the burn pits registry established under the Dignified Burial and Other Veterans' Benefits Improvement Act of 2012.

The center shall have access to and make use of the data accumulated by such registry.

Written by the nonpartisan Congressional Research Service. All summary versions on Congress.gov

About this bill and sources

Official title: Helping Veterans Exposed to Burn Pits Act

Latest action (Aug 13, 2015): Referred to the Subcommittee on Military Personnel.

Policy area: Armed Forces and National Security · Origin: House · Introduced: May 5, 2015

Official page on Congress.gov · Bill text (GovInfo) · Status record (XML)

No recorded floor vote found.