S. 544 · 115th Congress
A bill to amend the Veterans Access, Choice, and Accountability Act of 2014 to modify the termination date…
Full title
A bill to amend the Veterans Access, Choice, and Accountability Act of 2014 to modify the termination date for the Veterans Choice Program, and for other purposes.
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Became law without a recorded vote. It passed by voice vote or unanimous consent, which don't record how each member voted.
21 cosponsors · 12 D, 8 R, 1 I
9 signed on when it was introduced; the rest joined later. Cosponsors who withdrew aren't shown.
- Senate Introduced Mar 7, 2017
- Senate Passed Apr 3, 2017
- House Passed Apr 5, 2017
- President To the President Apr 7, 2017
- President Signed Apr 19, 2017
What it does: CRS summary · Public Law · Apr 19, 2017
(This measure has not been amended since it was introduced. The expanded summary of the Senate passed version is repeated here.)
(Sec. 1) This bill amends the Veterans Access, Choice, and Accountability Act of 2014 to eliminate the August 7, 2017, sunset date for the Veterans Choice Program, thus allowing the program to operate until all of the money in the Veterans Choice Fund is expended.
(Sec. 2) The bill makes the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) the primary payer (currently the VA is the secondary payer) for medical care relating to non-service connected disabilities and recovery of costs from third parties for certain care under the program.
(Sec. 3) The VA may share medical information with a non-VA entity (including private entities and other federal agencies) that provides veterans with authorized hospital care or medical services. Such entity may not redisclose or use such information for a purpose other than that for which the disclosure was made.
Written by the nonpartisan Congressional Research Service. All summary versions on Congress.gov
About this bill and sources
Official title: A bill to amend the Veterans Access, Choice, and Accountability Act of 2014 to modify the termination date for the Veterans Choice Program, and for other purposes.
Latest action (Apr 19, 2017): Signed by President.
Policy area: Armed Forces and National Security · Origin: Senate · Introduced: Mar 7, 2017
Official page on Congress.gov · Bill text (GovInfo) · Status record (XML)
- Senate Introduced Mar 7, 2017
- Senate Passed Apr 3, 2017
- House Passed Apr 5, 2017
- President To the President Apr 7, 2017
- President Signed Apr 19, 2017
No recorded floor vote found.