Page:United States Statutes at Large Volume 96 Part 1.djvu/117

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PUBLIC LAW 97-000—MMMM. DD, 1982

PUBLIC LAW 97-174—MAY 4, 1982 "(i) is receiving hospital care under section 610 of this title; or "(ii) is eligible for hospital care under such section and requires such care in a medical emergency that poses a serious threat to the life or health of the veteran; if Veterans' Administration facilities are not capable of furnishing or continuing to furnish the care required because of the furnishing of care and services to members of the Armed Forces under subsection (a) of this section. "(c)(1) The cost of any care or services provided by the Veterans' Administration under subsection (a) of this section shall be reimbursed to the Veterans' Administration by the Department of Defense at such rates as may be agreed upon by the Administrator and the Secretary of Defense based on the cost of the care or services provided. "(2) Amounts received under this subsection shall be credited to funds allotted to the Veterans' Administration facility that provided the care or services. "(d)(1) Not later than six months after the date of the enactment of this section, the Administrator and the Secretary of Defense shall enter into an agreement to plan and establish procedures and guidelines for the implementation of this section. Not later than one year after the date of the enactment of this section, the Administrator and the Secretary shall complete plans for such implementation and shall submit such plans to the Committees on Veterans' Affairs and on Armed Services of the Senate and House of Representatives. "(2) The Administrator and the Secretary of Defense shall jointly review such plans not less often than annually thereafter and shall report to such committees any modification in such plans within thirty days after the modification is agreed to. "(e) The Administrator shall prescribe regulations to govern any exercise of the authority of the Administrator under subsections (a) and (b) of this section and of the Chief Medical Director under subsection (b)(2)(A) of this section. "(f) Within thirty days after a declaration of a period of war or national emergency described in subsection (a) of this section (or as soon after the end of such thirty-day period as is reasonably practicable), the Administrator shall submit to the Committees on Veterans* Affairs of the Senate and House of Representatives a report on the Administrator's allocation of facilities and personnel in order to provide priority hospital care, nursing home care, and medical services under this section to members of the Armed Forces. Thereafter, with respect to any fiscal year in which the authority in subsection (b) of this section to enter into contracts with private facilities has been used, the Administrator shall report within ninety days after the end of such fiscal year to those committees regarding the extent of, and the circumstances under which, such authority was used.". (b) The table of sections at the beginning of such chapter is amended by inserting after the item relating to section 5011 the following new item: "501 lA. Furnishing of health-care services to members of the Armed Forces during a war or national emergency.".

SEC. 5. (a) Section 1786(a) of title 38, United States Code, is amended by adding at the end the following new paragraph:

96 STAT. 75 38 USC 610.

Care or service costs, reimbursement.

Plans implementation. Submittal to congressional committees.

Review and report.

Regulations.

Reports to congressional committees.