Caregivers and Veterans Omnibus Health Services Act of 2010 (S. 1963) was introduced on October 28, 2009 and signed into law ( P.L.111-163 ) on May 5, 2010. Provisions include: support for caregivers of veterans, such as training, counseling, supportive services and living stipends; expansion of services for women veterans; improvement of services to rural veterans by recruiting and retaining high quality healthcare providers, providing travel reimbursement to veterans receiving treatment at VA facilities, and expanding the VA's telehealth program; improvement of mental health care by providing readjustment counseling and a study on veteran suicides; and improving and increasing services for homeless veterans.
Sponsor : Sen. Daniel Akaka (D-HI)
Veterans Access, Choice, and Accountability Act of 2014 (H.R. 3230; P. Law 113-146) was signed into law August 7, 2014. The law allows veterans to seek medical care from private healthcare providers through the use of a “Veterans Choice Card”. Veterans who were eligible for services as of August 1, 2014 or engaged in active service in a war zone on that date are eligible to receive outside care if they have been on a waiting list for 30 days or more; live more than 40 miles from a VA facility; would have to travel more than 20 miles by air, boat, or ferry to reach a facility; or reside in a state without a VA facility that provides hospital care, emergency services, or surgical services. Providers must be Medicare or DOD-participating and are reimbursed at Medicare rates, except in “highly rural” areas when they may be paid more.
Sponsor: Rep. Harold Rogers (R-KY)