[Congressional Bills 112th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 666 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

112th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                 S. 666

To require a report on the establishment of a Polytrauma Rehabilitation 
Center or Polytrauma Network Site of the Department of Veterans Affairs 
      in the northern Rockies or Dakotas, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                             March 29, 2011

 Mr. Baucus (for himself, Mr. Johnson of South Dakota, Mr. Conrad, and 
  Mr. Tester) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and 
             referred to the Committee on Veterans' Affairs

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
To require a report on the establishment of a Polytrauma Rehabilitation 
Center or Polytrauma Network Site of the Department of Veterans Affairs 
      in the northern Rockies or Dakotas, 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 Traumatic Brain Injury Care 
Improvement Act of 2011''.

SEC. 2. REPORT ON ESTABLISHMENT OF A POLYTRAUMA REHABILITATION CENTER 
              OR POLYTRAUMA NETWORK SITE OF THE DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS 
              AFFAIRS IN THE NORTHERN ROCKIES OR DAKOTAS.

    (a) Findings.--Congress makes the following findings:
            (1) The States of the northern Rockies and the Dakotas are 
        among those States in the United States with the highest per 
        capita rates of veterans with injuries from military service in 
        Iraq and Afghanistan.
            (2) Traumatic brain injury (TBI) has become known as one of 
        the ``signature wounds'' of military service in Iraq and 
        Afghanistan due to its high occurrence among veterans of such 
        service.
            (3) A recent RAND Corporation study estimates that as many 
        as 20 percent of the veterans of military service in Iraq and 
        Afghanistan have a traumatic brain injury as a result of such 
        service, and many of these veterans require ongoing care for 
        mild, moderate, or severe traumatic brain injury.
            (4) The Department of Veterans Affairs recommends that all 
        veterans experiencing a polytraumatic injury be referred to a 
        Polytrauma Rehabilitation Center or a Polytrauma Network Site.
            (5) The Department of Veterans Affairs Polytrauma System of 
        Care includes 4 Polytrauma Rehabilitation Centers and 22 
        Polytrauma Network Sites, none of which are located in North 
        Dakota, South Dakota, Idaho, Montana, eastern Washington, or 
        Wyoming, an area that encompasses approximately 740,000 square 
        miles.
            (6) The vastness of this area imposes significant hardships 
        on veterans residing in this area who require care within the 
        Department of Veterans Affairs Polytrauma System of Care and 
        wish to live close to home while receiving care within such 
        system of care.
    (b) Report.--
            (1) In general.--Not later than 180 days after the date of 
        the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Veterans Affairs 
        shall submit to Congress a report on the feasibility and 
        advisability of establishing a Polytrauma Rehabilitation Center 
        or Polytrauma Network Site for the Department of Veterans 
        Affairs in the northern Rockies or the Dakotas. One of the 
        locations evaluated as a potential location for the Polytrauma 
        Rehabilitation Center or Polytrauma Network Site, as the case 
        may be, shall be the Fort Harrison Department of Veterans 
        Affairs hospital in Lewis and Clark County, Montana.
            (2) Requirements.--The report required by this subsection 
        shall include the following:
                    (A) An assessment of the adequacy of existing 
                Department of Veterans Affairs facilities in the 
                northern Rockies and the Dakotas to address matters 
                that are otherwise addressed by Polytrauma 
                Rehabilitation Centers and Polytrauma Network Sites.
                    (B) A comparative assessment of the effectiveness 
                of rehabilitation programs for individuals with 
                traumatic brain injuries in urban areas with the 
                effectiveness of such programs for individuals with 
                traumatic brain injuries in rural and frontier 
                communities.
                    (C) An assessment whether the low cost of living in 
                the northern Rockies and the Dakotas could reduce the 
                financial stress faced by veterans receiving care for 
                traumatic brain injury and their families and thereby 
                improve the effectiveness of such care.
                    (D) An assessment whether therapies that can 
                prevent or remediate the development of secondary 
                neurologic conditions related to traumatic brain injury 
                can be interrupted by stress caused by living in an 
                urban area.
            (3) Consultation.--The Secretary shall consult with 
        appropriate State and local government agencies in the northern 
        Rockies and the Dakotas in preparing the report required by 
        this subsection.
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