[Congressional Bills 118th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 2259 Introduced in Senate (IS)]
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118th CONGRESS
1st Session
S. 2259
To require the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to carry out a pilot
program to establish community integration network infrastructure for
services for veterans, to require the collection from veterans of
information related to social determinants of health, and for other
purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
July 12, 2023
Mr. Sullivan (for himself and Ms. Hassan) introduced the following
bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Veterans'
Affairs
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To require the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to carry out a pilot
program to establish community integration network infrastructure for
services for veterans, to require the collection from veterans of
information related to social determinants of health, 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 ``Leveraging Integrated Networks in
Communities for Veterans Act'' or the ``LINC VA Act''.
SEC. 2. PILOT PROGRAM ON ESTABLISHMENT OF COMMUNITY INTEGRATION NETWORK
INFRASTRUCTURE FOR VETERANS.
(a) In General.--Beginning not later than one year after the date
on which the report required under section 201(k)(1) of the Commander
John Scott Hannon Veterans Mental Health Care Improvement Act of 2019
(Public Law 116-171; 38 U.S.C. 1720F note) is delivered to Congress,
the Secretary of Veterans Affairs, acting through the Center for
Innovation for Care and Payment of the Department of Veterans Affairs,
shall carry out a pilot program under which the Secretary shall
establish community integration network infrastructure to provide
services for veterans.
(b) Elements of Program.--In carrying out the pilot program under
subsection (a), the Secretary shall--
(1) establish a new or enhance an existing interoperable
technology network that--
(A) enables the coordination of public and private
providers and payors of services for veterans,
including services such as--
(i) nutritional assistance;
(ii) housing;
(iii) health care, including preventive
health intervention, chronic disease
management, and behavioral health care;
(iv) transportation;
(v) job training;
(vi) child development or care;
(vii) caregiving and respite care;
(viii) disability assistance; and
(ix) other services, as determined by the
Secretary;
(B) prioritizes connectivity with appropriate
existing technology networks developed by public or
private organizations that comply with, as applicable,
standards adopted by the Secretary of Health and Human
Services under section 3004 of the Public Health
Service Act (42 U.S.C. 300jj-14), for the purposes
described in subparagraph (A); and
(C) ensures that--
(i) reasonable measures are taken to
promote connectivity and interoperable exchange
among covered entities; and
(ii) appropriate privacy and security
protections are in place, in accordance with
applicable Federal and State privacy laws;
(2) connect covered entities for purposes of communication,
service coordination and consumer assistance, referral and
capacity management, outcome tracking and reporting, and
related services;
(3) provide technical assistance and support covered
entities in connecting and participating in the community
integration network infrastructure;
(4) collect information from veterans served under the
pilot program regarding social determinants of health using a
standardized risk assessment or screening tool, which shall
include standardized definitions for identifying social
determinants of health needs identified in the ICD-10
diagnostic codes Z55 through Z63, Z65, and Z75 (as in effect on
the date of enactment of this Act) that incorporate measures
for quantifying the relative severity of any such social
determinant of health need identified in a veteran; and
(5) incorporate screenings used to collect information
under paragraph (4) into routine care provided to veterans
under the laws administered by the Secretary.
(c) Locations.--
(1) In general.--The Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall
carry out the pilot program under subsection (a) at not fewer
than one facility of the Department of Veterans Affairs in each
Veterans Integrated Service Network of the Department.
(2) Variety of facilities.--In selecting facilities under
paragraph (1), the Secretary shall ensure the selection of a
variety of different types of facilities, including--
(A) frontier facilities;
(B) under-resourced facilities; and
(C) facilities at which there are existing efforts
to coordinate with community resources.
(d) Coordination and Integration of Programs.--
(1) Coordination with existing networks.--In carrying out
the pilot program under subsection (a), the Secretary of
Veterans Affairs shall coordinate with existing community
networks.
(2) Coordination and integration with state medicaid
programs.--The Secretary of Health and Human Services, in
consultation with the Secretary of Veterans Affairs, shall
issue guidance to States that includes options for State
Medicaid programs to coordinate and integrate medical
assistance provided under a State plan or waiver under title
XIX of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1396a et seq.) with
services for veterans provided under the pilot program under
subsection (a), as well as a template for States to use to
request or modify Medicaid waiver authority under section 1115
of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1315) for such purpose.
(e) Tracking of Referrals.--
(1) In general.--The Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall
track--
(A) the accuracy of referrals of veterans to
community networks under the pilot program under
subsection (a);
(B) the response time of providers to which such
veterans are referred; and
(C) the outcome of the initial meeting by a veteran
and the provider to which the veteran is referred.
(2) Form.--The Secretary may track the information required
under paragraph (1) in any medium determined appropriate by the
Secretary.
(f) Report.--Not later than three years after amounts are first
appropriated to carry out to carry out the pilot program under
subsection (a), the Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall submit to
Congress a report indicating the social service needs of veterans
reflected by the use of services under the community integration
network infrastructure established under the pilot program under
subsection (a), including an assessment of--
(1) the need for services that is being met through such
infrastructure; and
(2) the need for services that is not being met through
such infrastructure.
(g) Comptroller General Evaluation, Report, and Recommendations.--
(1) Evaluation.--The Comptroller General of the United
States shall conduct an evaluation that measures the overall
impact of the community integration network infrastructure
established under the pilot program under subsection (a) with
respect to--
(A) changes in individual and population health
outcomes among veterans;
(B) changes in access to health care or social
services among veterans; and
(C) such other factors as the Comptroller General
considers appropriate.
(2) Report and recommendations.--
(A) In general.--Not later than four years after
the date of the enactment of this Act, the Comptroller
General shall--
(i) submit to Congress a report on the
evaluation conducted under paragraph (1);
(ii) make such report publicly available;
and
(iii) based on such evaluation, make
recommendations to the Secretary of Veterans
Affairs on how to improve and sustain community
integration network infrastructure established
under the pilot program under subsection (a).
(B) Elements of report.--The report under
subparagraph (A)(i) shall include data on--
(i) what resources under the pilot program
under subsection (a) are being utilized the
most;
(ii) what requests for services under the
pilot program cannot be met; and
(iii) the impact of the provision of
services under the pilot program on health
outcomes of veterans.
(h) Definitions.--In this section:
(1) Community integration network infrastructure.--The term
``community integration network infrastructure'' means
infrastructure used to enable the coordination, alignment, and
connection of covered entities for purposes of communication,
service coordination, and referral management of services, with
respect to services such as--
(A) nutritional assistance;
(B) housing;
(C) health care, including preventive health
intervention, chronic disease management, and
behavioral health care;
(D) transportation;
(E) job training;
(F) child development or care;
(G) caregiving and respite care;
(H) disability assistance; and
(I) other services, as determined by the Secretary
of Veterans Affairs.
(2) Covered entity.--The term ``covered entity'' means
any--
(A) community-based organization that accepts
referrals from health care organizations and that
provides services such as--
(i) nutritional assistance;
(ii) housing;
(iii) health care, including preventive
health intervention, chronic disease
management, and behavioral health care;
(iv) transportation;
(v) job training;
(vi) child development or care;
(vii) caregiving and respite care; and
(viii) disability assistance;
(B) public or private health care provider
organization;
(C) public or private funded payor of health care
services, including home- or community-based services;
(D) State, local, territorial, or Tribal health and
social services agency;
(E) State public housing authority or housing
finance agency;
(F) public health information exchange or public
health information network, as defined by the Secretary
of Veterans Affairs; or
(G) other similar entity, as determined by the
Secretary.
(3) State.--The term ``State'' means a State, territory, or
the District of Columbia.
SEC. 3. COLLECTION OF INFORMATION FROM VETERANS RELATED TO SOCIAL
DETERMINANTS OF HEALTH.
(a) In General.--The Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall collect
from veterans enrolled in the system of annual patient enrollment of
the Department of Veterans Affairs established and operated under
section 1705(a) of title 38, United States Code, as part of routine
screenings of such veterans under the laws administered by the
Secretary, information related to social determinants that may factor
into the health of such veterans.
(b) Social Determinants of Health.--The information collected under
subsection (a) shall include standardized definitions for identifying
social determinants of health needs identified in the ICD-10 diagnostic
codes Z55 through Z63, Z65, and Z75 (as in effect on the date of
enactment of this Act). Such definitions shall incorporate measures for
quantifying the relative severity of any such social determinant of
health need identified in an individual.
SEC. 4. IMPLEMENTATION.
In implementing this Act, the Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall
consider data privacy and how to prevent data blocking and promote
interoperability.
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