[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 3303 Introduced in Senate (IS)]
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119th CONGRESS
1st Session
S. 3303
To require the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to carry out a pilot
program to establish or enhance a community integration platform 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
December 2, 2025
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 or enhance a community integration platform 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 OR ENHANCEMENT OF COMMUNITY
INTEGRATION PLATFORM FOR VETERANS.
(a) In General.--Beginning not later than one year after the date
of the enactment of this Act, 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 a new, or enhance an existing,
interoperable community integration platform to coordinate local
support services for veterans through other governmental and
nongovernmental organizations (in this section referred to as the
``pilot program'').
(b) Community Integration Platform.--The community integration
platform established or enhanced pursuant to the pilot program shall be
accessible to veterans, employees of the Department of Veterans
Affairs, and others participating in the pilot program as determined
appropriate by the Secretary and shall--
(1) enable the coordination of 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;
(I) suicide prevention;
(J) sexual assault services;
(K) legal aid;
(L) transition programs of the Department of
Defense; and
(M) other services, as determined by the Secretary;
(2) prioritize 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 paragraph (1);
(3) ensure that--
(A) reasonable measures are taken to promote
connectivity and interoperable exchange among covered
entities; and
(B) appropriate privacy and security protections
are in place, in accordance with applicable Federal and
State privacy laws;
(4) connect covered entities for purposes of communication,
service coordination and consumer assistance, referral and
capacity management, outcome tracking and reporting, and
related services;
(5) provide technical assistance and support covered
entities in connecting and participating in the community
integration platform;
(6) 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 and Z75 (as in effect on the
date of the enactment of this Act) that incorporate measures
for quantifying the relative severity of any such social
determinant of health need identified in a veteran;
(7) incorporate screenings used to collect information
under paragraph (6) into routine care provided to veterans
under the laws administered by the Secretary; and
(8) be accessible via a web-based platform for all veterans
and via a non-web-based alternative platform or process for
veterans who are unable to easily and reliably access the web-
based platform.
(c) Locations.--
(1) In general.--The Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall
carry out the pilot program at not fewer than five medical
facilities of the Department of Veterans Affairs.
(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, 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. 1396 et seq.) with
services for veterans provided under the pilot program, 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;
(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 the pilot program, 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 platform established or enhanced under the pilot program,
including an assessment of--
(1) the need for services that is being met through such
platform; and
(2) the need for services that is not being met through
such platform.
(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 platform established or
enhanced under the pilot program 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 the
community integration platform established or
enhanced under the pilot program.
(B) Elements of report.--The report under
subparagraph (A)(i) shall include data on--
(i) what resources under the pilot program
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 platform.--The term ``community
integration platform'' means an interoperable platform used to
enable the coordination, alignment, and connection of covered
entities at the local level for purposes of communication,
service coordination, and referral management of services, with
respect to services specified in subsection (b)(1).
(2) Covered entity.--The term ``covered entity'' means
any--
(A) community-based organization that--
(i) accepts referrals from health care
organizations; and
(ii) provides services specified in
subsection (b)(1).
(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 of
the United States, 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.--
(1) In general.--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 and Z75 (as in effect on the
date of enactment of this Act).
(2) Incorporation of measures.--Definitions included under
paragraph (1) with respect to identifying social determinants
of health needs shall incorporate measures for quantifying the
relative severity of any such social determinant of health need
identified in an individual.
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