Lawmakers in the House of Representatives and Senate on Tuesday unveiled a bipartisan package of veterans bills that would dramatically expand home care for older veterans, increase assistance to homeless veterans and mandate specific progress points for overhauling the department’s electronic health records.
The measure — expected to cost $1.7 billion over the next decade — has the support of key leaders in both chambers and could become law in the coming weeks, provided party leaders can bypass potential congressional roadblocks.
Members of the House and Senate Veterans Affairs committees have been working on the proposals behind the scenes since last fall, praising the legislation as an opportunity to make quick, meaningful changes for a wide range of veterans and family members.
“This bill would expand economic opportunity for veterans, give veterans more choice in where to spend their sunset years or receive health care, improve mental health care for veteran caregivers, hold VA accountable to the taxpayers and veterans they serve, and so much more,” Mike Bost, chairman of the House Veterans’ Affairs Committee, said in a statement.
“Each of these improvements will have a positive impact on veterans and their families every day, and I look forward to seeing this great bill pass the House of Representatives soon.”
Similarly, Senate Veterans Affairs Committee Chairman Jon Tester, D-Mont., called the measure a collection of “common sense” improvements to help veterans.
The measure already has support from many veterans groups, but House Democrats have yet to announce their position on the ideas.
More help for informal caregivers
The legislation – named for former Senator Elizabeth Dole, who has been an outspoken advocate for military health care providers for more than a decade – includes 15 separate bills from both Republicans and Democrats that are already pending in Congress.
The highest profile could be the bipartisan Home Care Act, which would expand access to home and community-based services at every VA medical center. Advocates have said this would allow tens of thousands of veterans to receive more medical care at home instead of in nursing homes, if they choose.
It would increase the cap on home care programs from 65% of nursing home costs to 100%, potentially generating thousands of dollars more per month for eligible families. In some cases, that figure could be even higher, if VA officials decide that home care is “in the best interests of the veterans.”
The legislation would also require a review of the programs and processes surrounding these home care options and clarify the criteria for enrollment in VA’s Comprehensive Assistance Program for Family Caregivers. And it would create a mental health grant program for caregivers in the VA’s current program.
Eligibility for the PCAFC — which includes monthly stipends for family members who act as caregivers for sick veterans — has been a point of contention in recent years.
The bill also funds several new pilot programs to address the shortage of home care workers in some regions and to study the effectiveness of assisted living for veterans.
Other provisions
The package of bills also includes provisions to increase supportive housing subsidies by 18%, a move that could generate several thousand dollars more per month for charities that provide shelter to homeless veterans.
Advocates have been pushing for the move for years, saying higher inflation and rental costs have reduced affordable housing options for veterans in financial need.
Provisions related to the department’s much-maligned overhaul of electronic health records require VA leaders to “establish a baseline of clinical and operational practices” before moving forward with the 10-year, $16 billion project that will has stood still for the past 13 months.
It would also end the program within two years “unless the Secretary certifies that facilities using the Oracle Cerner EHR have recovered and healthcare quality metrics show improvement in each measurement period since the system became active in each facility.”
Lawmakers have criticized the program, which was launched in 2018 under then-President Donald Trump as a way to bring VA and Defense Department health records onto the same software platform. Since then, the effort has been plagued by system shortages, employee complaints and delays.
The measure also includes language requiring greater outreach and public notification to veterans about community care options, which are private sector medical appointments paid for by VA when wait times within the system reach certain benchmarks.
New rules would limit when VA officials can restrict community care and mandate that department staff inform veterans of the option when they receive information about their benefits.
Last passage
Paying for the package would come through new VA home loan fees, an offset that lawmakers say will prevent the legislation from violating Congress’ budget rules. But even with that, passing veterans legislation remains a difficult task.
Both the House of Representatives and the Senate are currently engaged in 2025 budget work, a process that last cycle took six months longer than expected.
Both chambers are expected to be in Washington, D.C., for most of the next six weeks, but with a break for mid-July and most of August ahead of the presidential and congressional elections in the fall. Whether that leaves enough time to move the veterans bill among other pressing matters is unclear.
Both Tester and Bost said they hope to move forward with the matter as soon as possible. Senate Veterans Affairs Committee member Jerry Moran, R-Kansas, also expressed support for the measure.
