Notes on 38 U.S.C. § 527 : US Code - Notes

Search Notes on 38 U.S.C. § 527 : US Code - Notes

(Added Pub. L. 102-83, Sec. 2(a), Aug. 6, 1991, 105 Stat. 391.)
PRIOR PROVISIONS
Provisions similar to those in this section were contained in
section 219 of this title prior to repeal by Pub. L. 102-83, Sec.
2(a).
PERSIAN GULF WAR VETERANS' HEALTH STATUS
Pub. L. 102-585, title VII, Nov. 4, 1992, 106 Stat. 4975, as
amended by Pub. L. 103-446, title I, Sec. 108, Nov. 2, 1994, 108
Stat. 4653; Pub. L. 105-368, title I, Secs. 104, 106, Nov. 11,
1998, 112 Stat. 3323, 3325, provided that:
"SEC. 701. SHORT TITLE.
"This title may be cited as the 'Persian Gulf War Veterans'
Health Status Act'.
"SEC. 702. PERSIAN GULF WAR VETERANS HEALTH REGISTRY.
"(a) Establishment of Registry. - The Secretary of Veterans
Affairs shall establish and maintain a special record to be known
as the 'Persian Gulf War Veterans Health Registry' (in this section
referred to as the 'Registry').
"(b) Contents of Registry. - Except as provided in subsection
(c), the Registry shall include the following information:
"(1) A list containing the name of each individual who served
as a member of the Armed Forces in the Persian Gulf theater of
operations during the Persian Gulf War and who -
"(A) applies for care or services from the Department of
Veterans Affairs under chapter 17 of title 38, United States
Code;
"(B) files a claim for compensation under chapter 11 of such
title on the basis of any disability which may be associated
with such service;
"(C) dies and is survived by a spouse, child, or parent who
files a claim for dependency and indemnity compensation under
chapter 13 of such title on the basis of such service;
"(D) requests from the Department a health examination under
section 703; or
"(E) receives from the Department of Defense a health
examination similar to the health examination referred to in
subparagraph (D) and requests inclusion in the Registry.
"(2) Relevant medical data relating to the health status of,
and other information that the Secretary considers relevant and
appropriate with respect to, each individual described in
paragraph (1) who -
"(A) grants to the Secretary permission to include such
information in the Registry; or
"(B) at the time the individual is listed in the Registry, is
deceased.
"(c) Individuals Submitting Claims or Making Requests Before Date
of Enactment. - If in the case of an individual described in
subsection (b)(1) the application, claim, or request referred to in
such subsection was submitted, filed, or made, before the date of
the enactment of this Act [Nov. 4, 1992], the Secretary shall, to
the extent feasible, include in the Registry such individual's name
and the data and information, if any, described in subsection
(b)(2) relating to the individual.
"(d) Department of Defense Information. - The Secretary of
Defense shall furnish to the Secretary of Veterans Affairs such
information maintained by the Department of Defense as the
Secretary of Veterans Affairs considers necessary to establish and
maintain the Registry.
"(e) Relation to Department of Defense Registry. - The Secretary
of Veterans Affairs, in consultation with the Secretary of Defense,
shall ensure that information is collected and maintained in the
Registry in a manner that permits effective and efficient cross-
reference between the Registry and the registry established under
section 734 of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal
Years 1992 and 1993 (Public Law 102-190; 105 Stat. 1411; 10 U.S.C.
1074 note), as amended by section 704.
"(f) Ongoing Outreach to Individuals Listed in Registry. - The
Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall, from time to time, notify
individuals listed in the Registry of significant developments in
research on the health consequences of military service in the
Persian Gulf theater of operations during the Persian Gulf War.
"SEC. 703. HEALTH EXAMINATIONS AND COUNSELING FOR VETERANS
ELIGIBLE FOR INCLUSION IN CERTAIN HEALTH-RELATED REGISTRIES.
"(a) In General. - (1) The Secretary of Veterans Affairs -
"(A) shall, upon the request of a veteran described in
subsection (b)(1), provide the veteran with a health examination
(including any appropriate diagnostic tests) and consultation and
counseling with respect to the results of the examination and the
tests; and
"(B) may, upon the request of a veteran described in subsection
(b)(2), provide the veteran with such an examination (including
diagnostic tests) and such consultation and counseling.
"(2) The Secretary shall carry out appropriate outreach
activities with respect to the provision of any health examinations
(including any diagnostic tests) and consultation and counseling
services under paragraph (1).
"(b) Covered Veterans. - (1) In accordance with subsection
(a)(1)(A), the Secretary shall provide an examination (including
diagnostic tests), consultation, and counseling under that
subsection to any veteran who is eligible for listing or inclusion
in the Persian Gulf War Veterans Health Registry established by
section 702.
"(2) In accordance with subsection (a)(1)(B), the Secretary may
provide an examination (including diagnostic tests), consultation,
and counseling under that subsection to any veteran who is eligible
for listing or inclusion in any other similar health-related
registry administered by the Secretary.
"SEC. 704. EXPANSION OF COVERAGE OF PERSIAN GULF REGISTRY.
"[Amended section 734 of Pub. L. 102-190, set out as a note under
section 1074 of Title 10, Armed Forces.]
"SEC. 705. STUDY BY OFFICE OF TECHNOLOGY ASSESSMENT OF PERSIAN
GULF REGISTRY AND PERSIAN GULF WAR VETERANS HEALTH REGISTRY.
"(a) Study. - The Director of the Office of Technology Assessment
shall, in a manner consistent with the Technology Assessment Act of
1972 (2 U.S.C. 472(d) [2 U.S.C. 471 et seq.]), assess -
"(1) the potential utility of each of the Persian Gulf Registry
and the Persian Gulf War Veterans Health Registry for scientific
study and assessment of the intermediate and long-term health
consequences of military service in the Persian Gulf theater of
operations during the Persian Gulf War;
"(2) the extent to which each registry meets the requirements
of the provisions of law under which the registry is established;
"(3) the extent to which data contained in each registry -
"(A) are maintained in a manner that ensures permanent
preservation and facilitates the effective, efficient retrieval
of information that is potentially relevant to the scientific
study of the intermediate and long-term health consequences of
military service in the Persian Gulf theater of operations
during the Persian Gulf War; and
"(B) would be useful for scientific study regarding such
health consequences;
"(4) the adequacy of any plans to update each of the
registries;
"(5) the extent to which the Department of Defense or the
Department of Veterans Affairs, as the case may be, is assembling
and maintaining information on the Persian Gulf theater of
operations (including information on troop locations and
atmospheric and weather conditions) in a manner that facilitates
the usefulness of, maintenance of, and retrieval of information
from, the applicable registry; and
"(6) the adequacy and compatibility of protocols for the health
examinations and counseling provided under section 703 and health
examinations provided by the Department of Defense to members of
the Armed Forces for the purpose of assessing the health status
of members of the Armed Forces who served in the Persian Gulf
theater of operations during the Persian Gulf War.
"(b) Access to Information. - The Secretary of Veterans Affairs
and the Secretary of Defense shall provide the Director with access
to such records and information under the jurisdiction of each such
secretary as the Director determines necessary to permit the
Director to carry out the study required under this section.
"(c) Reports. - The Director shall -
"(1) not later than 270 days after the date of the enactment of
this Act [Nov. 4, 1992], submit to Congress a report on the
results of the assessment carried out under this section of the
Persian Gulf Registry and health-examination protocols; and
"(2) not later than 15 months after such date, submit to
Congress a report on the results of the assessment carried out
under this section of the Persian Gulf War Veterans Health
Registry.
"(d) Definitions. - For the purposes of this section:
"(1) The term 'Persian Gulf Registry' means the registry
established under section 734 of the National Defense
Authorization Act for Fiscal Years 1992 and 1993 (Public Law 102-
190; 105 Stat. 1411; 10 U.S.C. 1074 note), as amended by section
704.
"(2) The term 'Persian Gulf War Veterans Health Registry' means
the Persian Gulf War Veterans Health Registry established under
section 702.
"SEC. 706. AGREEMENT WITH NATIONAL ACADEMY OF SCIENCES FOR REVIEW
OF HEALTH CONSEQUENCES OF SERVICE DURING THE PERSIAN GULF WAR.
"(a) Agreement. - (1) The Secretary of Veterans Affairs and
Secretary of Defense jointly shall seek to enter into an agreement
with the National Academy of Sciences for the Medical Follow-Up
Agency (MFUA) of the Institute of Medicine of the Academy to review
existing scientific, medical, and other information on the health
consequences of military service in the Persian Gulf theater of
operations during the Persian Gulf War.
"(2) The agreement shall require MFUA to provide members of
veterans organizations and members of the scientific community
(including the Director of the Office of Technology Assessment)
with the opportunity to comment on the method or methods MFUA
proposes to use in conducting the review.
"(3) The agreement shall permit MFUA, in conducting the review,
to examine and evaluate medical records of individuals who are
included in the registries referred to in section 705(d) for
purposes that MFUA considers appropriate, including the purpose of
identifying illnesses of those individuals.
"(4) The Secretary of Veterans Affairs and the Secretary of
Defense shall seek to enter into the agreement under this section
not later than 180 days after the date of the enactment of this Act
[Nov. 4, 1992].
"(b) Report. - (1) The agreement under this section shall require
the National Academy of Sciences to submit to the committees and
secretaries referred to in paragraph (2) a report on the results of
the review carried out under the agreement. Such report shall
contain the following:
"(A) An assessment of the effectiveness of actions taken by the
Secretary of Veterans Affairs and the Secretary of Defense to
collect and maintain information that is potentially useful for
assessing the health consequences of the military service
referred to in subsection (a).
"(B) Recommendations on means of improving the collection and
maintenance of such information.
"(C) Recommendations on whether there is sound scientific basis
for an epidemiological study or studies on the health
consequences of such service, and if the recommendation is that
there is sound scientific basis for such a study or studies, the
nature of the study or studies.
"(2) The committees and secretaries referred to in paragraph (1)
are the following:
"(A) The Committees on Veterans' Affairs of the Senate and
House of Representatives.
"(B) The Committees on Armed Services of the Senate and House
of Representatives.
"(C) The Secretary of Veterans Affairs.
"(D) The Secretary of Defense.
"(c) Funding. - (1) The Secretary of Veterans Affairs and the
Secretary of Defense shall make available up to a total of $500,000
in fiscal year 1993, from funds available to the Department of
Veterans Affairs and the Department of Defense in that fiscal year,
to carry out the review. Any amounts provided by the two
departments shall be provided in equal amounts.
"(2) If the Secretary of Veterans Affairs and the Secretary of
Defense enter into an agreement under subsection (a) with the
National Academy of Sciences -
"(A) the Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall make available
$250,000 in each of fiscal years 1994 through 2003, from amounts
available to the Department of Veterans Affairs in each such
fiscal year, to the National Academy of Sciences for the general
purposes of conducting epidemiological research with respect to
military and veterans populations; and
"(B) the Secretary of Defense shall make available $250,000 in
each of fiscal years 1994 through 2003, from amounts available to
the Department of Defense in each such fiscal year, to the
National Academy of Sciences for the purposes of carrying out the
research referred to in subparagraph (A).
"(d) Research Review and Development of Medical Education
Curriculum. - (1) In order to further understand the health
consequences of military service in the Persian Gulf theater of
operations during the Persian Gulf War and of new research findings
with implications for improving the provision of care for veterans
of such service, the Secretary of Veterans Affairs and the
Secretary of Defense shall seek to enter into an agreement with the
National Academy of Sciences under which the Institute of Medicine
of the Academy would -
"(A) develop a curriculum pertaining to the care and treatment
of veterans of such service who have ill-defined or undiagnosed
illnesses for use in the continuing medical education of both
general and specialty physicians who provide care for such
veterans; and
"(B) on an ongoing basis, periodically review and provide
recommendations regarding the research plans and research
strategies of the Departments relating to the health consequences
of military service in the Persian Gulf theater of operations
during the Persian Gulf War.
"(2) Recommendations to be provided under paragraph (1)(B)
include any recommendations that the Academy considers appropriate
for additional scientific studies (including studies related to
treatment models) to resolve areas of continuing scientific
uncertainty relating to the health consequences of any aspects of
such military service. In making recommendations for additional
studies, the Academy shall consider the available scientific data,
the value and relevance of the information that could result from
such studies, and the cost and feasibility of carrying out such
studies.
"(3) Not later than 9 months after the Institute of Medicine
provides the Secretaries the curriculum developed under paragraph
(1)(A), the Secretaries shall provide for the conduct of continuing
education programs using that curriculum. Those programs shall
include instruction which seeks to emphasize use of appropriate
protocols of diagnosis, referral, and treatment of such veterans.
"SEC. 707. COORDINATION OF HEALTH-RELATED GOVERNMENT ACTIVITIES
ON THE PERSIAN GULF WAR.
"(a) Designation of Coordinating Organization. - The President
shall designate, and may redesignate from time to time, the head of
an appropriate department or agency of the Federal Government to
coordinate all activities undertaken or funded by the Executive
Branch of the Federal Government on the health consequences of
military service in the Persian Gulf theater of operations during
the Persian Gulf War.
"(b) Public Advisory Committee. - Not later than January 1, 1999,
the head of the department or agency designated under subsection
(a) shall establish an advisory committee consisting of members of
the general public, including Persian Gulf War veterans and
representatives of such veterans, to provide advice to the head of
that department or agency on proposed research studies, research
plans, or research strategies relating to the health consequences
of military service in the Southwest Asia theater of operations
during the Persian Gulf War. The department or agency head shall
consult with such advisory committee on a regular basis.
"(c) Reports. - (1) Not later than March 1 of each year, the head
of the department or agency designated under subsection (a) shall
submit to the Committees on Veterans' Affairs of the Senate and
House of Representatives a report on -
"(A) the status and results of all such research activities
undertaken by the executive branch during the previous year; and
"(B) research priorities identified during that year.
"(2)(A) Not later than 120 days after submission of the
epidemiological research study conducted by the Department of
Veterans Affairs entitled 'VA National Survey of Persian Gulf
Veterans - Phase III', the head of the department or agency
designated under subsection (a) shall submit to the congressional
committees specified in paragraph (1) a report on the findings
under that study and any other pertinent medical literature.
"(B) With respect to any findings of that study and any other
pertinent medical literature which identify scientific evidence of
a greater relative risk of illness or illnesses in family members
of veterans who served in the Persian Gulf War theater of
operations than in family members of veterans who did not so serve,
the head of the department or agency designated under subsection
(a) shall seek to ensure that appropriate research studies are
designed to follow up on such findings.
"(d) Public Availability of Research Findings. - The head of the
department or agency designated under subsection (a) shall ensure
that the findings of all research conducted by or for the executive
branch relating to the health consequences of military service in
the Persian Gulf theater of operations during the Persian Gulf War
(including information pertinent to improving provision of care for
veterans of such service) are made available to the public through
peer-reviewed medical journals, the World Wide Web, and other
appropriate media.
"(e) Outreach. - The head of the department or agency designated
under subsection (a) shall ensure that the appropriate departments
consult and coordinate in carrying out an ongoing program to
provide information to those who served in the Southwest Asia
theater of operations during the Persian Gulf War relating to: (1)
the health risks, if any, resulting from any risk factors
associated with such service; and (2) any services or benefits
available with respect to such health risks.
"SEC. 708. DEFINITION.
"For the purposes of this title, the term 'Persian Gulf War' has
the meaning given such term in section 101(33) of title 38, United
States Code."
SERVICES FOR HOMELESS VETERANS
Pub. L. 102-405, title I, Sec. 107, Oct. 9, 1992, 106 Stat. 1976,
as amended by Pub. L. 103-446, title X, Sec. 1002, Nov. 2, 1994,
108 Stat. 4679, required Secretary of Veterans' Affairs and
directors of each medical center or benefits office to assess needs
of homeless veterans and programs which have been developed to
assist homeless veterans, and to replicate programs which have
successfully rehabilitated homeless veterans, prior to repeal by
Pub. L. 105-114, title II, Sec. 202(c)(2), Nov. 21, 1997, 111 Stat.
2287.