,i #aaeth ,,congress #ast ,session ,h4 ,r4 #cfdb ,,in ,,the ,,house ,,of ,,representatives ,august #d1 #bjag ,mr4 ,barr introduced the following bill2 which was referred to the ,committee on ,veterans' ,affairs ,a ,,bill ,to direct the ,secretary of ,veterans ,affairs to carry out a pilot program to improve the access to private health care for veterans who are survivors of military sexual trauma4 #a4 ,short title ,this ,act may be cited as the ,military ,sexual ,assault ,victims ,empowerment ,act or the ,military ,,save ,act4 #b4 ,pilot program for private health care for veterans who are survivors of military sexual trauma 7a7 ,establishment ,the ,secretary of ,veterans ,affairs1 acting through the ,office of ,community ,care of the ,department of ,veterans ,affairs1 shall carry out a pilot program to furnish hospital care and medical services to eligible veterans at non-,department health care providers to treat physical and psychological injuries or illnesses which in the judgment of a mental health professional employed by the ,department resulted from a physical assault of a sexual nature1 battery of a sexual nature1 or sexual harassment which occurred while the veteran was serving on active duty1 active duty for training1 or inactive duty training4 7b7 ,duration ,the ,secretary shall carry out the pilot program under subsection 7a7 for a three-year period4 ,if at the completion of the pilot program an eligible veteran is receiving hospital care and medical services from a non-,department health care provider under the pilot program1 the ,secretary may approve1 on a case by case basis1 the continuation of such hospital care and medical services from that non-,department health care provider until the completion of the episode of care4 7c7 ,eligible veterans ,a veteran is eligible to participate in the pilot program under subsection 7a7 if the veteran-- 7#a7 is eligible to participate in the program under section #agbj;,d of title #ch1 ,united ,states ,code2 and 7#b7 resides in a location selected under subsection 7d74 7d7 ,locations 7#a7 ,selection ,the ,secretary shall select not more than five locations in which to carry out the pilot program under subsection 7a74 ,each location shall meet each of the following criteria3 7,a7 ,the location is within #ajj miles of a major military installation1 as determined by the ,secretary1 in the same ,state as the location4 7,b7 ,except as provided by paragraph 7#b71 the location consists of a city with a population between #bjj1jjj and #ejj1jjj1 as determined by the ,bureau of the ,census4 7,c7 ,the location is in a ,state in which the ,national ,violence ,against ,women ,prevention ,research ,center or the ,centers for ,disease ,control and ,prevention1 or both1 has determined the rate of sexual assault to be a substantial problem4 7,d7 ,the location is in a ,state that has a weighted percentage of reported rape of not less than #bj percent but not more than #be percent of sexual assault cases1 in accordance with the finding of the ,centers for ,disease ,control and ,prevention contained in the #8,lifetime ,prevalence of ,sexual ,violence by any ,perpetrator 7,,nisvs #bjaj74 7#b7 ,rural location ,not fewer than one location selected under paragraph 7#a7 shall be rural1 as determined by the ,secretary4 7e7 ,participation 7#a7 ,election ,an eligible veteran may elect to participate in the pilot program under subsection 7a74 ,such an election shall include an affidavit attesting that the veteran is eligible to participate in the program under section #agbj;,d of title #ch1 ,united ,states ,code4 ,such election shall not affect the ability of the veteran to receive health care furnished by ,department providers with respect to illnesses or injuries that are not described in subsection 7a74 7#b7 ,choice of non-,department health care providers ,the ,secretary may not restrict the ability of an eligible veteran who participates in the pilot program under subsection 7a7 to choose from which non-,department health care provider the veteran receives hospital care or medical treatment under the pilot program4 7#c7 ,provision of information ,the ,secretary shall-- 7,a7 notify each eligible veteran of the ability of the veteran to make an election under paragraph 7#a71 and that such election is made without prejudice2 and 7,b7 provide to such veterans educational referral materials1 including through pamphlets and internet websites1 on the non-,department providers in the locations selected under subsection 7d74 7f7 ,payments 7#a7 ,current providers ,if a non-,department health care provider is entered into a contract or other agreement with the ,secretary pursuant to another provision of law to furnish hospital care or medical treatment to veterans1 the ,secretary shall pay the health care provider for hospital care or medical treatment furnished under this section using the same rates and payment schedules as provided for in such contract or agreement4 7#b7 ,new providers ,if a non-,department health care provider is not entered into an agreement with the ,secretary pursuant to another provision of law to furnish hospital care or medical treatment to veterans1 the ,secretary shall pay the health care provider for hospital care or medical treatment furnished under this section using the same rates and payment schedule as if such care and treatment was furnished pursuant to section #agjc of title #ch1 ,united ,states ,code4 7g7 ,collection of data 7#a7 ,surveys ,the ,secretary shall survey each eligible veteran1 regardless of whether the veteran elects to participate in the pilot program under subsection 7a71 to assess the hospital care and medical treatment furnished to the veteran either pursuant to this section or section #agbj;,d of title #ch1 ,united ,states ,code1 as the case may be4 7#b7 ,matters included ,with respect to the hospital care or medical treatment covered by this section or section #agbj;,d of title #ch1 ,united ,states ,code1 the surveys under paragraph 7#a7 shall ascertain the following information3 7,a7 ,the number of eligible veterans who elect to participate in the pilot program under subsection 7a7 as compared to the number of eligible veterans who do not make such election4 7,b7 ,the length of time since an eligible veteran has been discharged or released from military service4 7,c7 ,the number of health care providers that the eligible veteran visited4 7,d7 ,the gender of each health care provider visited4 7,e7 ,the specific degree or licensure of each health care provider visited4 7,f7 ,whether the eligible veteran visited the same health care provider from the beginning of treatment to the completion of treatment1 and if not1 the reasons why not4 7,g7 ,the length of time from the date the eligible veteran sought an appointment with a health care provider until the date on which the appointment occurred4 7,h7 ,the length of time that the eligible veteran has to wait for an appointment with health care providers4 7,i7 ,the distance that the eligible veteran has to travel for an appointment with health care providers4 7,j7 ,the frequency of follow-up appointments made by the eligible veteran4 7,k7 ,the duration of treatment furnished by health care providers4 7,l7 ,whether the eligible veteran has trouble falling asleep1 and if so1 the reasons why4 7,m7 ,the types of any medication taken by the eligible veteran and the reasons for such use4 7,n7 ,whether the eligible veteran had an emergency situation that required mental health treatment before a scheduled appointment1 and if so-- 7i7 the mental health services that were offered and from whom2 and 7ii7 whether the eligible veteran accepted such services1 and if not1 why not4 7#c7 ,timing ,the ,secretary shall conduct surveys of eligible veterans under paragraph 7#a7 at the following periods3 7,a7 ,upon the election made by a veteran to participate in the pilot program under subsection 7a71 or as soon as practicable after the ,secretary determines the veteran will not make such an election4 7,b7 ,during each six-month period in which the pilot program under subsection 7a7 is being carried out4 7,c7 ,upon the completion of the pilot program under subsection 7a74 7#d7 ,questionnaires ,the ,secretary shall ensure that each eligible veteran participating in the pilot program under subsection 7a7 completes the following3 7,a7 ,,ptsd ,checklist for ,,dsm-#e 7,,pcl-#e74 7,b7 ,patient ,health ,questionnaire-#i 7,,phq-#i74 7,c7 ,the ,world ,health ,organization ,quality of ,life 7,,whoqol7-,,bref4 7,d7 ,columbia-,suicide ,severity ,rating ,scale4 7#e7 ,research ,the ,secretary shall assign a researcher of the ,department of ,veterans ,affairs to the element of the ,department administering the pilot program under subsection 7a7 to ensure the quality and integrity of the collection and analysis of the data collected under this subsection4 7h7 ,report ,not later than #fj days before the completion of the pilot program under subsection 7a71 the ,secretary shall submit to the ,committees on ,veterans' ,affairs of the ,house of ,representatives and the ,senate a report on the pilot program4 ,the report shall include the following3 7#a7 ,the results of the pilot program1 including whether eligible veterans who participated in the pilot program1 as compared to eligible veterans who did not so participate-- 7,a7 are sleeping better2 7,b7 experience fewer or more episodes of post-traumatic stress disorder or anxiety2 7,c7 take fewer or more medications relating to illnesses or injuries described in subsection 7a72 7,d7 selected non-,department health care providers based on the gender of the provider2 7,e7 have a lower rate of suicidal thoughts2 7,f7 have a lower rate of suicide2 and 7,g7 believe that the eligible veterans are receiving the care that best fits the specific needs of the veterans4 7#b7 ,information with respect to the health care results of eligible veterans who did not participate in the pilot program4 7#c7 ,the recommendation of the ,secretary with respect to extending or making permanent the pilot program4 7i7 ,definitions ,in this section3 7#a7 ,the term non-,department health care provider means an entity specified in section #aja7;a77#a77;,b7 of section #aja of the ,veterans ,access1 ,choice1 and ,accountability ,act of #bjae 7,public ,law #aac-adf2 #ch ,u4,s4,c4 #agja7 or any other health care provider that has entered into a contract or other agreement with the ,secretary pursuant to another provision of law to furnish hospital care or medical treatment to veterans4 7#b7 ,the term sexual harassment has the meaning given that term in section #agbj;,d of title #ch1 ,united ,states ,code4 7#c7 ,the term ,state has the meaning given that term in section #aja7bj7 of title #ch1 ,united ,states ,code4