,i #aaeth ,,congress #b;d ,session ,h4 ,r4 #gjag ,,in ,,the ,,house ,,of ,,representatives ,october #b1 #bjah,ms4 ,kuster of ,new ,hampshire 7for herself1 ,mr4 ,poliquin1 ,mr4 ,mooney of ,west ,virginia1 ,mr4 ,gianforte1 ,mr4 ,westerman1 ,ms4 ,shea-,porter1 and ,mr4 ,welch7 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 demonstration program to expand the availability of telemedicine services for veterans living in rural areas with certain mental health disorders1 and for other purposes4 #a4 ,short title ,this ,act may be cited as the ,enhancing ,veterans' ,experience with ,telehealth ,services ,act or the e,v,e,t,s ,act4 #b4 ,department of ,veterans ,affairs demonstration program on expanded availability of telemedicine services for certain veterans in rural areas 7a7 ,demonstration program ,beginning not later than #ahj days after the date of the enactment of this ,act1 the ,secretary of ,veterans ,affairs shall carry out a demonstration program to expand telemedicine services for eligible veterans4 ,under the pilot program1 all eligible veterans who opt to participate in the program may choose to receive cognitive therapy or prolonged exposure therapy2 which shall be delivered remotely via video calling technology through no less than #ab episodes of care per veteran or a greater number of episodes1 as determined by the veteran's provider4 7b7 ,instructions for providers ,the ,secretary shall create and distribute to ,network ,directors of ,veterans ,integrated ,services ,networks1 ,medical ,center ,directors and ,medical ,providers who may encounter eligible veterans instructions describing the program and the responsibilities of each ,department medical facility in furnishing care to eligible veterans under the program4 ,such instructions shall-- 7#a7 clearly define the responsibilities of the senior executives of ,department medical facilities participating in the demonstration program2 7#b7 clearly define responsibilities of each ,department medical provider at ,department medical centers participating in the demonstration program whose duties entail providing mental health care to eligible veterans2 7#c7 provide required training and education on mental health treatments that have substantial evidence supporting their use in telemedicine for each provider and veteran participating in the demonstration program2 7#d7 define eligible models of care coordination ,department medical facilities and participating providers may use to furnish telemedicine services under the demonstration program1 including recommendations for selecting a model of care coordination2 and 7#e7 clearly define oversight and accountability requirements for senior executives of the ,department who are responsible for overseeing the program1 including the ,veterans ,health ,administration1 the ,national ,center for ,,ptsd1 and any other relevant office4 7c7 ,outreach to eligible veterans ,department of ,veterans ,affairs medical providers and medical facilities participating in the demonstration program shall inform eligible veterans of the opportunity to participate in the demonstration program and provide such veterans with information on how to participate in such program4 7d7 ,study of the ,program ,for the duration of the demonstration program1 the ,secretary shall collect and record data regarding the health of veterans who receive medical care under the program1 including events1 treatments1 satisfaction survey results1 dropout rates1 and outcomes1 and make such data available for analysis by qualified independent researchers4 7e7 ,duration ,not later than three years and not sooner than two years after the date of enactment of this act1 the ,secretary shall decide whether to continue1 expand or discontinue the demonstration program and report that decision to the ,committees on ,veterans' ,affairs of the ,senate and the ,house of ,representatives4 7f7 ,assessment of the program ,not later than two years after the date of the enactment of this ,act1 the ,secretary shall submit to the ,committees on ,veterans' ,affairs of the ,senate and ,house of ,representatives an assessment of the demonstration program1 which shall include-- 7#a7 an analysis of the program prepared by qualified independent researchers2 7#b7 the number of veterans who participated in the program1 broken down by ,state of residence and primary ,department medical center2 7#c7 the average and median number of telemedicine episodes of care per veteran2 and 7#d7 the recommendations of the ,secretary regarding whether the program should be extended or expanded4 7g7 ,definitions ,in this section3 7#a7 ,the term qualifying rural areas means an area that-- 7,a7 is within one of-- 7i7 the six ,states participating in the ,telemedicine ,outreach for ,,ptsd pilot program1 as of the date of the enactment of this ,act1 ,south ,carolina1 ,iowa1 ,arkansas1 ,denver1 ,colorado1 ,california1 and ,washington2 and 7ii7 the #aj ,states identified as having the highest concentrations of veterans living in rural areas by the #bjag report of the ,census ,bureau's ,american ,community ,survey entitled1 ,veterans in ,rural ,america3 #bjaa-bjae2 and 7,b7 qualifies as rural under the definition of rural provided in the #bjaf ,census ,bureau document entitled ,defining ,rural at the ,u4,s4 ,census ,bureau or qualifies as highly rural under the meaning in ,public ,law #aac-adf4 7#b7 ,the term eligible veteran means a veteran who-- 7,a7 has been diagnosed with-- 7i7 post-traumatic stress disorder2 or 7ii7 a mental health disorder designated by the ,secretary for purposes of the demonstration program under this section and published in the ,federal ,register2 7,b7 is enrolled in the patient enrollment system of the ,department of ,veterans ,affairs under section #agje of title #ch1 ,united ,states ,code2 and 7,c7 resides within a qualifying rural area4 #c4 ,improvement of access to broadband internet for rural veterans participating in demonstration program 7a7 ,expansion of access to broadband internet 7#a7 ,partnership agreements ,the ,secretary may-- 7,a7 seek to enter into partnership agreements with covered private entities to expand access to broadband internet1 including the expansion of white space technology1 for eligible veterans who participate in the demonstration program under section #b2 7,b7 enter into partnership agreements1 when appropriate1 with the ,secretary of ,agriculture1 the ,chairman of the ,federal ,communications ,commission1 and the heads of other appropriate ,federal entities to assist covered private entities with which the ,secretary has entered into a partnership agreement under subparagraph 7,a7 in the delivery of broadband internet to qualifying rural areas1 as such term is defined in section #b7;h77#a72 and 7,c7 provide assistance to private entities in the delivery of broadband internet to such eligible veterans by working with other private entities1 including congressionally chartered veteran service organizations1 to provide necessary infrastructure and other services needed in the delivery of white space technology4 7#b7 ,cost subsidies ,the ,secretary may pay1 to an eligible veteran participating in the demonstration program under section #c1 an amount equal to the cost of obtaining internet access for the duration of the veteran's participation1 if-- 7,a7 the ,secretary determines the eligible veteran has financial need1 as determined by the ,secretary2 7,b7 such veteran meets eligibility requirements for the demonstration program for the duration of the veteran's participation in the program2 and 7,c7 the veteran has a service-connected disability rated at #ej percent or higher4 7#c7 ,information sharing 7,a7 ,in general ,subject to subparagraph 7,b71 the ,secretary may share information about the location of eligible veterans participating in the demonstration program under section #b with covered private entities with which the ,secretary enters into a partnership agreement under paragraph 7#a7 to aid in the delivery of broadband internet access to such veterans4 7,b7 ,privacy ,the ,secretary shall ensure that data and information disclosed to covered private entities conceals the identity of individual veterans4 ,prior to the disclosure of any data or information to a private entity pursuant to subparagraph 7,a71 the ,secretary shall enter into an agreement with the covered private entity that prohibits the entity from disclosing the data or information to any third party or using such data or information for any purpose other than providing broadband access to eligible veterans participating in the demonstration program4 7#d7 ,covered private entity ,in this subsection1 the term covered private entity means a technology company or internet service provider that is working to expand internet access1 including through white space technology4 7b7 ,provision of private spaces 7#a7 ,partnership agreement authority ,the ,secretary may seek to enter into a partnership agreement with private entities for the provision of private spaces described in paragraph 7#c7 with broadband internet access for use by eligible veterans participating in the demonstration program under section #b4 7#b7 ,preference ,in entering into partnership agreements under paragraph 7#a71 the ,secretary may give preference to entities with support services on location including1 certified community behavioral health clinics1 federally qualified health centers1 and congressionally chartered veteran service organizations4 7#c7 ,private spaces ,private spaces described in this paragraph are private spaces-- 7,a7 located in qualifying rural areas as defined in section #b7;g77#a72 and 7,b7 furnished1 or suitable to be furnished1 with electronic devices needed for the delivery of telemedicine services to veterans under the demonstration program4