,i  #aafth ,,congress  #b;d ,session    
,h4 ,r4 #egja  ,,in ,,the ,,house ,,of  
,,representatives  ,january #bi1        
#bjbj,mr4 ,hudson 7for himself and ,miss
 ,rice of ,new ,york7 introduced the    
following bill2 which was referred to   
the ,committee on ,veterans' ,affairs   
,a ,,bill  ,to amend title #ch1 ,united 
,states ,code1 to improve assistance and
 support services for caregivers of     
veterans4  #a4 ,short title ,this ,act  
may be cited as the ,care for the       
,veteran ,caregiver ,act4  #b4          
,improvements to the program of         
comprehensive assistance for family     
caregivers  7a7 ,extended stipend       
payments ,subparagraph 7,c7 of paragraph
 7#c7 of section #agbj;,g7a7 of title   
#ch1 ,united ,states ,code1 is amended  
by inserting after clause 7iv7 the      
following new clause3  7v7 ,if an       
eligible veteran dies during the period 
in which the ,secretary provides to the 
family caregiver of such veteran        
assistance under subparagraph 7,a71 the 

,secretary shall continue to provide to 
the family caregiver medical care under 
section #agha of this title and the     
monthly personal caregiver stipend for  
not less than a six-month period        
following the date of such death4 ,the  
,secretary may extend such period for   
all1 or groups of1 family caregivers of 
eligible veterans specified in paragraph
 7#b77;,c74  4  7b7 ,eligibility for the
 program of comprehensive assistance for
 family caregivers  7#a7 ,standardized  
evaluation criteria ,subparagraph 7,d7  
of paragraph 7#c7 of such section is    
amended-- 7,a7 by striking ,in providing
 and inserting 7i7 ,in providing2 and   
7,b7 by adding at the end the following 
new clause3  7ii7 ,in conducting        
periodic evaluations under clause 7i71  
the ,secretary shall ensure that the    
criteria used in conducting such        
evaluations1 the methods by which such  
criteria are assessed1 the measurements 
and standards used1 and the evaluation  
process and review methods used1 are    

standardized across all facilities of   
the ,department and ,veteran ,integrated
 ,service ,networks4  4  7#b7 ,permanent
 eligibility ,subparagraph 7,c7 of such 
paragraph is amended-- 7,a7 by          
redesignating clause 7iv7 as clause 7v72
 and  7,b7 by inserting after clause    
7iii7 the following new clause3  7iv7   
,based upon the criteria specified in   
clause 7iii71 the ,secretary shall      
establish a process by which veterans   
who are determined to have the most     
significant need for caregiver          
assistance are permanently eligible     
under this subsection4  4  7c7          
,standardized application procedures    
,paragraph 7#e7 of such section is      
amended to read as follows3  7#e7 7,a7  
,for each application submitted jointly 
by an eligible veteran and family       
member1 the ,secretary shall evaluate   
7in collaboration with the primary care 
team for the eligible veteran to the    
maximum extent practicable7--  7i7 the  
eligible veteran---- 7,i7 to identify   

the personal care services required by  
the eligible veteran2 and  7,,ii7 to    
determine whether such requirements     
could be significantly or substantially 
satisfied through the provision of      
personal care services from a family    
member2 and  7ii7 the family member to  
determine the amount of instruction1    
preparation1 and training1 if any1 the  
family member requires to provide the   
personal care services required by the  
eligible veteran--  7,i7 as a provider  
of personal care services for the       
eligible veteran2 and  7,,ii7 as the    
primary provider of personal care       
services for the eligible veteran4  7,b7
 ,in establishing and evaluating the    
applications under subparagraph 7,a71   
the ,secretary shall ensure that the    
criteria used in accepting and          
evaluating such applications1 the       
methods by which such applications are  
evaluated1 the measurements and         
standards used1 and the evaluation      
process and review methods used1 are    

standardized across all facilities of   
the ,department and ,veteran ,integrated
 ,service ,networks4  4  7d7 ,conforming
 amendments ,such section is further    
amended-- 7#a7 in paragraph 7#f71 by    
striking under paragraph 7#e77;,b7 and  
inserting under paragraph 7#e77;,a77ii72
 and  7#b7 in paragraph 7#g77;,b71 by   
striking under paragraph 7#e77;,a77i7   
and inserting under paragraph           
7#e77;,a77i77,i74