HR 6038
Improving Veteran Access to Care Act
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Bill overview
This bill, the Improving Veteran Access to Care Act, directs the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) to create a plan to improve how veterans schedule healthcare appointments. The plan must focus on modernizing scheduling systems, including self-service platforms and telephone scheduling options, to provide veterans with better access and a more efficient experience. The VA will also be required to report on its progress in implementing this plan and coordinate it with the Electronic Health Record Modernization Program.
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119th CONGRESS — 1st Session
H. R. 6038
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
A BILL
To direct the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to establish an integrated project team to improve the process for scheduling appointments for health care from the Department of Veterans Affairs, and for other purposes.
This Act may be cited as the Improving Veteran Access to Care Act
.
Not later than one year after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall submit to the appropriate committees of Congress a plan to improve the process for scheduling appointments for health care from the Department of Veterans Affairs, including improvements for both patients and employees of the Department responsible for scheduling such appointments.
a proposed schedule and timeline to carry out such plan.
To develop or continue the development of a scheduling system that enables both personnel and patients of the Department to view available appointments for care furnished by the Department, including primary care, mental health care, and all forms of specialty care.
To develop or continue the development of a self-service scheduling platform, available for use by all patients of the Department, which shall—
if a referral is required for an appointment, provide a method for the patient to request a referral and subsequently book an appointment if the referral is approved; and
provide such patients with the ability to cancel or reschedule appointments.
To create a process through which all patients of the Department can telephonically speak with a scheduler who can assist the patient to determine appointment availability and can fully schedule appointments on behalf of the patient for all care furnished by the Department.
To carry out such other functions, oversight, metric development and tracking, change management, cross-Department coordination, and other related matters, including improvements to employee-facing information technology, training, and processes, as the Secretary determines appropriate as it relates to scheduling tools, functions, and operations with respect to health care appointments furnished by the Department.
If the Secretary determines that an objective under subparagraph (A), or any feature or service in connection with that objective, cannot be implemented or otherwise incorporated into a final product pursuant to the plan required by subsection (a), the Secretary shall include with the plan submitted under such subsection a report containing—
Not later than two years after submitting to the appropriate committees of Congress the plan required by subsection (a), the Secretary shall fully implement the plan.
In developing the plan required by subsection (a), the Secretary shall ensure that the elements and objectives of such plan set forth under subsection (b) are developed in consideration of the deployment schedule and capabilities of the Electronic Health Record Modernization Program of the Department to ensure a smooth transition to using the tools and features under such plan as relevant and appropriate.
Not later than each of one year and two years after the date on which the Secretary submits the plan required by subsection (a), the Secretary shall submit to the appropriate committees of Congress a report on the progress of the Secretary in implementing such plan, including—
the costs incurred to implement the plan as of the date of the report;
the expected costs to complete implementation of the plan (including costs for management and technology);
the schedule for deployment of any capabilities developed pursuant to the plan; and
the goals and metrics achieved, challenges, and lessons learned in implementing the plan.
Nothing in this section shall be construed to require the Secretary to include in the plan required by subsection (a) any technology or process that would preclude or impede the ability of a veteran to contact or schedule an appointment directly with a facility or provider through a non-online scheduling process, should the veteran choose to do so.
In this section:
The term appropriate committees of Congress means the Committee on Veterans’ Affairs of the Senate and the Committee on Veterans’ Affairs of the House of Representatives.
The term fully schedule, with respect to an appointment for health care, means that the appointment booking is completed, rather than simply requested.