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117TH CONGRESS
1ST SESSION
S. 89
AN ACT
To require the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to secure med-
ical opinions for veterans with service-connected disabil-
ities who die from COVID–19 to determine whether their
service-connected disabilities were the principal or con-
tributory causes of death, and for other purposes.
2
† S 89 ES
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
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tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
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SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
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This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Ensuring Survivor
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Benefits during COVID–19 Act of 2021’’.
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SEC. 2. MEDICAL OPINIONS FOR CERTAIN VETERANS WITH
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SERVICE-CONNECTED DISABILITIES WHO DIE
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OF COVID–19.
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(a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of Veterans Affairs
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shall secure a medical opinion to determine if a service-
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connected disability was the principal or contributory
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cause of death before notifying the survivor of the final
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decision in any case in which all of the following factors
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are met:
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(1) A claim for compensation is filed under
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chapter 13 of title 38, Unites States Code, with re-
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spect to a veteran with one or more service-con-
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nected disabilities who dies.
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(2) The death certificate for the veteran identi-
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fies Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID–19) as the
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principal or contributory cause of death.
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(3) The death certificate does not clearly iden-
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tify any of the service-connected disabilities of the
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veteran as the principal or contributory cause of
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death.
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3
† S 89 ES
(4) A service-connected disability of the veteran
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includes a condition more likely to cause severe ill-
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ness from COVID–19 as determined by the Centers
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for Disease Control and Prevention.
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(5) The claimant is not entitled to benefits
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under section 1318 of such title.
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(6) The evidence to support the claim does not
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result in a preliminary finding in favor of the claim-
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ant.
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(b) OUTREACH.—The Secretary shall provide infor-
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mation to veterans, dependents, and veterans service orga-
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nizations about applying to dependency and indemnity
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compensation when a veteran dies from COVID–19. The
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Secretary shall provide such information through the
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website of the Department of Veterans Affairs and via
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other outreach mechanisms.
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Passed the Senate July 21, 2021.
Attest:
Secretary.
117TH CONGRESS
1ST SESSION
S. 89
AN ACT
To require the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to se-
cure medical opinions for veterans with service-
connected disabilities who die from COVID–19 to
determine whether their service-connected disabil-
ities were the principal or contributory causes of
death, and for other purposes.