I 118TH CONGRESS 1ST SESSION H. R. 2410 To amend title 38, United States Code, to authorize the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to provide administrative support to providers of dental care who provide such care to veterans that is not furnished under such title, to direct the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to establish a pilot program for the provision of dental care to certain veterans, and for other purposes. IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES MARCH 30, 2023 Mr. BILIRAKIS (for himself, Mr. LEVIN, Mr. VAN DREW, Mr. FERGUSON, and Mr. WALTZ) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Com- mittee on Veterans’ Affairs A BILL To amend title 38, United States Code, to authorize the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to provide administrative support to providers of dental care who provide such care to veterans that is not furnished under such title, to direct the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to establish a pilot program for the provision of dental care to certain veterans, and for other purposes. Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa- 1 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 2 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:09 Apr 12, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2410.IH H2410 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 2 •HR 2410 IH SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 1 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Veterans Early Treat- 2 ment for Chronic Ailment Resurgence through Examina- 3 tions Act of 2023’’ or the ‘‘VET CARE Act of 2023’’. 4 SEC. 2. ADMINISTRATIVE SUPPORT FOR COMMUNITY PRO- 5 VIDERS OF DENTAL CARE. 6 Section 1712 of title 38, United States Code, is 7 amended— 8 (1) by redesignating subsections (d) and (e) as 9 subsections (e) and (f), respectively; and 10 (2) by inserting after subsection (c) the fol- 11 lowing new subsection (d): 12 ‘‘(d)(1) The Secretary may furnish, to a provider of 13 dental care described in paragraph (2), administrative 14 support (including information for the provider to share 15 with veterans regarding the dental insurance plan under 16 section 1712C of this title) related to dental care described 17 in paragraph (2). 18 ‘‘(2) Dental care described in this paragraph is— 19 ‘‘(A) provided to a veteran; 20 ‘‘(B) not furnished under a law administered by 21 the Secretary; and’’. 22 SEC. 3. PILOT PROGRAM FOR THE PROVISION OF DENTAL 23 CARE TO CERTAIN VETERANS. 24 (a) PILOT PROGRAM.— 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:09 Apr 12, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2410.IH H2410 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 3 •HR 2410 IH (1) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Secretary of Vet- 1 erans Affairs shall carry out a pilot program to pro- 2 vide outpatient dental services and treatment, and 3 related dental appliances, to eligible veterans en- 4 rolled under subsection (c)(3), at no cost to such 5 veterans. 6 (2) PURPOSE.—Under the pilot program, the 7 Secretary shall determine whether there is a correla- 8 tion between veterans receiving such services and 9 treatment, and the veterans suffering fewer com- 10 plications of chronic ailments, thereby yielding a 11 lower cost of care. 12 (3) STEERING COMMITTEE: ESTABLISHMENT; 13 DUTY; AUTHORITY.—The Secretary shall appoint a 14 scientific steering committee to ensure that results 15 of clinical trials conducted under the pilot program 16 withstand the peer review process. To carry out such 17 duty, the steering committee— 18 (A) shall establish comprehensive ethical 19 and scientific protocols for clinical trials; and 20 (B) may alter the definition of ‘‘eligible 21 veteran’’ in subsection (b). 22 (b) ELIGIBLE VETERAN DEFINED.—In this section, 23 subject to subsection (a)(3)(B), the term ‘‘eligible vet- 24 eran’’ means a veteran who— 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:09 Apr 12, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2410.IH H2410 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 4 •HR 2410 IH (1) is enrolled in the system of annual patient 1 enrollment under section 1705 of title 38, United 2 States Code; 3 (2) is not eligible for dental care under section 4 1712 of title 38, United States Code; 5 (3) the Secretary determines does not receive 6 regular periodontal care; 7 (4) is between 40 and 70 years of age; and 8 (5) has been diagnosed with type 2 diabetes. 9 (c) APPLICATION; EVALUATION; DISQUALIFICATION; 10 ENROLLMENT; CATEGORIZATION.— 11 (1) APPLICATION.—An eligible veteran may 12 elect to apply for the pilot program. 13 (2) EVALUATION; DISQUALIFICATION.—An eli- 14 gible veteran who applies for the pilot program shall 15 receive an initial periodontal evaluation, including 16 vertical bitewing radiographs. Any eligible veteran 17 diagnosed with periodontal disease that requires sur- 18 gery shall be disqualified from the pilot program. 19 (3) ENROLLMENT; CATEGORIZATION.—The Sec- 20 retary shall enroll at least 1,500 eligible veterans 21 who apply for the pilot program, giving preference to 22 veterans with service-connected disabilities that in- 23 creases in accordance with the veterans’ disability 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:09 Apr 12, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2410.IH H2410 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 5 •HR 2410 IH ratings under chapter 11 of title 38, United States 1 Code, in a manner that ensures the following: 2 (A) One-third of eligible veterans enrolled 3 in the pilot program shall have been diagnosed 4 with no or mild periodontitis under paragraph 5 (2). 6 (B) Two-thirds of eligible veterans enrolled 7 in the pilot program shall have been diagnosed 8 with moderate to severe periodontitis under 9 paragraph (2). 10 (d) DURATION OF PROGRAM.—The Secretary shall 11 carry out the pilot program during the four-year period 12 beginning on the date that is 180 days after the effective 13 date of this section. 14 (e) LOCATIONS.—The pilot program shall be carried 15 out in five facilities of the Veterans Health Administra- 16 tion, with one such facility in each of five Veterans Inte- 17 grated Services Networks that the Secretary considers ap- 18 propriate for the pilot program. 19 (f) PATIENT DISTRIBUTION.—Each facility shall 20 serve not more than one-fourth and not fewer than one- 21 sixth of the veterans enrolled in the pilot program, in ap- 22 proximately even proportions of veterans categorized 23 under subsection (c)(3). 24 (g) COURSE OF PROGRAM.— 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:09 Apr 12, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2410.IH H2410 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 6 •HR 2410 IH (1) PERIODONTAL THERAPY.—The Secretary 1 shall make timely and appropriate periodontal ther- 2 apy available to veterans described in subsection 3 (c)(3)(B). 4 (2) ELECTION OF TREATMENT.—Such veterans 5 who elect to receive treatment shall be classified as 6 ‘‘treated’’. 7 (3) ANNUAL EVALUATIONS.—Each treated vet- 8 eran shall receive an annual dental evaluation, dur- 9 ing which the periodontal health of the treated vet- 10 eran shall be reassessed and recorded exactly as at 11 the initial evaluation under subsection (c)(2). 12 (4) HEALTH OUTCOME REPORTING.—For the 13 duration of the pilot program, the Secretary shall 14 collect and record data regarding the health of treat- 15 ed veterans, including events, treatments, and out- 16 comes, and make such data available for analysis by 17 qualified researchers. 18 (h) EDUCATION.— 19 (1) HEALTH CARE PROVIDERS.—The Secretary 20 shall provide standardized instructions to all physi- 21 cians and dentists who work in facilities described in 22 subsection (e) to ensure consistent evaluation and 23 care for veterans enrolled in the pilot program in all 24 such facilities. 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:09 Apr 12, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2410.IH H2410 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 7 •HR 2410 IH (2) ENROLLED VETERANS.—The Secretary 1 shall provide each veteran enrolled in the pilot pro- 2 gram with an orientation, information before any 3 care is provided under the pilot program, and an 4 exit interview that includes information regarding 5 how such veteran may obtain dental services and 6 treatment after the end of the pilot program. 7 (i) EDUCATIONAL OUTREACH.—The Secretary shall 8 notify those institutions of higher education (as that term 9 is defined in section 102 of the Higher Education Act of 10 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1002)) that offer degrees in periodontolo- 11 gy of the pilot program so that such institutions may en- 12 gage in similar studies regarding private periodontal care 13 for veterans. 14 (j) REPORT.—Not later than 18 months after the 15 conclusion of the pilot program, the Secretary shall submit 16 a report of findings to the Congress. 17 (k) REGULATIONS.—The Secretary shall administer 18 the pilot program under such regulations as the Secretary 19 shall prescribe, including best practices regarding in- 20 formed consent and study registration. 21 Æ VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:09 Apr 12, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6301 E:\BILLS\H2410.IH H2410 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB