HR530-119

What This Bill Does

The ACES Act requires the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to seek an agreement with the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine within 30 days after enactment and to finalize the agreement within 60 days after negotiations begin. If VA misses the 60-day finalization deadline, the Secretary must report to the House and Senate Veterans' Affairs Committees explaining the failure, estimating the new finalization date, and then brief those committees every 60 days until the agreement is finalized.

The National Academies study must examine cancer prevalence and mortality among covered individuals: active-duty Army, Navy, Air Force, or Marine Corps fixed-wing aircrew, including pilots, navigators, weapons systems operators, aircraft system operators, and other regular fixed-wing crew members. The study must identify occupational exposures involving chemicals, compounds, agents, and other phenomena; review literature linking those exposures to overall cancer morbidity, overall cancer mortality, and increased rates of brain, colon and rectal, kidney, lung, melanoma skin, non-Hodgkin lymphoma, pancreatic, prostate, testicular, thyroid, urinary bladder, and other cancers chosen by VA in consultation with the National Academies. It may use VA, DOD, service, National Death Index, and prior NDAA study data. The National Academies must report results to VA and the Veterans' Affairs Committees. The bill also extends a limit on certain veterans pension payments from November 30, 2031 to December 31, 2031.

Who Benefits and How

Military aircrew veterans, fixed-wing pilots, navigators, weapons systems operators, aircraft system operators, other aircrew members, veterans with covered cancers, veterans' survivors, VA health researchers, House Veterans' Affairs Committee staff, Senate Veterans' Affairs Committee staff, and the National Academies benefit because the study can identify whether military aircrew exposures are associated with cancer morbidity and mortality, creating evidence for future health-care, benefits, or presumptive-service-connection policy.

Who Bears the Burden and How

The Secretary of Veterans Affairs, VA contracting staff, VA health-data offices, Department of Defense health-data offices, Army records staff, Navy records staff, Air Force records staff, Marine Corps records staff, National Center for Health Statistics staff, and National Academies researchers bear compliance burdens because they must negotiate quickly, gather data, analyze exposures, review literature, estimate prevalence and mortality, report results, and brief Congress if deadlines are missed.

Key Provisions

• Requires VA to seek a National Academies cancer study agreement within 30 days after enactment.
• Requires VA to finalize the agreement within 60 days after negotiations begin or report and brief Congress every 60 days.
• Requires the study to identify active-duty fixed-wing aircrew occupational exposures.
• Requires literature review of exposure links to overall cancer morbidity, mortality, and eleven listed cancer categories.
• Authorizes use of VA, DOD, service, National Death Index, and prior NDAA study data.
• Requires the National Academies to report results to VA and House and Senate Veterans' Affairs Committees.
• Extends a veterans pension-payment limit date from November 30, 2031 to December 31, 2031.