Gerald’s Law Act
Summary
What This Bill Does
This bill amends title 38 of the United States Code to extend burial allowance benefits to veterans who pass away at home while receiving hospice care from the Department of Veterans Affairs. Currently, burial allowances may not cover all veterans in hospice situations; this bill aims to close that gap.
Who Benefits and How
- Veterans and their families: Families of veterans who die at home during VA hospice care would receive burial allowance payments to help cover funeral and burial expenses.
- Funeral service providers: May see increased business from families now eligible for burial allowances.
Who Bears the Burden and How
- Department of Veterans Affairs: Must administer expanded burial allowance program, potentially increasing administrative workload and expenditures.
- Federal budget: Additional appropriations may be required to fund the expanded benefit.
Key Provisions
- Extends burial allowance eligibility to veterans dying at home while in VA hospice care
- Amends existing veterans benefits law in title 38 U.S.C.
Evidence Chain:
This summary is generated from the full bill text using AI analysis. Expand "Detailed Analysis" below for identified beneficiaries/burden bearers.
At a Glance
What This Bill Does
To provide a burial allowance for certain veterans who die at home while receiving VA hospice care.
Key Policy Areas
Veterans Affairs, Healthcare, End-of-Life Care
Primary Purpose
To provide a burial allowance for certain veterans who die at home while receiving VA hospice care.
Policy Domains
Section 1 - Burial Allowance for VA Hospice Veterans
Identified Gains
Contextual inference, no direct clause citation- Veterans families
- Funeral service industry
Contextual inference, no direct clause citation
Identified Costs
Contextual inference, no direct clause citation- Department of Veterans Affairs
- Federal budget
Contextual inference, no direct clause citation
Sponsors
Legislative Progress
In CommitteeReferred to the House Committee on Veterans' Affairs.
Introduced in House
Mr. Bergman (for himself, Ms. Budzinski, Mr. Golden of Maine, …
Bill Structure & Actor Mappings
Who is "The Secretary" in each section?
- "the_secretary"
- → Secretary of Veterans Affairs
We use a combination of our own taxonomy and classification in addition to large language models to assess meaning and potential beneficiaries. High confidence means strong textual evidence. Always verify with the original bill text.
Learn more about our methodology