S1134-119

What This Bill Does

This bill strengthens support for rural veterans by requiring every VA medical center to assign dedicated patient advocates specifically for veterans in rural and highly-rural areas who receive care through community-based outpatient clinics or the VA's community care network. It also requires the VA Secretary to publicly report detailed patient advocacy performance data to Congress annually.

Who Benefits and How

Rural veterans are the primary beneficiaries. They gain dedicated patient advocates focused on coordinating their care when they receive treatment outside of main VA medical centers—through community clinics or non-VA providers in the community care network. This means someone specifically assigned to help them navigate the system, resolve issues, and ensure continuity of care.

Congressional Veterans Affairs Committees benefit from enhanced oversight. The annual reports provide detailed, de-identified data on common patient issues, how quickly problems are resolved, response times for information requests, and feedback received through the Patient Advocate Tracking System. This transparency enables better congressional monitoring of VA patient advocacy effectiveness.

Who Bears the Burden and How

VA medical center directors face new administrative requirements. They must designate at least one existing staff member at each facility to serve as the rural veteran care coordinator, adding responsibilities to their staffing allocation decisions.

The VA Office of Patient Advocacy bears increased reporting burdens. The central office must compile, analyze, and submit comprehensive annual reports to three entities: the Senate Veterans Affairs Committee, the House Veterans Affairs Committee, and each Veterans Integrated Service Network director.

The VA Secretary personally assumes the reporting responsibility, including ensuring the data collection systems work properly and that all required metrics are tracked and reported annually.

Key Provisions

• Requires each VA medical center to designate at least one patient advocate to coordinate care specifically for rural veterans receiving services through community-based outpatient clinics or the community care network
• Patient advocates must report to their local medical center director somewhere in their chain of command, ensuring local accountability
• Mandates annual reports to Congress containing de-identified data from the Patient Advocate Tracking System on: common issues reported, resolution times for issues, resolution times for information requests, and compliments or complaints received
• Medical centers should use existing staff for these rural care coordinator roles "to the maximum extent practicable" rather than creating new positions
• Amends Title 38 U.S. Code Section 7309A by adding three new subsections (f, g, h) after existing provisions