United States 118th Congress Status: In Committee 1 D cosponsors

S 449 — Veterans Patient Advocacy Act

Last action — Committee on Veterans' Affairs. Hearings held. Hearings printed: S.Hrg. 118-217.

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  1. ✓
    Introduced
  2. 2
    In Committee
  3. 3
    Passed Senate
  4. 4
    Passed House
  5. 5
    To Executive
  6. 6
    Enacted

This bill died with 118th Congress. It reached “In Committee” and never advanced before the session ended, so it can no longer move — a new version would have to be reintroduced in the current session.

This bill is no longer active — its legislative session has ended, so there is no live prognosis. It would have to be reintroduced in the current session to move again.

Summary

Veterans Patient Advocacy Act This bill requires the Office of Patient Advocacy within the Veterans Health Administration to ensure (1) there is not fewer than one patient advocate for every 13,500 veterans enrolled in the Department of Veterans Affairs health care system, and (2) highly rural veterans may access the services of patient advocates. The bill also requires the Government Accountability Office to report on the implementation of such policies.

Bill Text

How this bill changes current law

2 changes Share ↗

Compared against current U.S. Code AI-generated reading aid — verify against the official bill.

The bill establishes a requirement for the Department of Veterans Affairs to ensure a minimum number of patient advocates based on veteran enrollment and accessibility for rural veterans.

  • 38 U.S.C. § 7309A

    (e) Number of Patient Advocates.--Beginning on the date that is one year after the date of the enactment of the Veterans Patient Advocacy Act, the Director shall ensure that-- (1) there is not fewer than one patient advocate for every 13,500 veterans enrolled in the system of annual patient enrollment of the Department established and operated under section 1705(a) of this title; and (2) highly rural veterans may access the services of patient advocates, including, to the extent practicable, by assigning patient advocates to rural community-based outpatient clinics.

    This addition sets specific staffing requirements for patient advocates based on the number of enrolled veterans.

  • 38 U.S.C. § 7309A

    (e) Training.— In providing training to patient advocates under subsection (c)(2)(C), the Director shall ensure that such training is consistent throughout the Department. (f) Controlled Substance Defined.— In this section, the term “controlled substance” has the meaning given that term in section 102 of the Controlled Substances Act (21 U.S.C. 802). → (f) Controlled Substance Defined.— In this section, the term “controlled substance” has the meaning given that term in section 102 of the Controlled Substances Act (21 U.S.C. 802). (g) Training.— In providing training to patient advocates under subsection (c)(2)(C), the Director shall ensure that such training is consistent throughout the Department.

    This change reorders subsections (e) and (f) to create a new (e) while ensuring the training requirements remain in a separate subsection (g).

Action History

  1. Committee on Veterans' Affairs. Hearings held. Hearings printed: S.Hrg. 118-217.

  2. Introduced in Senate

  3. Read twice and referred to the Committee on Veterans' Affairs.

Sponsors

Sponsorship breakdown

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1 sponsors · 0 co-sponsors · 546 not signed on

Sponsors (1)

Co-sponsors (0)

None.

Not signed on (546)

546 members have not signed on to this bill.

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"Not signed on" means a member has not sponsored or co-sponsored this bill — it does not imply opposition. Members flagged Voted No have a recorded No vote on this bill.

Whip count is in markup. Polling the chamber and every recorded vote this session. Only the first open is slow. It’s instant for you after this. Calling the roll · Tallying · Engrossing

Subjects

veterans healthcare
Cross-referencing the record. Reading this bill against every other bill in the corpus by meaning, not keywords. Only the first open is slow. It’s instant for you after this. Matching · Ranking · Engrossing

Frequently asked questions

What does S 449 do?
Veterans Patient Advocacy Act This bill requires the Office of Patient Advocacy within the Veterans Health Administration to ensure (1) there is not fewer than one patient advocate for every 13,500 veterans enrolled in the Department of Veterans Affairs health care system, and (2) highly rural veterans may access the services of patient advocates. The bill also requires the Government Accountability Office to report on the implementation of such policies.
Who sponsors S 449?
S 449 is sponsored by Stabenow, Debbie (Democratic).
What is the current status of S 449?
This bill died with 118th Congress. It reached “In Committee” and never advanced before the session ended, so it can no longer move — a new version would have to be reintroduced in the current session.
Where can I track S 449?
Track S 449 free on One Click Politics — get push/email alerts when it moves.

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Last checked for changes 3 months ago · updated continuously

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