Veterans Community Care Scheduling Improvement Act
Click any stage to learn more about the legislative process.
The bill would require the Department of Veterans Affairs to build an electronic scheduling system letting VA staff book veterans' appointments with both VA and outside Veterans Community Care Program providers, with training, performance benchmarks, and provider outreach required within set deadlines.
It would also extend, by four months, an existing $90-a-month cap on pensions for veterans who live in Medicaid nursing homes and have no spouse or child, keeping that limit in place through May 2033.
What this bill would do
What it would do
The bill would require the VA to implement an electronic process that lets department schedulers view, search, sort, and book appointments for veterans with both VA providers and non-VA providers under the Veterans Community Care Program, including sending referral and authorization documents directly to outside providers. The VA would have two years to implement the system, plus faster deadlines for related steps: guidelines within 90 days, mandatory scheduler training within 180 days, performance benchmarks within 60 days, and an outreach campaign to enroll community providers within 90 days. The VA would also submit a plan to eventually integrate VA-only scheduling into the same electronic process, and would report regularly to Congress on wait times, provider participation, and no-show and cancellation rates. Separately, the bill would extend through May 31, 2033, an existing law capping monthly pension payments at $90 for veterans with no spouse or child who reside in Medicaid-covered nursing homes, which is otherwise set to expire January 31, 2033.
Key provisions
- 1Would require the VA to implement an electronic process allowing schedulers to book appointments with both VA and non-VA community care providers within two years
- 2Would require VA to establish scheduling guidelines within 90 days and mandatory scheduler training on those guidelines within 180 days
- 3Would require VA to prescribe performance benchmarks and outcome-based metrics, including referral-to-appointment time and patient satisfaction, within 60 days
- 4Would require an outreach strategy within 90 days to encourage non-VA community care providers to join the electronic scheduling process
- 5Would require VA to submit a plan to integrate VA-only appointment scheduling into the same electronic process
- 6Would require periodic reports to Congress on provider participation, appointments scheduled, wait times, cancellations, and no-shows
- 7Would extend the $90-per-month pension payment limit for veterans in Medicaid nursing homes with no spouse or child from January 31, 2033 to May 31, 2033
Who would be affected
Veterans who use VA health care or the Veterans Community Care Program, VA schedulers and other employees involved in booking appointments, non-VA health care providers participating in the community care program, and veterans without a spouse or child who live in Medicaid-funded nursing homes and receive VA pensions.
Why it matters
Veterans and schedulers could see faster, more transparent appointment booking and clearer visibility into wait times across VA and community providers, while Congress would get regular data on how the system performs. Nursing-home veterans affected by the pension cap would see no near-term change, since the limit would simply continue a few months longer than currently scheduled.
What would change
Changes to existing law
Amends Johnny Isakson and David P. Roe, M.D. Veterans Health Care and Benefits Improvement Act of 2020 (38 U.S.C. 1701 note) (Sec. 2(a))
Rewrites the electronic scheduling process requirement and codifies it as a new permanent section of title 38
Creates Title 38, United States Code (new section 1703H) (Sec. 2(d))
Codifies the electronic scheduling provisions as a new permanent section, transferred and redesignated as section 1703H
Amends 38 U.S.C. § 5503(d)(7) (Sec. 3)
Extends the $90-per-month pension payment limit deadline from January 31, 2033 to May 31, 2033
Agencies directed to act
Effective dates
- VA must implement the electronic scheduling process
- VA must establish scheduling guidelines
- VA must implement mandatory scheduler training
- VA must prescribe performance benchmarks and metrics
- VA must plan and carry out provider outreach strategy
- VA must submit plan to integrate VA-only scheduling into the electronic process
- Extended pension payment limitation for nursing-home veterans
Funding and costs
Congressional Budget Office estimate
CBO estimates H.R. 3482 would reduce net direct spending by $4 million and increase spending subject to appropriation by $3 million over the 2026–2036 period.
CBO estimates that enacting H.R. 3482 would reduce net direct spending (mandatory spending) by $4 million over the 2026–2036 period, primarily because the bill extends through June 30, 2033 a cap that limits VA pension payments to $90 per month for veterans and survivors living in Medicaid nursing homes — saving $5 million in VA pension outlays while increasing Medicaid spending by $1 million. The bill would also increase discretionary spending subject to annual appropriations by about $3 million over the same period, covering the cost of developing guidelines, training schedulers, and conducting outreach for a new electronic appointment-scheduling system. CBO found no revenues effects and identified no intergovernmental or private-sector mandates as defined under the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act.
How implementation would work
The VA would build and roll out the electronic scheduling system over two years, first issuing internal guidelines within 90 days and performance benchmarks within 60 days, then training schedulers within 180 days. A separate outreach team would contact every participating community care provider within 90 days to enroll them, publishing program details on a public VA website. The VA would report guidelines, benchmarks, and outreach plans to the Senate and House Veterans' Affairs Committees, then file semiannual performance reports for three years covering provider participation, appointment volumes, wait times, cancellations, and no-shows, plus a separate plan for eventually folding VA-only scheduling into the same system.
Legislative status & sources
Latest action
Received in the Senate and Read twice and referred to the Committee on Veterans' Affairs.
Official CRS summary
Show the CRS summaryHide the CRS summary
This bill requires the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) to implement an electronic process for scheduling health care appointments furnished by the VA or through the Veterans Community Care Program (VCCP) and extends an existing limitation on certain pensions. Under the bill, the VA must implement the electronic process not later than two years after the enactment of this bill.
The VA must implement a mandatory training program for VA schedulers or other employees involved in scheduling appointments regarding guidelines for the implementation of the electronic process. Additionally, the VA must prescribe performance benchmarks and outcome-based metrics for the electronic process.
The VA must also implement an outreach strategy to encourage non-VA health care providers participating in the VCCP to participate in the electronic process.
Under current law, the pension paid to veterans who reside in Medicaid nursing homes and have no spouse or child is limited to $90 a month through January 31, 2033. The bill extends this limitation through June 30, 2033.
Legislative subjects
Armed Forces and National Security; Computers and information technology; Health personnel; Internet, web applications, social media; Veterans' medical care
Committee report
H. Rept. 119-576