Veterans need your help --- S. 154, VA CLEAR Act of 2019

Submitted by: P McMillan

Veterans need your help --- S. 154, VA CLEAR Act of 2019

Senator Jon Tester, Ranking Member of the Senate Committee on Veterans' Affairs, introduced S. 154, the Department of Veterans Affairs Contract, Leadership, and Ensuring Accountability and Reform Act of 2019, or the VA CLEAR Act of 2019. The bill will allow VA to establish measures for contractors that help it oversee implementation of the VA MISSION Act and other large contracts that are vital to ensuring the quality of care for our nation's veterans.

Contracts would need to include: measurable metrics to assess performance; a plan of action and milestones for provision of services; safeguards to ensure a minimal level of quality offered by the contractor; appropriate measures for awards or incentives; and a requirement that the service provider document performance using information technology so the VA Secretary can ascertain the quality of services rendered.

For larger contracts (those worth more than $2 billion), VA must submit to Congress justification for the contract and how it intends to pay for it in future years.  Such contracts will also be reviewed by both VA's Inspector General (IG) and the GAO- Government Accountability Office to ensure the contractor is meeting the performance metrics in its contract.  The Act also requires an independent third party to review VA's financial processes and actuarial and estimation models and for VA to submit any requests for funding outside of the normal budget process at least 45 days before the program requiring funding is affected along with justification for the needed funds.  The bill would grant the IG with subpoena power over individuals associated with contract work under review who are not federal employees and require VA to provide centralized records on all administrative investigation board reviews and referrals of clinicians to state licensing boards.

VA has not clearly established performance measures for quality or access to contractors in its proposed regulations. See DAV comments about VA's proposed regulations on access and quality standards here.  As VA begins to implement the VA MISSION Act-its new broad authority for community care-and develops its integrated community care network, it must have comparative information from VA and its community providers that allows it to make clinical decisions in the best interest of veterans.

Please use the prepared email or write your own letter to your Senators to ask them to cosponsor the VA CLEAR Act of 2019.

Thank you for your support of the Commander's Action Network and America's disabled veterans.

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