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Pappas Introduces Legislation to Protect NH Veterans Amid COVID-19

April 21, 2020

Bills will suspend VA debt collection; make VA the primary payer for emergency room visits during the coronavirus crisis

Today Congressman Chris Pappas (NH-01), who serves as the Chair of the Oversight and Investigations Subcommittee for the House Veterans' Affairs Committee, introduced a package of two bills to protect New Hampshire veterans in the face of an unprecedented public health emergency. These measures will temporarily suspend VA debt collection efforts and ensure that Granite State veterans can access emergency care without incurring massive medical bills during the coronavirus pandemic.

Give NH Veterans a Reprieve from VA Debt Collection

At a time when untold numbers of New Hampshire veterans have lost jobs and small businesses, Pappas' legislation would temporarily halt the collection of outstanding debts by the Department of Veterans Affairs. Consistent with similar prohibitions on debt collection instituted by the Department of Education and the Social Security Administration, this bill would prevent VA from demanding repayment until the current federal emergency declaration is lifted. Under current VA policy, it is up to each individual veteran to ask VA to temporarily suspend their debt collection.

"Veterans across New Hampshire are already suffering from the severe economic consequences of the coronavirus health crisis," said Congressman Chris Pappas. "At a time when many are struggling to meet basic household expenses, we should give these heroes a reprieve from harassing phone calls and letters demanding the repayment of debts to the government. Given the economic devastation that the virus is inflicting on our state, VA should give our veterans a chance to get back on their feet instead of hounding them for money they may not have."

Allow NH Veterans to go to the Emergency Room without Racking up Enormous Medical Bills

Under current law, both veterans and community providers face bureaucratic obstacles to collect VA payments for emergency medical care.

To ensure that veterans can continue to access life-saving care in their communities without fear that doing so could leave them with thousands of dollars in medical bills, this legislation will relax several existing requirements related to how the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) pays for emergency care. Among other things, this proposal ensures that VA payment will not be contingent upon whether community providers notified VA within 72 hours of providing emergency treatment to a veteran. It also ensures that VA's emergency care payments will not be held up by clinical review, a process that has often impeded the timeliness of VA's payments.

"Veterans already have to jump through too many hoops to obtain VA payments for life-saving emergency care in their communities -- an unacceptable situation which has been exacerbated by the current public health crisis," Congressman Chris Pappas continued. "This legislation cuts the red tape that our veterans and community providers are currently forced to navigate. It will ensure that New Hampshire veterans can receive the emergency care they need without incurring costly medical bills and that community providers can obtain timely payments from VA. Whether a veteran is fighting to overcome COVID-19, or any other life-threatening condition, I will continue working to ensure that their needs are not overlooked in this midst of this pandemic."

Specifically, this legislation:

  • Grants prior authorization for any emergency care sought by veterans including COVID-19-related diagnosis and treatment and any other type of emergency, even retroactively to care received since the beginning of the public health emergency.
  • Makes VA the primary payer, even in cases where veterans may have other health insurance.
  • Allows community providers to bill for this care up to 180 days after services were rendered.
  • Covers emergency ambulance transportation.
  • Allows VA to pay for emergency care beyond the point at which the veteran could be transferred to VA, to help prevent the spread of COVID-19 from the community.
  • Waives provisions that require clinical review of claims prior to adjudication, and waives provisions of current law that require the veteran to have been enrolled in VA health care and have received care from a VA clinician within the 24 months preceding the emergency care episode.

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