Source: United States Senator for Ohio Sherrod Brown
WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Sherrod Brown (D-OH) joined Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-CT) and U.S. Representative Debbie Dingell (D-MI-12) in reintroducing legislation that would mandate the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) reimburse veterans’ emergency health care expenses from non-VA facilities that are not covered by the veteran’s private insurance. This bicameral legislation follows the 2016 Staab v. McDonald and 2019 Wolfe v. Wilkie decisions, both ruling that the VA must reimburse veterans for these emergency medical expenses.
“The last thing veterans should have to worry about during a health emergency is whether they will be stuck with the bill for their medical expenses,” said Brown. “Ohio veterans should not be shouldering the burden when they’ve earned benefits that should cover them.”
Hundreds of thousands of veterans apply each year to the VA for reimbursement of emergency medical care expenses at non-VA facilities. The VA has always reimbursed emergency care expenses incurred by veterans who do not have health insurance. However, for over a decade the VA has refused to pay for emergency care expenses if the veterans have other health insurance. This leaves insured veterans on the hook to pay deductibles and coinsurance, which can amount to thousands of dollars for just one episode of care.
The legislation has been co-sponsored by U.S. Senators Tammy Baldwin (D-WI) and Mazie K. Hirono (D-HI) in the Senate.
The legislation is endorsed by the National Veterans Legal Services Program (NVLSP), Paralyzed Veterans of America, and America’s Warrior Partnership.
The full text of the Senate legislation can be found here. The House introduced a similar version of the legislation.
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