Health Records Enhancement Act
- senate
- house
- president
Last progress July 17, 2025 (4 months ago)
Introduced on July 17, 2025 by Peter Welch
Sponsors
House Votes
Senate Votes
Read twice and referred to the Committee on Veterans' Affairs.
Presidential Signature
AI Summary
This plan would let a person named by a deceased veteran—or, if none was named, an immediate family member—add notes about the veteran’s health after death to Defense and VA medical records. These notes could include observed health conditions and other relevant health information. The agencies must do this within one year after the law takes effect. The new information would only be added to the record; it would not change or overwrite what is already there .
The Defense and VA departments must also create a clear way for veterans to choose who can add information to their record after they die. This gives families and trusted designees a way to make the veteran’s record more complete for the future .
- Who can add info: a person the veteran picked, or if none, an immediate family member .
- What can be added: observed health conditions and other relevant health details; only supplements, no changes to existing entries .
- When this starts: within one year after the law is enacted, once the departments set up the process .
| Key point | What it means |
|---|---|
| Who is affected | Deceased veterans’ records; families or named designees; Department of Defense and Department of Veterans Affairs |
| What changes | Families or designees can add health info to a deceased veteran’s record; additions cannot alter existing entries |
| Timeline | Agencies must enable this within one year after the law takes effect and set up a designation process |