Sponsors (2)
The bill guarantees an in‑State full‑service VHA hospital for veterans in every contiguous State and increases oversight, improving local access for many veterans but raising federal costs, risking service duplication, and excluding Alaska and Hawaii.
Veterans in every contiguous State will have a guaranteed in‑State full-service VHA hospital, increasing local availability of inpatient and specialty care.
Veterans retain the ability to receive care across State lines, preserving access to closer or higher-quality VHA facilities when appropriate.
Taxpayers and veterans gain greater transparency and congressional oversight because the bill requires a report within one year on compliance and effects on VHA access and quality.
Taxpayers may face higher federal costs for building, expanding, or contracting VHA facilities to meet the in‑State hospital guarantee.
Mandating an in‑State full‑service hospital risks inefficient duplication of services where nearby out‑of‑state VHA facilities or community providers already serve veterans, potentially diverting resources from other care improvements.
Veterans in Alaska and Hawaii are excluded from the statutory in‑State hospital guarantee, leaving them without the same assurance of local full‑service VHA care.
Based on analysis of 2 sections of legislative text.
Requires the VA to ensure at least one full-service VHA hospital in each of the 48 contiguous States for veterans eligible for VA hospital care.
Official title: To amend title 38, United States Code, to ensure that veterans in each of the 48 contiguous States are able to receive services in at least one full-service hospital of the Veterans Health Administration in the State or receive comparable services provided by contract in the State.
Introduced June 20, 2025 by Chris Pappas · Last progress June 20, 2025
Requires the Department of Veterans Affairs to ensure that each of the 48 contiguous States has at least one full-service Veterans Health Administration (VHA) hospital available to veterans who are eligible for VA hospital care under current law, while preserving authority to treat veterans across State lines. The VA must report to Congress within one year on compliance and the law’s effects on quality and standards of care. The bill adds a new statutory provision to the U.S. Code creating this access requirement and inserts a table-of-sections entry and the Act’s short title into the U.S. Code; it does not itself appropriate new funds or specify construction timelines or staffing levels.