U.S. Rep. Marie Gluesenkamp Perez’s Rural Veterans’ Improved Access to Benefits Act recently passed the U.S. House of Representatives on a bipartisan basis via voice vote, a news release from the office of Gluesenkamp Perez stated.
The bill would ensure that veterans living in rural communities have cross-state access to certified health care providers for their required disability claim exams. The legislation now heads to the Senate for final passage.
Gluesenkamp Perez, D-Skamania, introduced this legislation with Reps. Juan Ciscomani, R-Arizona, and Don Davis, D-North Carolina, earlier this year. The Rural Veterans’ Improved Access to Benefits Act would make permanent the ability of disability claim exam providers to practice across state lines, according to the release.
That authority was originally passed in 2020 when the Johnny Isakson and David P. Roe, M.D. Veterans Health Care and Benefits Improvement Act was signed into law, and extended in 2023 by the VET MEDS Act, which Gluesenkamp Perez co-led. The authorization is currently scheduled to expire in 2026.
Additionally, the Rural Veterans’ Improved Access to Benefits Act would expand the categories of providers who can perform cross-state disability exams beyond the current list of physician assistants, nurse practitioners, audiologists and psychologists, the release stated.
It would also require the Department of Veterans Affairs to establish a mechanism for providers to submit evidence that a veteran brings with them to the examination to the VA, a process which is currently not in place.
“Districts like ours that border other states or are highly rural are too easily and too often overlooked by policymakers in D.C., and I’m proud to serve our veterans and fight to ensure their service is honored — no matter where they call home,” Gluesenkamp Perez said. “This bill is a good step towards reforming the red tape disabled veterans face and I’m encouraged to see bipartisan support for our legislation.”
