§5318. Review of Department of Health and Human Services death information

(a) The Secretary shall periodically compare Department of Veterans Affairs information regarding persons to or for whom compensation or pension is being paid with information in the records of the Department of Health and Human Services relating to persons who have died for the purposes of-

(1) determining whether any such persons to whom compensation and pension is being paid are deceased;

(2) ensuring that such payments to or for any such persons who are deceased are terminated in a timely manner; and

(3) ensuring that collection of overpayments of such benefits resulting from payments after the death of such persons is initiated in a timely manner.

(b) The Department of Health and Human Services death information referred to in subsection (a) of this section is death information available to the Secretary from or through the Secretary of Health and Human Services, including death information available to the Secretary of Health and Human Services from a State, pursuant to a memorandum of understanding entered into by such Secretaries. Any such memorandum of understanding shall include safeguards to assure that information made available under it is not used for unauthorized purposes or improperly disclosed.

(Added Pub. L. 101–508, title VIII, §8053(b)(1), Nov. 5, 1990, 104 Stat. 1388–352 , §3118; renumbered §5318, Pub. L. 102–40, title IV, §402(b)(1), May 7, 1991, 105 Stat. 238 .)

Amendments

1991-Pub. L. 102–40 renumbered section 3118 of this title as this section.