§1074. Medical and dental care for members and certain former members
(a) Under joint regulations to be prescribed by the administering Secretaries, a member of a uniformed service who is on active duty is entitled to medical and dental care in any facility of any uniformed service.
(b) Under joint regulations to be prescribed by the administering Secretaries, a member or former member of a uniformed service who is entitled to retired or retainer pay, or equivalent pay may, upon request, be given medical and dental care in any facility of any uniformed service, subject to the availability of space and facilities and the capabilities of the medical and dental staff. The administering Secretaries may, with the agreement of the Secretary of Veterans Affairs, provide care to persons covered by this subsection in facilities operated by the Secretary of Veterans Affairs and determined by him to be available for this purpose on a reimbursable basis at rates approved by the President.
(c) Funds appropriated to a military department may be used to provide medical and dental care to persons entitled to such care by law or regulations, including the provision of such care (other than elective private treatment) in private facilities for members of the armed forces. If a private facility or health care provider providing care under this subsection is a health care provider under the Civilian Health and Medical Program of the Uniformed Services, the Secretary of Defense, after consultation with the other administering Secretaries, may by regulation require the private facility or health care provider to provide such care in accordance with the same payment rules (subject to any modifications considered appropriate by the Secretary) as apply under that program.
(Added
| Revised section | Source (U.S. Code) | Source (Statutes at Large) |
|---|---|---|
| 1074(a) 1074(b) |
37:421(a). 37:402(a)(3) (as applicable to 37:421(b)). 37:421(b). |
June 7, 1956, ch. 374, §§102(a)(3) (as applicable to §301(b)), 301(a), (b), |
In subsection (a), words of entitlement are substituted for the correlative words of obligation.
In subsection (b), the words "active duty (other than for training)" are substituted for the words "active duty as defined in section 901(b) of Title 50" to reflect section 101(22) of this title. The words "and dental" are inserted before the word "staff" for clarity. The words "retirement" and "retirement pay" are omitted as surplusage.
Prior Provisions
Provisions similar to those comprising subsec. (c) of this section were contained in
A prior section 1074, act Aug. 10, 1956, ch. 1041,
Amendments
1990-Subsec. (b).
1989-Subsec. (b).
Subsec. (c).
1984-Subsecs. (a), (b).
Subsec. (c).
1980-Subsec. (a).
Subsec. (b).
1966-Subsec. (b).
Effective Date of 1984 Amendment
Amendment by
Effective Date of 1980 Amendment
Amendment by
Effective Date of 1966 Amendment
For effective date of amendment by
Delegation of Functions
Authority of President under subsec. (b) to approve uniform rates of reimbursement for care provided in facilities operated by Secretary of Veterans Affairs delegated to Secretary of Veterans Affairs, see section 7(a) of Ex. Ord. No. 11609, July 22, 1971, 36 F.R. 13747, set out as a note under section 301 of Title 3, The President.
Persian Gulf Illness
"SEC. 721. PROGRAMS RELATED TO DESERT STORM MYSTERY ILLNESS.
"(a)
"(1) inform such individuals regarding-
"(A) common disease symptoms reported by Persian Gulf veterans that may be due to service in the Southwest Asia theater of operations;
"(B) blood donation policy;
"(C) available counseling and medical care for such members; and
"(D) possible health risks to children of Persian Gulf veterans;
"(2) inform such individuals of the procedures for registering in either the Persian Gulf Veterans Health Surveillance System of the Department of Defense or the Persian Gulf War Health Registry of the Department of Veterans Affairs; and
"(3) encourage such members to report any symptoms they may have and to register in the appropriate health surveillance registry.
"(b)
"(1) For any Persian Gulf veteran who is on active duty and who registers with the Department of Defense's Persian Gulf War Veterans Health Surveillance System, a full medical evaluation and any required medical care.
"(2) For any Persian Gulf War veteran who is, as of the date of the enactment of this Act [Oct. 5, 1994], a member of a reserve component, opportunity to register at a military medical facility in the Persian Gulf Veterans Health Care Surveillance System and, in the case of a Reserve who registers in that registry, a full medical evaluation by the Department of Defense. Depending on the results of the evaluation and on eligibility status, reserve personnel may be provided medical care by the Department of Defense.
"(3) For a Persian Gulf veteran who is not, as of the date of the enactment of this Act [Oct. 5, 1994], on active duty or a member of a reserve component, assistance and information at a military medical facility on registering with the Persian Gulf War Registry of the Department of Veterans Affairs and information related to support services provided by the Department of Veterans Affairs.
"(c)
"(1) that the data collected by and the testing protocols of the Persian Gulf War Health Surveillance System maintained by the Department of Defense are compatible with the data collected by and the testing protocols of the Persian Gulf War Veterans Health Registry maintained by the Department of Veterans Affairs; and
"(2) that all information on individuals who register with the Department of Defense for purposes of the Persian Gulf War Health Surveillance System is provided to the Secretary of Veterans Affairs for incorporation into the Persian Gulf War Veterans Health Registry.
"(d)
"(2) A member of the Armed Forces who is a Persian Gulf veteran and who reports being ill as a result of serving on active duty in the Southwest Asia theater of operations during the Persian Gulf War shall be considered for Department of Defense purposes to have become ill as a result of serving in that theater of operations until such time as the weight of medical evidence establishes other cause or causes of the member's illness.
"(3) The Secretary concerned shall ensure that, for the purposes of health care treatment by the Department of Defense, health care and personnel administration, and disability evaluation by the Department of Defense, the symptoms of any member of the Armed Forces covered by paragraph (1) or (2) are examined in light of the member's service in the Persian Gulf War and in light of the reported symptoms of other Persian Gulf veterans. The Secretary shall ensure that, in providing health care diagnosis and treatment of the member, a broad range of potential causes of the member's symptoms are considered and that the member's symptoms are considered collectively, as well as by type of symptom or medical specialty, and that treatment across medical specialties is coordinated appropriately.
"(4) The Secretary of Defense shall ensure that the presumptions of service connection and illness specified in paragraphs (1) and (2) are incorporated in appropriate service medical and personnel regulations and are widely disseminated throughout the Department of Defense.
"(e)
"(2) Until revised disability criteria can be implemented and members of the Armed Forces can be rated against those criteria, the Secretary of Defense shall ensure-
"(A) that any member of the Armed Forces on active duty who may be suffering from a Persian Gulf-related illness is afforded continued military medical care; and
"(B) that any member of the Armed Forces on active duty who is found by a Physical Evaluation Board to be unfit for continuation on active duty as a result of a Persian Gulf-related illness for which the board has no rating criteria (or inadequate rating criteria) for the illness or condition from which the member suffers is placed on the temporary disability retired list.
"(f)
"(2) The review under paragraph (1) shall be carried out to ensure that former Persian Gulf veterans who may have been suffering from a Persian Gulf-related illness at the time of discharge or retirement from active duty as a result of the Physical Evaluation Board process are revaluated [sic] in accordance with the criteria established under subsection (e)(1) and, if appropriate, are rerated.
"(g)
"(h)
"(A) efforts taken and results achieved in notifying members of the Armed Forces and their families as part of the outreach program required by subsection (a);
"(B) efforts taken to revise the Physical Evaluation Board disability rating criteria and interim efforts to adjudicate cases before the revision of the criteria; and
"(C) results of the review and rerating of previously separated servicemembers.
"(2) The first report under paragraph (1) shall be submitted not later than 120 days after the date of the enactment of this Act [Oct. 5, 1994].
"(i)
"SEC. 722. STUDIES OF HEALTH CONSEQUENCES OF MILITARY SERVICE OR EMPLOYMENT IN SOUTHWEST ASIA DURING THE PERSIAN GULF WAR.
"(a)
"(1) the nature and causes of illnesses suffered by individuals as a consequence of service or employment by the United States in the Southwest Asia theater of operations during the Persian Gulf War; and
"(2) the appropriate treatment for those illnesses.
"(b)
"(A) shall include consideration of the range of potential exposure of individuals to environmental, battlefield, and other conditions incident to service in the theater;
"(B) shall be conducted so as to provide assessments of both short-term and long-term effects to the health of individuals as a result of those exposures; and
"(C) shall include, at a minimum, the following types of studies:
"(i) An epidemiological study or studies on the incidence, prevalence, and nature of the illness and symptoms and the risk factors associated with symptoms or illnesses.
"(ii) Studies to determine the health consequences of the use of pyridostigmine bromide as a pretreatment antidote enhancer during the Persian Gulf War, alone or in combination with exposure to pesticides, environmental toxins, and other hazardous substances.
"(iii) Clinical research and other studies on the causes, possible transmission, and treatment of Persian Gulf-related illnesses.
"(2)(A) The first project carried out under paragraph (1)(C)(ii) shall be a retrospective study of members of the Armed Forces who served in the Southwest Asia theater of operations during the Persian Gulf War.
"(B) The second project carried out under paragraph (1)(C)(ii) shall consist of animal research and nonanimal research, including in vitro systems, as required, designed to determine whether the use of pyridostigmine bromide in combination with exposure to pesticides or other organophosphates, carbamates, or relevant chemicals will result in increased toxicity in animals and is likely to have a similar effect on humans.
"(c)
"(1) Individuals who served as members of the Armed Forces in the Southwest Asia theater of operations during the Persian Gulf War.
"(2) Individuals who were civilian employees of the Department of Defense in that theater during that period.
"(3) To the extent appropriate, individuals who were employees of contractors of the Department of Defense in that theater during that period.
"(4) To the extent appropriate, the spouses and children of individuals described in paragraph (1).
"(d)
"(2) The plan for studies pursuant to subsection (a) shall be updated annually. The Secretary of Defense shall request an annual review by the National Academy of Science [Sciences] of the updated plan and study progress and results achieved during the preceding year.
"(3) The plan, and annual updates to the plan, shall be prepared in coordination with the Secretary of Veterans Affairs and the Secretary of Health and Human Services.
"(e)
"(2) For each year in which activities continue in support of the studies conducted pursuant to subsection (a), the Secretary of Defense shall include in the budget request for the Department of Defense a request for such funds as the Secretary determines necessary to continue the activities during that fiscal year.
"(f)
"(2) Not later than October 1 of each year through 1998, the Secretary shall submit to Congress a report on the results of the studies conducted pursuant to subsection (a), plans for continuation of the studies, and the results of the annual review of the studies by the National Academy of Sciences.
"(3) Each report under this section shall be prepared in coordination with the Secretary of Veterans Affairs and the Secretary of Health and Human Services.
"(g)
[For provisions establishing the Persian Gulf War Veterans Health Registry, provisions requiring a study by the Office of Technology Assessment of the Persian Gulf Registry and the Persian Gulf War Veterans Health Registry, provisions relating to an agreement with the National Academy of Sciences for review of health consequences of service during the Persian Gulf War, and coordination of government activities on health-related research on the Persian Gulf War, see title VII of
Funding of Fisher Houses Associated With Army Medical Treatment Facilities
Mental Health Evaluations of Members of Armed Forces
Study on Risk-Sharing Contracts for Health Care
Registry of Members of Armed Forces Serving in Operation Desert Storm
"(a)
"(1) Members who, as determined by the Secretary, were exposed to the fumes of burning oil in the Operation Desert Storm theater of operations during the Persian Gulf conflict.
"(2) Any other members who served in the Operation Desert Storm theater of operations during the Persian Gulf conflict.
"(b)
"(A) with respect to each class of members referred to in each of paragraphs (1) and (2) of subsection (a)-
"(i) a list containing each such member's name and other relevant identifying information with respect to the member; and
"(ii) to the extent that data are available and inclusion of the data is feasible, a description of the circumstances of the member's service during the Persian Gulf conflict, including the locations in the Operation Desert Storm theater of operations in which such service occurred and the atmospheric and other environmental circumstances in such locations at the time of such service; and
"(B) with respect to the members referred to in subsection (a)(1), a description of the circumstances of each exposure of each such member to the fumes of burning oil as described in such subsection (a)(1), including the length of time of the exposure.
"(2) The Secretary shall establish the Registry with the advice of an independent scientific organization.
"(c)
"(1) the results of all on-going studies on the members referred to in subsection (a)(1) to determine the health consequences (including any short- or long-term consequences) of the exposure of such members to the fumes of burning oil; and
"(2) the need for additional studies relating to the exposure of such members to such fumes.
"(d)
"(e)
"(f)
"(1) The term 'Operation Desert Storm' has the meaning given such term in section 3(1) of the Persian Gulf Conflict Supplemental Authorization and Personnel Benefits Act of 1991 (
"(2) The term 'Persian Gulf conflict' has the meaning given such term in section 3(3) of such Act."
[For provisions relating to the Persian Gulf War Veterans Health Registry, see title VII of
Advisory Committee on Mental Health Evaluation Protections
Section 554 of
Prohibition on Fee for Outpatient Care at Military Medical Treatment Facilities
Section 721 of
Similar provisions were contained in the following prior authorization act:
Restriction on Use of Information Obtained During Certain Epidemiologic-Assessment Interviews
"(1) Information obtained by the Department of Defense during or as a result of an epidemiologic-assessment interview with a serum-positive member of the Armed Forces may not be used to support any adverse personnel action against the member.
"(2) For purposes of paragraph (1):
"(A) The term 'epidemiologic-assessment interview' means questioning of a serum-positive member of the Armed Forces for purposes of medical treatment or counseling or for epidemiologic or statistical purposes.
"(B) The term 'serum-positive member of the Armed Forces' means a member of the Armed Forces who has been identified as having been exposed to a virus associated with the acquired immune deficiency syndrome.
"(C) The term 'adverse personnel action' includes-
"(i) a court-martial;
"(ii) non-judicial punishment;
"(iii) involuntary separation (other than for medical reasons);
"(iv) administrative or punitive reduction in grade;
"(v) denial of promotion;
"(vi) an unfavorable entry in a personnel record;
"(vii) a bar to reenlistment; and
"(viii) any other action considered by the Secretary concerned to be an adverse personnel action."
Study of Medical Needs of Armed Forces; Report to President and Congress
Section Referred to in Other Sections
This section is referred to in sections 1072, 1074d, 1075, 1078a, 1086, 1087, 1095, 1095a of this title; title 38 section 8111.