HR 1527

House Passes Veterans' Health Bill, Cost-of-Living Increase 09/11/08. The House on Wednesday voted 417-0 to approve a bill (HR 1527) that would establish a three-year pilot program to allow "highly rural" veterans enrolled in four of the Department of Veterans Affairs' 21 health care networks to receive health services through outside providers, CQ Today reports. The bill defines highly rural as veterans seeking primary care who live more than 60 miles from the nearest veterans' facility; veterans seeking acute hospital care who live more than 120 miles from a facility; and those seeking tertiary care who live more than 240 miles from a facility. The bill also would allow veterans to access care at other facilities if VA determines that travel would be difficult for veterans or subject them to hardship. Separately, the House on Wednesday voted 418-0 to approve a bill (S 2617) that would provide a cost-of-living increase in disability benefits for veterans and dependents and indemnity compensation for the families of veterans. Kaisernetwork