text: SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
  
      This Act may be cited as the ``Veterans Equal Treatment Act''.
  
  SEC. 2. FINDINGS.
  
      Congress makes the following findings:
              (1) The Veterans Equitable Resource Allocation (VERA) 
          formula, established by the Department of Veterans Affairs 
          pursuant to section 429 of the Departments of Veterans Affairs 
          and Housing and Urban Development, and Independent Agencies 
          Appropriations Act, 1997 (Public Law 104-204; 110 Stat. 2929), 
          has proved to be an ineffective means of allocating veterans 
          medical care dollars fairly across the 22 national service 
          regions, known as Veterans Integrated Service Networks (VISNs), 
          of the Department of Veterans Affairs.
              (2) The VERA formula has resulted in a system of 
          inequitable care at veterans hospitals in different regions of 
          the country.
              (3) The VERA formula has resulted in a system in which 
          veterans in some regions of the country are forced to compete 
          with veterans in other regions for critical medical care 
          funding, when the system should be providing funding for 
          medical care for all veterans, regardless of where they live, 
          to ensure that all veterans have access to the level and 
          quality of medical care that they have all earned and deserve.
              (4) The VERA formula should be replaced with a new funding 
          formula that puts the funds provided to the Department of 
          Veterans Affairs for medical care into the Department of 
          Veterans Affairs Medical Centers that are treating patients.
  
  SEC. 3. REVISION TO MEDICAL CARE FUNDING ALLOCATION FORMULA FOR 
                DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS.
  
      (a) Termination of Vera Formula.--The funding allocation formula 
  for the Department of Veterans Affairs medical care system known as the 
  Veterans Equitable Resource Allocation system, established pursuant to 
  section 429 of the Department of Veterans Affairs pursuant to section 
  429 of the Departments of Veterans Affairs and Housing and Urban 
  Development, and Independent Agencies Appropriations Act, 1997 (Public 
  Law 104-204; 110 Stat. 2929), shall be discontinued by the Secretary of 
  Veterans Affairs effective at the end of the fiscal year during which 
  this Act is enacted.
      (b) Development of Replacement Formula.--The Secretary of Veterans 
  Affairs shall develop a new formula for the allocation of funds 
  appropriated to the Department of Veterans Affairs for Medical Care to 
  the national service regions, known as Veterans Integrated Service 
  Networks (VISNs), of the Department. In developing such formula, the 
  Secretary shall take the following requirements into account:
              (1) For any fiscal year for which the amount appropriated 
          for Medical Care is an increase from the preceding year, the 
          funding level provided under the new formula to any VISN may 
          not be less than the amount provided for the preceding year.
              (2) The new formula shall take into account additional 
          costs incurred by a VISN due to any of the following factors at 
          that VISN being in excess of the median for all VISNs:
                      (A) The number of veterans moving into the 
                  geographic area of that VISN.
                      (B) The median age of veterans in that VISN.
                      (C) The number of veterans in that VISN requiring 
                  complex care or nursing home care.
                      (D) The age of Department health care facilities in 
                  that VISN.
      (c) Transition Formula.--If as of the date specified in subsection 
  (a) for the termination of the funding allocation formula referred to 
  in that subsection the Secretary of Veterans Affairs has not 
  implemented a replacement funding allocation formula in accordance with 
  subsection (b), then effective as of that date and until such 
  replacement funding allocation formula is implemented, the funding 
  allocation formula to be applied to amounts appropriated for veterans 
  medical care shall be the formula in effect before the formula referred 
  to in subsection (a).
  
  SEC. 4. AUTHORIZATIONS OF APPROPRIATIONS.
  
      (a) Authorization of Appropriations for Replacement Allocation 
  Formula.--There is authorized to be appropriated to the Department of 
  Veterans Affairs for fiscal year 2004, $10,000,000 for development and 
  implementation of a replacement funding allocation formula in 
  accordance with section 3(b).
      (b) Additional Authorization of Appropriations for Medical Care.--
  There is authorized to be appropriated to the Department of Veterans 
  Affairs for fiscal year 2004, $100,000,000 for ``Medical Care'' for the 
  Department of Veterans Affairs. Such amount is in addition to any other 
  amount authorized to be appropriated to the Department of Veterans 
  Affairs for fiscal year 2004 and shall be allocated by the Secretary of 
  Veterans Affairs to the national service regions, known as Veterans 
  Integrated Service Networks (VISNs), of the Department of Veterans 
  Affairs on the basis of need, as follows:
              (1) First, to the VISN that has experienced the greatest 
          reduction in funding from the funding levels for fiscal year 
          1997.
              (2) Second, to any other VISN that has experienced an 
          overall funding decrease during the six-fiscal-year period 
          beginning with fiscal year 1997.
              (3) Third, if any amount appropriated pursuant to such 
          authorization remains after allocations pursuant to paragraphs 
          (1) and (2), such amount shall be allocated equally among the 
          remaining 22 VISNs before implementation of the new formula.
target: Veterans Equal Treatment Act - Requires the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to: (1) discontinue the funding allocation formula for the Department of Veterans Affairs medical care system known as the Veterans Equitable Resource Allocation system at the end of the fiscal year in which this Act is enacted; and (2) develop a new formula for the allocation of funds to the national service regions, known as Veterans Integrated Service Networks (VISNs), that takes into account specified requirements, including additional costs incurred by a VISN because the age of veterans, or the number of veterans requiring complex care, in that VISN exceeds the median for all VISNs.Authorizes additional appropriations to be allocated to VISNs that have experienced funding reductions.
feat_title: A bill to require the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to replace with a more equitable formula the current formula, known as the Veterans Equitable Resource Allocation (VERA), for the allocation of funds appropriated to the Department of Veterans Affairs for medical care to different geographic regions of the Nation, and for other purposes.