Bill > HR2344

This bill, known as the TBI Treatment Act, directs the Secretary of Defense to establish a five-year pilot program to provide payment for investigational treatments, including diagnostic testing, for members of the Armed Forces suffering from traumatic brain injury (TBI) and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). These treatments can be received at civilian healthcare facilities, with payments made directly to those facilities. For a treatment to be approved, any drugs or devices used must be cleared by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for investigational use, the treatment must be approved by the Secretary of Defense after review by an institutional review board (a committee that reviews research involving human subjects), and the patient must show improvement based on specific criteria such as neuropsychological testing, quality of life surveys, neurological imaging, or clinical examination, and must be receiving the treatment voluntarily and with informed consent. The bill also allows the Secretary to set additional restrictions to protect participants and ensure research validity, and payments will be made at rates equivalent to Medicare and Medicaid reimbursement. The program will involve collecting data on patient cases, making information about approved civilian studies publicly available, and assisting service members by potentially assigning them to temporary duty or allowing permissive temporary duty to access treatment, including providing per diem for expenses. The Secretary of Defense is also required to enter into agreements with civilian institutions, notify service members about the program, and submit annual reports to Congress on its implementation and results, with $10 million authorized for appropriation each fiscal year.