Bill > S2009

This bill, known as the Rural Veterans Improvement Act of 2014, aims to enhance healthcare access for veterans residing in rural and highly rural areas, which are defined as areas with fewer than seven individuals per square mile or areas not classified as urbanized. Key provisions include the Secretary of Veterans Affairs providing mental health care to eligible veterans in these areas, potentially through contracts with non-VA providers if VA services are unavailable or impractical to access, and the Secretary is also authorized to award grants of up to $100,000 to organizations like state veterans agencies, veterans service organizations, and tribal organizations to provide transportation to VA medical facilities for these veterans. Furthermore, the bill establishes a pilot program to offer housing allowances to healthcare providers who commit to working at rural or highly rural community-based outpatient clinics for at least 36 months, with the goal of incentivizing providers to serve in these underserved areas, and it also mandates the creation of a program to train healthcare professionals for such clinics, offering them a hiring preference after a three-year assignment. Additionally, the bill requires the VA to conduct periodic assessments of rural and highly rural community-based outpatient clinics to identify areas for expansion and improvement, and to report on the feasibility of establishing new Polytrauma Rehabilitation Centers or Network Sites in areas where existing facilities are more than 300 miles away.