38 USC 1729A - Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Care Collections Fund

Public Law 87–693, popularly known as the “Federal Medical Care Recovery Act” (42 U.S.C. 2651 et seq.), to the extent that a recovery or collection under that law is based on medical care or services furnished under this chapter.

(c)

(1)

Subject to the provisions of appropriations Acts, amounts in the fund shall be available, without fiscal year limitation, to the Secretary for the following purposes:

(A)

Furnishing medical care and services under this chapter, to be available during any fiscal year for the same purposes and subject to the same limitations (other than with respect to the period of availability for obligation) as apply to amounts appropriated from the general fund of the Treasury for that fiscal year for medical care.

(B)

Expenses of the Department for the identification, billing, auditing, and collection of amounts owed the United States by reason of medical care and services furnished under this chapter.

(2)

Amounts available under paragraph (1) may not be used for any purpose other than a purpose set forth in subparagraph (A) or (B) of that paragraph.

(d)

Of the total amount recovered or collected by the Department during a fiscal year under the provisions of law referred to in subsection (b) and made available from the fund, the Secretary shall make available to each Department health care facility of the Department an amount that bears the same ratio to the total amount so made available as the amount recovered or collected by such facility during that fiscal year under such provisions of law bears to such total amount recovered or collected during that fiscal year. The Secretary shall make available to each facility the entirety of the amount specified to be made available to such facility by the preceding sentence.

(e)

Amounts recovered or collected under the provisions of law referred to in subsection (b) shall be treated for the purposes of sections 251 and 252 of the Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985 (2 U.S.C. 901, 902) as offsets to discretionary appropriations (rather than as offsets to direct spending) to the extent that such amounts are made available for expenditure in appropriations Acts for the purposes specified in subsection (c).

(Added Pub. L. 105–33, title VIII, § 8023(a)(1), Aug. 5, 1997, 111 Stat. 665; amended Pub. L. 106–117, title I, § 111(b)(1), title II, § 203, Nov. 30, 1999, 113 Stat. 1556, 1561; Pub. L. 107–135, title II, § 208(e)(5), Jan. 23, 2002, 115 Stat. 2463; Pub. L. 108–7, div. K, title I, § 113(b), Feb. 20, 2003, 117 Stat. 482; Pub. L. 108–183, title VII, § 708(a)(2), Dec. 16, 2003, 117 Stat. 2673.)

cite as: 38 USC 1729A