YourVoice.Now Summary
Your MoneyVeterans could get paid back for emergency-room deductibles and copays of $100 and up — going back to 2012.
Your Money
Right now the law blocks the VA from paying back any copay you owe for emergency care outside the VA. The bill would keep that block only for copays under $100.
Coinsurance is the share of a bill your plan leaves to you. The bill defines a copay as a fixed charge. Deductibles and coinsurance would fall outside the $100 limit.
The new rule would apply to any claim for emergency care given on or after February 1, 2012. Care from before that date would not be covered.
The bill counts claims the VA turned down before, even ones where the appeal was over. Veterans in the Wolfe v. McDonough class action are named in the text.
More about this bill
If you are a veteran with private insurance, an emergency room visit outside the VA can cost you money. Your plan may leave you a copay, a deductible, or coinsurance (your share of the bill). Today the VA cannot pay you back for those costs. Under this change, the VA could cover your deductible, your coinsurance, and copays of $100 or more. The new rule would reach back to emergency care given on or after February 1, 2012. Claims the VA already turned down would count, even if the denial was final. It would also cover veterans in the Wolfe v. McDonough class action, who were denied under the old rule.
Congressional Summary
This bill modifies the limitation on reimbursement for emergency treatment of amounts a veteran owes to a third party or owes under a health plan contract. Specifically, the bill allows the Department of Veterans Affairs to reimburse copayments of $100 or more and excludes deductibles and coinsurance from the limitation.This modification must apply with respect to any reimbursement claim for emergency treatment furnished on or after February 1, 2010, including claims submitted by a member of the certified class seeking relief in Wolfe v. McDonough.
Details
- Congress
- 119th
- Chamber
- Status
- summarized
- Action
- Action Date
- Date Added
- 2026-04-02
- Source
- Congress.gov →
Like reading a bill in plain English?
We're building an app that does this for every bill in Congress and lets you tell your reps how you want them to vote. We're a small team getting ready to launch, and we're trying to show investors that real people want this. Be one of them. Help us get it built. Leave your email and we'll tell you the moment the app is ready.