INCENTIVE PAY FOR NURSE ANESTHETISTS

SEC. 706. INCENTIVE PAY FOR NURSE ANESTHETISTS (a) Authorization for Incentive Pay.—(1) Chapter 5 of title 37, United States Code, is amended by inserting after section 302d (as added by section 705) the following new section: “§ 302e. Special pay: nurse anesthetists “(a) Special Pay Authorized.—(1) An officer described in subsection (b) who, during the period beginning on the date of the enactment of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Years 103 STAT. 14731990 and 1991 and ending on September 30, 1991, executes a written agreement to remain on active duty for a period of one year or more may, upon the acceptance of the agreement by the Secretary concerned, be paid incentive special pay in an amount not to exceed $6,000 for any 12-month period. “(2) The Secretary concerned shall determine the amount of incentive special pay to be paid to an officer under paragraph (1). In determining that amount, the Secretary concerned shall consider the period of obligated service provided for in the agreement under that paragraph. “(b) Covered Officers.—An officer referred to in subsection (a) is an officer of a uniformed service who— “(1) is an officer of the Nurse Corps of the Army or Navy, an officer of the Air Force designated as a nurse, or an officer designated as a nurse in the commissioned corps of the Public Health Service; “(2) is a qualified certified registered nurse anesthetist; and “(3) is on active duty under a call or order to active duty for a period of not less than one year. “(c) Termination of Agreement.—Under regulations prescribed by the Secretary of Defense, with respect to the Army, Navy, and Air Force, and the Secretary of Health and Human Services, with respect to the Public Health Service, the Secretary concerned may terminate an agreement entered into under subsection (a). Upon termination of an agreement, the entitlement of the officer to special pay under this section and the agreed upon commitment to active duty of the officer shall end. The officer may be required to refund that part of the special pay corresponding to the unserved period of active duty. “(d) Payment.—Special pay payable to an officer under subsection (a) of this section shall be paid annually at the beginning of the 12-month period for which the officer is to receive that payment. “(e) Repayment.—(1) An officer who voluntarily terminates service on active duty before the end of the period agreed to be served under subsection (a) shall refund to the United States an amount that bears the same ratio to the amount paid to the officer as the unserved part of such period bears to the total period agreed to be served. “(2) An obligation to reimburse the United States imposed under paragraph (1) is for all purposes a debt owed to the United States. “(3) A discharge in bankruptcy under title 11 that is entered less than five years after the termination of an agreement under this section does not discharge the person signing such agreement from a debt arising under such agreement or this subsection. This paragraph applies to any case commenced under title 11 after the date of the enactment of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Years 1990 and 1991.”. (2) The table of sections at the beginning of such chapter is amended by inserting after the item relating to section 302d (as added by section 705) the following new item: “302e. Special pay: nurse anesthetists.”. (b) Administration and Implementation.—Section 303a of title 37, United States Code (as amended by section 705(b)), is further amended by inserting “302e,” after “302d,” each place it appears. (c) Report on Military Use of Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetists.— (1) The Secretary of Defense shall submit to the 103 STAT. 1474Committees on Armed Services of the Senate and House of Representatives a report on the use of certified registered nurse anesthetists by the military departments. The report shall include— (A) a description of restrictions imposed by the military departments on the use of such nurses; (B) a comparison of such restrictions with restrictions imposed by other entities on the use of such nurses; (C) a description of the number of persons who annually receive training by the military departments to be certified registered nurse anesthetists; and (D) the desirability and cost of expanding the capability of the military departments to provide such training. (2) The report required by paragraph (1) shall be submitted not later than March 1, 1990.