PILOT PROGRAMS RELATING TO LONG-TERM CARE.

SEC. 102. PILOT PROGRAMS RELATING TO LONG-TERM CARE. (a) Pilot Programs.—The Secretary shall carry out three pilot programs for the purpose of determining the effectiveness of different models of all-inclusive care-delivery in reducing the use of hospital and nursing home care by frail, elderly veterans. (b) Locations of Pilot Programs.—In selecting locations in which the pilot programs will be carried out, the Secretary may not select more than one location in any given health care region of the Veterans Health Administration. (c) Scope of Services Under Pilot Programs.—Each of the pilot programs under this section shall be designed to provide participating veterans with integrated, comprehensive services which include the following: (1) Adult-day health care services on an eight-hour per day, five-day per week basis. (2) Medical services (including primary care, preventive services, and nursing home care, as needed). (3) Coordination of needed services. (4) Transportation services. (5) Home care services. (6) Respite care. (d) Program Requirements.—In carrying out the pilot programs under this section, the Secretary shall— (1) employ the use of interdisciplinary care-management teams to provide the required array of services; (2) determine the appropriate number of patients to be enrolled in each program and the criteria for enrollment; and (3) ensure that funding for each program is based on the complex care category under the resource allocation system (known as the Veterans Equitable Resource Allocation system) established pursuant to section 429 of Public Law 104–204 (110 Stat. 2929). (e) Design of Pilot Programs.—To the maximum extent feasible, the Secretary shall use the following three models in designing the three pilot programs under this section: (1) Under one of the pilot programs, the Secretary shall provide services directly through facilities and personnel of the Department. (2) Under one of the pilot programs, the Secretary shall provide services through a combination of— (A) services provided under contract with appropriate public and private entities; and (B) services provided through facilities and personnel of the Department. 113 STAT. 1552 (3) Under one of the pilot programs, the Secretary shall arrange for the provision of services through a combination of— (A) services provided through cooperative arrangements with appropriate public and private entities; and (B) services provided through facilities and personnel of the Department. (f) In-Kind Assistance.—In providing for the furnishing of services under a contract in carrying out the pilot program described in subsection (e)(2), the Secretary may, subject to reimbursement, provide in-kind assistance (through the services of Department employees and the sharing of other Department resources) to a facility furnishing care to veterans. Such reimbursement may be made by reduction in the charges to the Secretary under such contract. (g) Limitation.—In providing for the furnishing of services in carrying out a pilot program described in subsection (e)(2) or (e)(3), the Secretary shall make payment for services only to the extent that payment for such services is not otherwise covered (notwithstanding any provision of title XVIII or XIX of the Social Security Act) by another government or nongovernment entity or program. (h) Duration of Programs.—The authority of the Secretary to provide services under a pilot program under this section shall cease on the date that is three years after the date of the commencement of that pilot program. (i) Report.—(1)Not later than nine months after the completion of all of the pilot programs under this section, the Secretary shall submit to the Committees on Veterans’ Affairs of the Senate and the House of Representatives a report on those programs. (2) The report shall include the following: (A) A description of the implementation and operation of each such program. (B) An analysis comparing use of institutional care and use of other services among enrollees in each of the pilot programs with the experience of comparable patients who are not enrolled in one of the pilot programs. (C) An assessment of the satisfaction of participating veterans with each of those programs. (D) An assessment of the health status of participating veterans in each of those programs and of the ability of those veterans to function independently. (E) An analysis of the costs and benefits under each of those programs.