REPORT ON HEALTH AND DISABILITY BENEFITS FOR PREACCESSION TRAINING AND EDUCATION PROGRAMS.

SEC. 546. REPORT ON HEALTH AND DISABILITY BENEFITS FOR PREACCESSION TRAINING AND EDUCATION PROGRAMS. (a) Study.—The Secretary of Defense shall conduct a review of the health and disability benefit programs available to recruits and officer candidates engaged in training, education, or other types of programs while not yet on active duty and to cadets and midshipmen attending the service academies. The review shall be conducted with the participation of the Secretaries of the military departments. (b) Report.—Not later than March 1, 2002, the Secretary shall submit to the Committee on Armed Services of the Senate and the Committee on Armed Services of the House of Representatives a report on the findings of the review. The report shall include the following with respect to persons described in subsection (a): (1) A statement of the process and detailed procedures followed by each of the Armed Forces under the jurisdiction of the Secretary of a military department to provide health care and disability benefits to all such persons injured in training, education, or other types of programs conducted by the Secretary of a military department. (2) Information on the total number of cases of such persons requiring health care and disability benefits and the total number of cases and average value of health care and disability 115 STAT. 1114benefits provided under the authority for each source of benefits available to those persons. (3) A discussion of the issues regarding health and disability benefits for such persons that are encountered by the Secretary during the review, to include discussions with individuals who have received those benefits. (4) A statement of the processes and detailed procedures followed by each of the Armed Forces under the jurisdiction of the Secretary of a military department to provide recruits and officer candidates with succinct information on the eligibility requirements (including information on when they become eligible) for health care benefits under the Defense health care program, and the nature and availability of the benefits under the program. (5) A discussion of the necessity for legislative changes and specific legislative proposals needed to improve the benefits provided those persons. (6) An analysis of health and disability benefits under laws administered by the Department of Veterans Affairs and the Department of Labor for which those persons become eligible upon being injured in training or education and a discussion of how those benefits compare to the benefits those persons would receive if retired for physical disability by the Department of Defense.