HR 271 · 114th Congress 2015–2017, ended

COVER Act

Introduced Jan 12, 2015 Originated House Sponsor Gus M. Bilirakis R-FL

Latest action · May 15, 2015 Forwarded by Subcommittee to Full Committee by Voice Vote .

Progress

Where this bill reached, and when. A stage with no date was not reached; one that failed a vote and later carried shows the date it carried.

IntroducedJan 12, 2015
Passed HouseNot reached
Passed SenateNot reached
To the PresidentNot reached
Became lawNot reached

Summary

Creating Options for Veterans Expedited Recovery Act or the COVER Act

Establishes the Veterans Expedited Recovery Commission to examine the evidence-based therapy treatment model used by the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) for treating mental health conditions of veterans and the potential benefits of incorporating complementary alternative treatments available in non-VA facilities and study the potential increase in claims relating to mental health issues submitted by veterans who served in Operation Enduring Freedom, Operation Iraqi Freedom, or Operation New Dawn.

Directs the VA, upon a report by the Commission, to submit: (1) an action plan for implementing recommendations and a time frame for implementing complementary alternative treatments, or (2) a justification for any determination that a recommendation is not appropriate and an alternative solution to improve the efficacy of the therapy model.

Cosponsors 31

Members who signed on, in the order they did. Signatures ran from Jan 12, 2015 to Jan 5, 2016; 5 are original cosponsors, there from the day it was introduced.

Seat	Cosponsor		Signed on
R-OH	Bill Johnson	Original	Jan 12, 2015
R-FL	David W. Jolly	Original	Jan 12, 2015
D-FL	Lois Frankel	Original	Jan 12, 2015
D-CA	Raul Ruiz	Original	Jan 12, 2015
R-MS	Steven M. Palazzo	Original	Jan 12, 2015
D-FL	Alcee L. Hastings		Jan 22, 2015
D-OH	Tim Ryan		Feb 2, 2015
R-VA	Bob Goodlatte		Feb 10, 2015
R-IN	Jackie Walorski		Mar 19, 2015
R-TX	Jeb Hensarling		Apr 21, 2015
R-PA	Keith J. Rothfus		Apr 21, 2015
R-CO	Mike Coffman		Apr 21, 2015
R-MT	Ryan K. Zinke		Apr 21, 2015
D-NH	Ann M. Kuster		May 14, 2015
R-TN	Charles J. "Chuck" Fleischmann		May 14, 2015
D-FL	Corrine Brown		May 14, 2015
R-FL	Dennis A. Ross		May 14, 2015
R-FL	Ileana Ros-Lehtinen		May 14, 2015
R-PA	Michael G. Fitzpatrick		May 14, 2015
R-FL	Richard B. Nugent		May 14, 2015
D-MN	Timothy J. Walz		May 14, 2015
R-FL	Vern Buchanan		May 14, 2015
D-TX	Henry Cuellar		May 15, 2015
I-AZ	Kyrsten Sinema		May 15, 2015
R-NM	Stevan Pearce		May 15, 2015
D-CA	Tony Cárdenas		May 15, 2015
R-TN	Diane Black		May 20, 2015
D-CA	Grace F. Napolitano		May 20, 2015
D-CA	Mark Takano		May 20, 2015
D-IL	Tammy Duckworth		Oct 28, 2015
R-NC	Walter B. Jones		Jan 5, 2016

Committees 1

Where it was sent and what each committee and subcommittee did with it, in order.

Chamber	Committee	What it did
House	Veterans' Affairs Committee	Referred Jan 12, 2015
	Health Subcommittee	Referred Feb 6, 2015Hearings Apr 23, 2015Markup May 15, 2015Reported May 15, 2015

Actions 6

Everything that happened, newest first.

May 15, 2015Subcommittee Consideration and Mark-up Session Held.
May 15, 2015Forwarded by Subcommittee to Full Committee by Voice Vote .
Apr 23, 2015Subcommittee Hearings Held.
Feb 6, 2015Referred to the Subcommittee on Health.
Jan 12, 2015Introduced in House

Show all 6 actions

In the Congressional Record 2

Days the Record’s own index lists this bill, newest first, with the pages and the members it names. Pages starting H are the House, S the Senate, E Extensions of Remarks.

Where	In the Record	Members	Date
House	Debate and remarks H6846	Gus M. Bilirakis R-FL	Oct 7, 2015
House	Debate and remarks H6315	Gus M. Bilirakis R-FL	Sep 29, 2015

Research

What has been written about this bill: committee reports, cost estimates, the sponsor’s authority statement, printed hearings and the Congressional Research Service’s work.

Constitutional authority

Congress has the power to enact this legislation pursuant to the following: This bill is enacted pursuant to Article I, Section 8, Clause 1 of the Constitution of the United States and Article I, Section 8, Clause 7 of the Constitution of the United States. Article I, section 8 of the United State Constitution, which grants Congress the power to raise and support an Army; to provide and maintain a Navy; to make rules for the government and regulation of the land and naval forces; and provide for organizing, arming, and disciplining the militia.

The sponsor’s statement, as printed in the Congressional Record, vol. 161, no. 5, January 12, 2015, page H224.

Printed hearings 1

Hearings whose printed record names this bill, newest first: hearings on it, and wider hearings where it came up.

Number	Hearing	Committee	Held
Serial No. 114-17	LEGISLATIVE HEARING ON: DRAFT LEGISLATION TO IMPROVE REPRODUCTIVE TREATMENT PROVIDED TO CERTAIN DISABLED VETERANS; DRAFT LEGISLATION TO DIRECT THE DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS (VA) TO SUBMIT AN ANNUAL REPORT ON THE VETERANS HEALTH ADMINISTRATION; H.R. 271; H.R. 627; H.R. 1369; H.R. 1575; AND, H.R. 1769113 pages	Veterans' Affairs Committee	Apr 23, 2015

Related bills 3

Companion bills and other measures the record links to this one.

Bill	Title	Relationship	Latest action
S 2921	Veterans First Act	Related bill	May 16, 2016
HR 4063	Jason Simcakoski PROMISE Act	Related bill	May 11, 2016
HR 5189	Opioid Abuse Crisis Act of 2016	Related bill	Jun 7, 2016

Titles 3

Every title it has carried, official and short, at each stage.

Official Title as Introduced: To establish a commission to examine the evidence-based therapy treatment model used by the Secretary of Veterans Affairs for treating mental illnesses of veterans and the potential benefits of incorporating complementary alternative treatments available in non-Department of Veterans Affairs medical facilities within the community.
Short Titles as Introduced: COVER Act; Creating Options for Veterans Expedited Recovery Act

Subjects

Assigned by the Library of Congress. Policy area: Armed Forces and National Security.

Text 1

Each version as it was printed, newest first.

Jan 12, 2015Introduced in House

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Everything here is as published by Congress: the summary is the Congressional Research Service's, the action wording is the clerks', and the subjects are the Library of Congress's. How far it got is read from the actions themselves, taking the most recent one of each kind, so a bill that failed a vote and later passed is shown as having passed. Records come from this bill on Congress.gov and govinfo.gov; cost estimates are the Congressional Budget Office's, and the hearings are the printed hearings GovInfo publishes, which can appear months after the hearing.