Rural Veterans Transportation to Care Act
Rural Veterans Transportation to Care Act is a bill introduced in the Senate to expand and modify the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) transportation grant program. The goal is to improve access to medical care for veterans living in rural or highly rural areas by supporting innovative transportation options. The bill broadens who can receive grants, changes grant amounts, and clarifies how rurality is defined, all while giving the program more flexible funding. Key changes include adding new eligible recipients (county veterans service organizations and tribal organizations), allowing a recipient-focused approach rather than only state or veteran service organizations, increasing the grant potential to support ADA-compliant vehicle purchases, and defining rural/highly rural using the Rural-Urban Commuting Areas (RUCA) system. The program’s funding is made flexible (“such sums as may be necessary”) rather than fixed at a specific annual amount.
Key Points
- 1Expands eligibility to include rural or highly rural areas and adds new recipients: county veterans service organizations and tribal organizations, with the grant awarded to “a recipient” rather than specifically to state agencies or VSOs.
- 2Maximum grant amount increases from $60,000 to $80,000 if the recipient must purchase a vehicle to comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) requirements.
- 3Rural and highly rural areas are defined by RUCA (Rural-Urban Commuting Areas) coding from the Department of Agriculture.
- 4The program is explicitly intended to provide innovative transportation options to veterans in rural areas.
- 5Funding language is broadened from a fixed appropriation to “such sums as may be necessary,” allowing for more flexible or expanded funding as needed.