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HR 3088119th CongressIn Committee

Veterans Hearing Health Expansion Act

Introduced: Apr 30, 2025
View on Congress.gov
Standard Summary
Comprehensive overview in 1-2 paragraphs

The Veterans Hearing Health Expansion Act would expand the VA’s Veterans Community Care Program to include licensed hearing aid specialists as eligible non-VA providers. Specifically, the bill amends 38 U.S.C. § 1703(c) to insert a new paragraph allowing a hearing aid specialist who is licensed to furnish medical services in the state where they practice to participate in the program. This aims to broaden access to hearing health services for veterans by enabling more types of licensed professionals to provide care through the VA’s community care network, subject to state licensure requirements.

Key Points

  • 1The bill adds licensed hearing aid specialists to the list of providers who can participate in the Veterans Community Care Program (VCCP) under 38 U.S.C. § 1703(c).
  • 2Eligibility condition: the hearing aid specialist must be licensed to furnish medical services in the state where they are located.
  • 3The amendment involves reordering paragraphs (2)–(5) to (3)–(6) and inserting a new paragraph (2) after paragraph (1), establishing the new provider category.
  • 4The change does not create a new VA program from scratch but expands who can be contracted to deliver care through the VCCP.
  • 5The bill’s text focuses on the provider qualification; it does not specify payment rates or detailed implementation steps, which would be determined by VA regulations and existing VCCP guidelines.

Impact Areas

Primary group/area affected: Veterans eligible for VA health care who need hearing health services (e.g., hearing assessments, fittings, adjustments, and related services) may gain access to a broader pool of non-VA providers.Secondary group/area affected: Licensed hearing aid specialists (the new provider category) and state licensing boards; VA’s network of community care providers; and VA administrative/credentialing processes.Additional impacts: Potential effects on access and wait times for hearing care, budgetary and contracting considerations for the VA, and needs for consistent quality standards and interoperability of patient records between VA and community providers.
Generated by gpt-5-nano on Nov 19, 2025