Congressman Mike Michaud, Chairman of the House Veterans’ Affairs Subcommittee on Health, praised President Obama’s February 1st signing of the “Veterans’ Emergency Care Fairness Act.”

“A veteran should never be faced with bankruptcy because of a trip to the emergency room,” said Michaud, a cosponsor of the Veterans’ Emergency Care Fairness Act. “This bill closes the gap in emergency care for veterans with limited insurance.”

The Veterans’ Emergency Care Fairness Act enables the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) to reimburse veterans enrolled in VA health care for the remaining cost of emergency treatment if the veteran has outside insurance that only covers part of the cost. Previously, VA could reimburse veterans or pay outside hospitals directly only if a veteran has no outside health insurance.

In addition to reimbursing veterans for emergency care in the future, the bill allows the VA Secretary to provide retroactive reimbursements for care received prior to the passage of this bill. The Congressional Budget Office estimates that this legislation will cover approximately 700 future claims per year and as many as 2,000 veterans retroactively.