H.R. 1970 – Providing Veterans Essential Medications Act

AI-Generated Summary

Updated November 24, 2025 at 2:06 AM UTC

The Providing Veterans Essential Medications Act changes how the Department of Veterans Affairs pays for high‑cost drugs given to veterans living in state nursing homes. It requires the VA to either reimburse the home for those drugs or deliver the drugs itself, easing the financial burden on the facilities. The bill targets state‑run homes that care for veterans under VA contracts and sets a specific cost threshold to identify “costly” medications.

Key Provisions

Amends the VA’s payment rules so that, besides the usual care payment, the Secretary of Veterans Affairs must either reimburse a state nursing home for a veteran’s expensive medication or supply the medication directly to the home.
Defines a “costly medication” as a drug whose average wholesale price for a month’s supply (plus a 3% transaction fee) is more than 8.5% of the VA’s monthly care payment to that state home for the veteran.
Applies only to state‑run nursing homes that have a contract or agreement with the VA to provide care to veterans.

Legislative Activity

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2 earlier actions

HouseCommittee Latest Action

Referred to the Subcommittee on Health.

Health Subcommittee

March 27, 2025

View full timeline

HouseIntro Referral

Introduced in House

March 10, 2025

HouseIntro Referral

Referred to the House Committee on Veterans' Affairs.

Veterans' Affairs Committee

March 10, 2025

HouseCommittee

Referred to the Subcommittee on Health.

Health Subcommittee

March 27, 2025

Floor Debate

2 members

What members said about H.R. 1970 on the floor

1 Republican1 Democrat

Rep. Monica De La CruzR-TX-15 · Jul 9, 2026

Under clause 7 of rule XII, sponsors were added to public bills and resolutions, as follows: H.R. 7: Mr. Van Epps. H.R. 138: Ms. Norton, Ms. Hoyle of Oregon, and Mr. Calvert. H.R. 491: Ms. Wilson of…

Under clause 7 of rule XII, sponsors were added to public

bills and resolutions, as follows:

H.R. 7: Mr. Van Epps.

H.R. 138: Ms. Norton, Ms. Hoyle of Oregon, and Mr. Calvert.

H.R. 491: Ms. Wilson of Florida.

H.R. 516: Mr. Mullin.

H.R. 569: Ms. Fedorchak.

H.R. 614: Mr. Lawler.

H.R. 652: Ms. Moore of Wisconsin.

H.R. 1055: Mr. Costa and Mr. Keating.

H.R. 1065: Ms. Garcia of Texas.

H.R. 1105: Mr. Gallagher.

H.R. 1106: Mr. Riley of New York.

H.R. 1138: Ms. Salazar.

H.R. 1189: Ms. Clarke of New York.

H.R. 1227: Mr. Himes and Mr. Rulli.

H.R. 1229: Mr. Van Epps.

H.R. 1340: Mr. Obernolte.

H.R. 1589: Mr. Pappas.

H.R. 1685: Ms. DelBene.

H.R. 1700: Ms. McCollum.

H.R. 1782: Mr. Case.

H.R. 1787: Ms. Tlaib, Mr. Levin, Mr. Mrvan, Mr. Ivey, Mr.

Pocan, and Mr. Menefee.

H.R. 1946: Mr. Higgins of Louisiana.

H.R. 1970: Mr. Van Orden.

H.R. 2002: Mr. Fitzpatrick.

H.R. 2028: Mr. Torres of New York.

H.R. 2089: Mr. Timmons, Mr. Van Epps, Mrs. Fischbach, and

Ms. De La Cruz.

H.R. 2120: Ms. Perez.

H.R. 2245: Mr. Carson.

H.R. 2305: Mr. Thompson of Pennsylvania and Mr. Magaziner.

H.R. 2332: Mr. Carey.

H.R. 2350: Mr. Thompson of Pennsylvania.

H.R. 2414: Ms. McBride.

H.R. 2509: Mr. Langworthy.

H.R. 2531: Mr. Costa, Ms. Schrier, Mr. Norcross, and Mr.

Van Orden.

H.R. 2587: Mr. Figures.

H.R. 2678: Mr. Garcia of Illinois, Mrs. McIver, and Mr.

Conaway.

H.R. 2767: Mr. Lynch.

H.R. 2859: Ms. Ross.

H.R. 2936: Mrs. Foushee, Mr. Carbajal, and Mr. Amo.

H.R. 3045: Mr. Riley of New York and Mr. Whitesides.

H.R. 3057: Mr. Hunt.

H.R. 3105: Mr. Fitzgerald.

H.R. 3111: Mr. Pallone.

H.R. 3184: Mr. Crow and Mrs. Grijalva.

H.R. 3199: Mrs. Kim.

H.R. 3206: Mr. Cuellar.

H.R. 3223: Ms. Perez.

H.R. 3243: Mr. Cohen, Mr. Gomez, Mr. Espaillat, Mr. Casar,

Mrs. Foushee, Mr. Case, Ms. Clarke of New York, Ms.

Pettersen, Mr. Castro of Texas, Ms. Brown, and Ms. Meng.

H.R. 3295: Mrs. Kim.

H.R. 3307: Mr. Thanedar, Mr. Mackenzie, and Mr. Buchanan.

H.R. 3310: Mr. Moskowitz.

H.R. 3505: Mr. Amo.

H.R. 3644: Mr. Subramanyam.

H.R. 3821: Mr. Riley of New York.

H.R. 3906: Ms. Williams of Georgia.

H.R. 4092: Mr. Fulcher.

H.R. 4119: Mr. DesJarlais and Mr. Van Epps.

H.R. 4180: Mr. Beyer.

H.R. 4443: Mr. Larson of Connecticut.

H.R. 4487: Ms. Waters.

H.R. 4525: Mr. Deluzio.

H.R. 4620: Ms. De La Cruz.

H.R. 4696: Ms. Crockett and Mr. Torres of New York.

H.R. 4763: Mr. Raskin.

H.R. 4876: Ms. Scholten, Mr. Frost, and Mr. Crow.

H.R. 4881: Mr. Case.

H.R. 4958: Ms. Schrier.

H.R. 5106: Mr. Gallagher and Mr. Hamadeh of Arizona.

H.R. 5199: Mr. Nunn of Iowa.

H.R. 5203: Ms. Stansbury.

H.R. 5335: Mr. Gimenez.

H.R. 5448: Mr. McGovern.

H.R. 5463: Mr. Onder.

H.R. 5486: Mr. Pallone and Mrs. Fletcher.

H.R. 5521: Ms. Salinas.

H.R. 5543: Mr. Raskin.

H.R. 5549: Mrs. Spartz and Mr. Fulcher.

H.R. 5731: Mr. Figures.

H.R. 5791: Mr. Carbajal and Ms. Meng.

H.R. 6056: Mr. Correa, Mr. Meeks, and Ms. Williams of

Georgia.

H.R. 6130: Mr. Gray, Mr. Mrvan, Mr. Raskin, Mr. Larson of

Connecticut, Mrs. Ramirez, Mr. Schneider, Mr. Costa, Mr.

Garbarino, Mr. Rouzer, and Ms. McClellan.

H.R. 6181: Mr. Cisneros and Mr. Harder of California.

H.R. 6509: Mr. Mrvan.

H.R. 6520: Mr. Messmer.

H.R. 6529: Mr. Vindman.

H.R. 6574: Ms. Goodlander.

H.R. 6610: Mr. McCormick.

H.R. 6617: Ms. Hoyle of Oregon.

H.R. 6677: Ms. Hoyle of Oregon and Mr. Amo.

H.R. 6682: Mr. Riley of New York.

H.R. 6694: Ms. Velazquez and Ms. Ocasio-Cortez.

H.R. 6718: Mr. Carson.

H.R. 6766: Mr. Landsman and Mr. Obernolte.

H.R. 6806: Mr. Olszewski and Mr. Amo.

H.R. 6832: Mr. Feenstra.

H.R. 6849: Mr. Costa.

H.R. 7016: Mr. Beyer, Mr. Raskin, and Ms. Simon.

H.R. 7411: Mr. Carson.

H.R. 7539: Mr. Gallagher, Mr. Fine, Mrs. Miller of

Illinois, and Mr. Stauber.

H.R. 7601: Ms. Ocasio-Cortez.

H.R. 7622: Mr. Carson and Mr. Amo.

H.R. 7625: Mr. Garamendi.

H.R. 7651: Mr. Alford, Mr. Austin Scott of Georgia, and Ms.

Boebert.

H.R. 7905: Mr. Bacon.

H.R. 7945: Mr. Kustoff.

H.R. 7961: Ms. Houlahan and Mr. Amo.

H.R. 7977: Mr. Norcross.

H.R. 7986: Ms. Lofgren.

H.R. 7998: Ms. Norton.

H.R. 8016: Ms. Wasserman Schultz.

H.R. 8045: Mr. Scott of Virginia.

H.R. 8073: Mr. Figures.

H.R. 8162: Mr. Lawler.

H.R. 8200: Mr. Bost.

H.R. 8205: Mrs. Miller of West Virginia, Mrs. Hayes, Mr.

Latimer, Mr. Davis of North Carolina, Ms. McBride, Mr. Riley

of New York, Mr. Conaway, Ms. Stansbury, Ms. Ross, Ms.

Pingree, Mr. Himes, Mrs. Watson Coleman, Mr. Casten, Mr.

Landsman, Mrs. Grijalva, Ms. Mejia, Mr. Larson of

Connecticut, Mr. Sorensen, Mr. Peters, Mr. Jackson of

Illinois, Ms. Adams, Ms. Budzinski, Mrs. Beatty, Mr.

Magaziner, Ms. Kaptur, Mr. Carter of Louisiana, Mr. Suozzi,

and Ms. Scanlon.

H.R. 8271: Ms. Tenney.

H.R. 8330: Mr. Gallagher.

H.R. 8373: Mrs. Grijalva.

H.R. 8375: Mr. Carter of Louisiana, Ms. Budzinski, and Mr.

Ciscomani.

H.R. 8411: Mr. Johnson of Georgia.

H.R. 8465: Mr. Keating.

H.R. 8468: Mr. Hunt.

H.R. 8490: Mr. Carson.

H.R. 8501: Mr. Figures and Mr. Thompson of California.

H.R. 8600: Mr. Whitesides.

H.R. 8666: Mr. DeSaulnier, Ms. Friedman, and Mr. Tran.

H.R. 8691: Mr. Carson and Mr. Costa.

H.R. 8730: Mrs. Miller of West Virginia, Ms. Crockett, and

Mr. Mrvan.

H.R. 8839: Mr. Moskowitz.

H.R. 8887: Mr. Neguse.

H.R. 8892: Mr. Carey.

H.R. 8898: Ms. McBride and Mrs. Miller-Meeks.

H.R. 8909: Ms. Velazquez.

H.R. 8939: Ms. Waters.

H.R. 8955: Mr. Crow.

H.R. 8979: Mr. Figures.

H.R. 8982: Mr. Suozzi, Ms. Simon, and Mr. Subramanyam.

H.R. 8990: Mr. Moran.

H.R. 9021: Mr. Thanedar, Ms. Titus, and Mrs. McIver.

H.R. 9032: Ms. Waters and Ms. Crockett.

H.R. 9043: Mr. McDowell.

H.R. 9048: Mr. Riley of New York, Mrs. Kiggans of Virginia,

and Mr. Weber of Texas.

H.R. 9129: Ms. Salinas.

H.R. 9169: Mr. Van Drew.

H.R. 9183: Ms. Crockett.

H.R. 9189: Ms. Tlaib.

H.R. 9199: Mr. Norman.

H.R. 9204: Ms. Chu.

H.R. 9205: Ms. Chu.

H.R. 9211: Mr. Buchanan and Mr. Bell.

H.R. 9216: Mr. Cohen and Ms. Waters.

H.R. 9250: Mr. Garbarino, Ms. DelBene, Mr. Moore of West

Virginia, Mr. Garcia of California, Mr. Harrigan, Mr. Levin,

Mr. Flood, Ms. Chu, Mr. Meuser, and Ms. Crockett.

H.R. 9289: Mr. Vindman.

H.R. 9293: Mr. Evans of Colorado and Mr. Mackenzie.

H.R. 9332: Mr. Vindman.

H.R. 9339: Mr. Vindman.

H.R. 9361: Mr. Finstad and Mr. Jackson of Texas.

H.R. 9370: Ms. Brown and Ms. Scholten.

H.R. 9371: Mr. Frost.

H.R. 9382: Mr. Mannion and Ms. Tenney.

H.R. 9401: Mr. Lawler, Mr. Crow, and Ms. DelBene.

H.R. 9411: Mr. Fitzpatrick.

H.R. 9414: Mr. Vindman, Mr. Cisneros, Mr. Keating, and Ms.

McBride.

H.R. 9417: Mr. Moylan, Mr. Haridopolos, Mr. Rogers of

Kentucky, and Mr. McDowell.

H.R. 9421: Ms. Tenney and Mr. Steube.

H.R. 9441: Ms. Dexter and Mr. Tonko.

H.R. 9448: Ms. Ross, Mr. Lieu, and Mr. Nadler.

H.R. 9451: Mr. Fitzpatrick.

H.R. 9492: Mr. Fitzpatrick.

H.R. 9508: Mr. Fitzpatrick.

H.R. 9535: Mr. Van Drew.

H.R. 9580: Mr. Messmer.

H.R. 9591: Ms. Crockett, Mr. Evans of Pennsylvania, Ms.

Williams of Georgia, Ms. Underwood, Ms. Simon, Ms. Wilson of

Florida, and Ms. Chu.

H.J. Res. 12: Mr. Ciscomani.

H.J. Res. 135: Mr. Whitesides.

H.J. Res. 200: Mr. Menendez and Mr. Pallone.

H. Con. Res. 37: Mr. Tonko, Ms. Bonamici, and Mrs. Foushee.

H. Con. Res. 44: Ms. Pingree, Ms. Garcia of Texas, Mr.

Vargas, Ms. Wasserman Schultz, Mr. Krishnamoorthi, and Mr.

Pocan.

H. Res. 547: Ms. Waters.

H. Res. 1025: Ms. Waters.

H. Res. 1382: Mrs. Biggs of South Carolina.

H. Res. 1384: Mr. Bell, Ms. Brown, Mr. Garcia of Illinois,

Mrs. Beatty, Ms. Norton, Mrs. McIver, Mr. Goldman of New

York, Mr. Castro of Texas, Ms. Strickland, Mr. Davis of

Illinois, Ms. Barragan, Ms. Mejia, Mr. Conaway, Mr. Takano,

Mr. Menefee, Ms. Salinas, Mrs. Foushee, Ms. Chu, Mr. Cohen,

and Mr. Gomez.

H. Res. 1395: Mr. Fields.

H. Res. 1415: Mr. DeSaulnier and Ms. Jayapal.

H. Res. 1420: Ms. Underwood and Ms. Bynum.

Rep. George LatimerD-NY-16 · Apr 30, 2026

Mr. Speaker, veterans give so much to our country, and it is up to us to take care of them when they become civilians. That means quality, easy-to-access care at VA hospitals and outpatient…

Bill Text

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Introduced in HouseIssued March 10, 2025

I

119th CONGRESS

1st Session

H. R. 1970

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

March 10, 2025

Mrs. Miller-Meeks (for herself and Mr. Pappas) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Veterans' Affairs

A BILL

To amend title 38, United States Code, to direct the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to reimburse State homes for the cost of, or to furnish to State homes, certain costly medications provided to veterans who receive nursing home care in such State homes, and for other purposes.

1.

Short title

This Act may be cited as the Providing Veterans Essential Medications Act.

2.

Reimbursement of a State home for high cost medications

Section 1745(a)(3) of title 38, United States Code, is amended—

(1)

by striking Payment and inserting (A) Subject to subparagraph (B), payment; and

(2)

by adding at the end the following new subparagraphs:

(B)

In addition to payment described in subparagraph (A), the Secretary shall, at the election of a covered State home—

(i)

reimburse the covered State home for a costly medication; or

(ii)

furnish such costly medication to the covered State home.

(C)

In this paragraph:

(i)

The term costly medication means a drug or medicine for which the average wholesale price for one month’s supply, plus a 3 percent transaction fee, exceeds 8.5 percent of the payment under subparagraph (A) by the Secretary to a covered State home for care provided to the veteran who receives such costly medication during such month.

(ii)

The term covered State home means a State home that, in the course of nursing home care provided pursuant to a contract (or agreement) under paragraph (1), provides to a veteran a costly medication.

.