Congressional Budget Office V. S. 3313, Women Veterans and Other Health Care Improvements Act of 2012

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S. 3313, Women Veterans and Other Health Care Improvements Act of 2012 1 (November 29, 2012)

handle is hein.congrec/cbo10942 and id is 1 raw text is: CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE
COST ESTIMATE
November 29, 2012
S. 3313
Women Veterans and Other Health Care Improvements Act of 2012
As ordered reported by the Senate Committee on Veterans'Affairs
on September 12, 2012
SUMMARY
S. 3313 would expand the types and availability of infertility treatment provided by the
Department of Veterans Affairs (VA). CBO estimates that implementing the bill would
cost $568 million over the 2013-2017 period, assuming appropriation of the estimated
amounts. Enacting S. 3313 would not affect direct spending or revenues; therefore,
pay-as-you go procedures do not apply.
S. 3313 contains no intergovernmental or private-sector mandates as defined in the
Unfunded Mandates Reform Act (UMRA).
ESTIMATED COST TO THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT
The estimated budgetary impact of S. 3313 is shown in the following table. The costs of
this legislation fall within budget function 700 (veterans benefits and services).
BASIS OF ESTIMATE
For this estimate, CBO assumes the legislation will be enacted near the end of calendar
year 2012, that the necessary amounts will be appropriated for each year, and that outlays
will follow historical spending patterns for similar and existing programs.
Infertility Treatment for Veterans
Section 2 would expand the types of infertility treatments provided by VA to include
assisted reproductive technology (ART) procedures, of which in vitro fertilization (IVF) is
the most widely used. Under current policy, VA provides veterans with limited assistance
for infertility treatments and covers the costs for delivery and newborn care for eligible
veterans. CBO's estimate of the cost of this provision includes two components: the cost of
providing the additional fertility services and the cost of providing additional delivery
services for the resulting pregnancies.