Sec. G-1. Medicare and veterans' health care. The Governor shall engage in active negotia-tions with the Federal Government to increase access to federally sponsored health services for veterans in this State and to increase the rates of Medicare reimbursement for the State's health care providers.
Sec. G-2. Task Force on Veterans' Health Services.
1. Task force established. The Task Force on Veterans' Health Services, referred to in this section as "the task force," is established and consists of 13 members as follows:
A. One member of the Senate appointed by the President of the Senate;
B. One member of the House of Representatives appointed by the Speaker of the House of the Representatives;
C. Nine members appointed by the Governor:
(1) Three members who are military veterans, including one military veteran representing the Maine Veterans Coordinating Committee, one military veteran representing the Department of Defense, Veterans and Emergency Management Services, Bureau of Maine Veterans' Services and one military veteran representing the Maine Veterans' Homes;
(2) Two members representing state agencies that provide health care services; and
(3) Four members representing health care providers, including one allopathic physician, one osteopathic physician, one representative of hospitals and one provider of mental health services;
D. A representative of the federal Department of Veterans Affairs; and
E. The Director of Maine Veterans' Homes or the director's designee.
2. Chairs. The Senate member and the House member serve as cochairs of the task force.
3. Appointments; convening of task force. All appointments must be made no later than 30 days following the effective date of this Part. The appointing authorities shall notify the Executive Director of the Legislative Council once all appointments have been completed. Within 15 days after appointment of all members, the chairs shall call and convene the first meeting of the task force.
4. Duties. The task force shall review and assess the needs of the State's veterans for health care services and the availability, accessibility and quality of public and private health care services for veterans. Based on its review and assessment, the task force shall make recommendations for the reorganization of those services to more effectively meet the needs of the State's veterans for health care services.
5. Staff assistance. The Department of Defense, Veterans and Emergency Management shall provide necessary staffing services to the task force.
6. Compensation. The legislative members of the task force are entitled to the legislative per diem, as defined in the Maine Revised Statutes, Title 3, section 2, and reimbursement for travel and other necessary expenses related to their attendance at authorized meetings of the task force. Public members not otherwise compensated by their employers or other entities that they represent are entitled to receive reimbursement of necessary expenses and, upon a demonstration of financial hardship, a per diem equal to the legislative per diem for their attendance at authorized meetings of the task force.
7. Report. The task force shall submit a report, no later than January 1, 2005, that includes its findings and recommendations, including suggested legislation, to the joint standing committees of the Legislature having jurisdiction over veterans affairs matters and health and human services matters for consideration in the First Regular Session of the 122nd Legislature.
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