Title 38 — Veterans' BenefitsRelease 119-73
§3120 Program of independent living services and assistance
Title 38 › Part PART III— - READJUSTMENT AND RELATED BENEFITS › Chapter CHAPTER 31— - TRAINING AND REHABILITATION FOR VETERANS WITH SERVICE-CONNECTED DISABILITIES › § 3120
Summary
The Secretary can set up programs to help seriously disabled veterans live more independently. The VA or groups it hires will run the programs. They are for veterans who have a major work-related handicap mainly caused by a service-connected disability and who, under the law, are found unable to reach a job goal right now. The VA must try to include many veterans who are in long-term care at VA hospitals or nursing homes. Each veteran gets the services needed to reach the highest independence in daily life and has the same right to a written, individualized service plan as other veterans. No more than 2,700 veterans may start these programs in each fiscal year. Priority is given to veterans whose job goal is blocked only because of a service-connected disability. The 2,700 limit does not apply if a veteran was displaced or harmed by a disaster, as the VA decides. Programs may be run by public or nonprofit agencies, and by for-profit groups only when comparable services are not available or cost-effective from public, nonprofit, or VA sources.
Full Legal Text
Title 38, §3120
Veterans' Benefits — Source: USLM XML via OLRC
(a)The Secretary may, under contracts with entities described in subsection (f) of this section, or through facilities of the Veterans Health Administration, which possess a demonstrated capability to conduct programs of independent living services for severely handicapped persons, provide, under regulations which the Secretary shall prescribe, programs of independent living services and assistance under this chapter, in various geographic regions of the United States, to veterans described in subsection (b) of this section.
(b)A program of independent living services and assistance may be made available under this section only to a veteran who has a serious employment handicap resulting in substantial part from a service-connected disability described in section 3102(1)(A)(i) of this title and with respect to whom it is determined under section 3106(d) or (e) of this title that the achievement of a vocational goal currently is not reasonably feasible.
(c)The Secretary shall, to the maximum extent feasible, include among those veterans who are provided with programs of independent living services and assistance under this section substantial numbers of veterans described in subsection (b) of this section who are receiving long-term care in Department of Veterans Affairs hospitals and nursing homes and in nursing homes with which the Secretary contracts for the provision of care to veterans.
(d)A program of independent living services and assistance for a veteran shall consist of such services described in section 3104(a) of this title as the Secretary determines necessary to enable such veteran to achieve maximum independence in daily living. Such veteran shall have the same rights with respect to an individualized written plan of services and assistance as are afforded veterans under section 3107 of this title.
(e)(1)Programs of independent living services and assistance shall be initiated for no more than 2,700 veterans in each fiscal year, and the first priority in the provision of such programs shall be afforded to veterans for whom the reasonable feasibility of achieving a vocational goal is precluded solely as a result of a service-connected disability.
(2)The limitation in paragraph (1) shall not apply in any case in which the Secretary determines that a veteran described in subsection (b) has been displaced as the result of, or has otherwise been adversely affected in the areas covered by, a natural or other disaster, as determined by the Secretary.
(f)Entities described in this subsection are (1) public or nonprofit agencies or organizations, and (2) for-profit entities in cases in which the Secretary determines that services comparable in effectiveness to services available from such an entity are not available, or cannot be obtained cost-effectively from, public or nonprofit agencies or through facilities of the Veterans Health Administration.
Legislative History
Notes & Related Subsidiaries
Editorial Notes
Amendments
2012—Subsec. (e). Pub. L. 112–154 designated existing provisions as par. (1) and added par. (2). 2010—Subsec. (e). Pub. L. 111–275 substituted “2,700” for “2600”. 2008—Subsec. (e). Pub. L. 110–389, which directed amendment of subsec. (e) by substituting “2600 veterans” for “2500 veterans”, was executed by making the substitution for “2,500 veterans” to reflect the probable intent of Congress. 2001—Subsec. (e). Pub. L. 107–103 substituted “2,500 veterans” for “five hundred veterans”. 1996—Subsec. (b). Pub. L. 104–275, § 101(i)(1), substituted “serious employment handicap resulting in substantial part from a service-connected disability described in section 3102(1)(A)(i)” for “service-connected disability described in section 3102(1)(A)”. Pub. L. 104–275, § 101(f)(2)(D), substituted “3106(d) or (e)” for “3106(d)”. Subsec. (d). Pub. L. 104–275, § 101(i)(2), struck out “and (b)” after “section 3104(a)”. 1994—Subsec. (a). Pub. L. 103–446, § 1201(b)(1), substituted “Veterans Health Administration” for “Department of Medicine and Surgery”. Subsec. (b). Pub. L. 103–446, § 1201(d)(11), which directed substitution of “section 3102(1)(A)(i)” for “section 3012(1)(A)”, could not be executed because the words “section 3012(1)(A)” did not appear. Subsec. (f). Pub. L. 103–446, § 1201(b)(1), substituted “Veterans Health Administration” for “Department of Medicine and Surgery”. 1991—Pub. L. 102–83, § 5(a), renumbered section 1520 of this title as this section. Subsec. (b). Pub. L. 102–83, § 5(c)(1), substituted “3102(1)(A)” for “1502(1)(A)” and “3106(d)” for “1506(d)”. Subsec. (d). Pub. L. 102–83, § 5(c)(1), substituted “3104(a)” for “1504(a)” and “3107” for “1507”. 1989—Subsec. (a). Pub. L. 101–237, § 423(b)(1)(A), substituted “Secretary” for “Administrator” wherever appearing. Pub. L. 101–237, § 404(2)–(4), redesignated former par. (1) of subsec. (a) as entire subsection, substituted “The” for “During fiscal years 1982 through 1989, the”, “subsection (f) of this section” for “paragraph (7) of this subsection” and “subsection (b) of this section” for “paragraph (2) of this subsection”, redesignated former pars. (2), (3), (4), (6), and (7) of subsec. (a) as subsecs. (b), (c), (d), (e), and (f) of this section, respectively, and struck out former par. (5) which read as follows: “Any contract for services initiated with respect to any veteran under this section before the end of fiscal year 1989 may be continued in effect after the end of such year for the purposes of providing services and assistance to such veteran in accordance with the provisions of this chapter.” Subsec. (b). Pub. L. 101–237, § 404(1), (3), (5), redesignated former subsec. (a)(2) as (b), struck out before period at end “and who is selected pursuant to criteria provided for in
Regulations
prescribed under paragraph (1) of this subsection” and struck out former subsec. (b) which read as follows: “Not later than
February 1, 1989, the Administrator shall submit to the Committees on Veterans’ Affairs of the Senate and the House of Representatives statistical data regarding veterans’ participation in the program conducted under subsection (a) of this section during fiscal years 1987 and 1988 and any recommendations of the Administrator for administrative or legislative action or both regarding the program.” Subsec. (c). Pub. L. 101–237, § 423(b)(1), substituted “Secretary” and “Department of Veterans Affairs” for “Administrator” and “Veterans’ Administration”, respectively, wherever appearing. Pub. L. 101–237, § 404(3), (6), redesignated former subsec. (a)(3) as (c) and substituted “subsection (b) of this section” for “paragraph (2) of this subsection”. Subsec. (d). Pub. L. 101–237, § 423(b)(1)(A), substituted “Secretary” for “Administrator”. Pub. L. 101–237, § 404(3), redesignated former subsec. (a)(4) as (d). Subsec. (e). Pub. L. 101–237, § 404(3), (7), redesignated former subsec. (a)(6) as (e) and substituted “in each fiscal year” for “in each of the fiscal years 1982 through 1989”. Subsec. (f). Pub. L. 101–237, § 423(b)(1)(A), substituted “Secretary” for “Administrator”. Pub. L. 101–237, § 404(3), (8), redesignated former subsec. (a)(7) as (f) and substituted “in this subsection are (1) public or nonprofit agencies or organizations, and (2)” for “in this paragraph are (A) public or nonprofit agencies or organizations, and (B)”. 1988—Subsec. (a)(1). Pub. L. 100–689, § 202(b)(1), substituted “entities described in paragraph (7) of this subsection” for “public or nonprofit private agencies or organizations”. Subsec. (a)(7). Pub. L. 100–689, § 202(b)(2), added par. (7). 1986—Pub. L. 99–576, § 333(b)(6), substituted “Program” for “Pilot program” in section catchline. Subsec. (a)(1). Pub. L. 99–576, § 333(a)(1)(A), substituted “1989” for “1985”. Subsec. (a)(2). Pub. L. 99–576, § 333(a)(1)(B), inserted “currently” after “goal”. Subsec. (a)(5), (6). Pub. L. 99–576, § 333(a)(1)(A), substituted “1989” for “1985”. Subsec. (b). Pub. L. 99–576, § 333(c), amended subsec. (b) generally. Prior to amendment, subsec. (b) read as follows: “Not later than
September 30, 1984, the Administrator shall submit to the Congress a report on the programs of independent living services and assistance provided for in subsection (a) of this section. Such report shall include— “(1) the results of a study which the Administrator shall conduct of the accomplishments and cost-effectiveness of such programs, including the extent to which (A) such programs have met needs for comprehensive independent living services that would not otherwise have been met, (B) severely disabled veterans have achieved and maintained greater independence in daily living as a result of participation in the programs, and (C) costs of care in hospital, nursing home, and domiciliary facilities have been and may be avoided as the result of such programs; and “(2) the Administrator’s recommendations for any legislative changes with respect to the provision of independent living services and assistance to veterans for whom the achievement of a vocational goal is not feasible.”
Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries
Effective Date
of 2012 AmendmentAmendment by Pub. L. 112–154 effective on the date that is one year after Aug. 6, 2012, see section 701(g) of Pub. L. 112–154, set out as an
Effective Date
note under section 2109 of this title.
Effective Date
of 2010 Amendment Pub. L. 111–275, title VIII, § 801(b), Oct. 13, 2010, 124 Stat. 2888, provided that: “The amendment made by subsection (a) [amending this section] shall apply with respect to fiscal years beginning after the date of the enactment of this Act [Oct. 13, 2010].”
Effective Date
of 2001 Amendment Pub. L. 107–103, title V, § 508(b), Dec. 27, 2001, 115 Stat. 997, provided that: “The amendment made by subsection (a) [amending this section] shall take effect as of September 30, 2001.”
Effective Date
of 1996 AmendmentAmendment by Pub. L. 104–275 effective Oct. 9, 1996, with amendment by section 101(i) of Pub. L. 104–275 only applicable with respect to claims of eligibility or entitlement to services and assistance (including claims for extension of such services and assistance) under this chapter received by the Secretary of Veterans Affairs on or after Oct. 9, 1996, including those claims based on original applications, and applications seeking to reopen, revise, reconsider, or otherwise adjudicate or readjudicate on any basis claims for services and assistance under this chapter, see section 101(j) of Pub. L. 104–275, set out as a note under section 3101 of this title.
Effective Date
Section effective Oct. 1, 1980, see section 802(a)(2) of Pub. L. 96–466, set out as a note under section 3100 of this title.
Reference
Citations & Metadata
Citation
38 U.S.C. § 3120
Title 38 — Veterans' Benefits
Last Updated
Apr 6, 2026
Release point: 119-73