# 119-s-2309: Veteran Burial Timeliness and Death Certificate Accountability Act

119-s-2309, Veteran Burial Timeliness and Death Certificate Accountability Act, is a 119th Congress bill sponsored by Sen. Boozman, John [R-AR] (R-AR); status in_committee; PRIA reads it as touching household money (as of 2026-07-15).

- Canonical: https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-2309
- As of: 2026-07-15
- Plain-text twin of the page above; the HTML and this file carry the same facts.

## Facts
- Bill: 119-s-2309
- Congress: 119
- Title: Veteran Burial Timeliness and Death Certificate Accountability Act
- Status: in_committee
- Introduced: 2025-07-16
- Sponsor: Sen. Boozman, John [R-AR] (R-AR)
- Cosponsors: 7
- Policy area: Armed Forces and National Security
- Touches household money: yes
- Last recorded action: 2026-07-15

## Summary

**A 48-hour certification deadline for VA primary care providers** would require the VA clinician who served as a veteran's primary care provider to sign a death certificate within 48 hours after learning of a natural-cause death. The bill also allows a local coroner or medical examiner to certify the death if the VA provider cannot, and it requires annual reporting to congressional veterans' committees on compliance and causes of delay. - Families and survivors would get faster burial arrangements and quicker access to survivor benefits by reducing certification delays that have in some cases lasted up to eight weeks. - VA primary care physicians and nurse practitioners would be expected to certify deaths within 48 hours but are protected by a rule that the requirement cannot force them to violate their licensing rules or applicable jurisdictional laws. - Coroners and medical examiners in the jurisdiction where the death occurred may step in to certify when the VA clinician cannot meet the 48-hour window. - The Secretary of Veterans Affairs would report annually to the House and Senate Veterans' Affairs Committees on the percentage of timely certifications, the number of missed cases, and the most common reasons for noncompliance.

## Cosponsors (7)

- Sen. Hassan, Margaret Wood [D-NH] (D-NH), 2025-07-16T00:00:00.000Z
- Sen. Cornyn, John [R-TX] (R-TX), 2025-07-28T00:00:00.000Z
- Sen. Marshall, Roger [R-KS] (R-KS), 2025-09-08T00:00:00.000Z
- Sen. Ricketts, Pete [R-NE] (R-NE), 2025-09-09T00:00:00.000Z
- Sen. Sheehy, Tim [R-MT] (R-MT), 2025-10-03T00:00:00.000Z
- Sen. Cotton, Tom [R-AR] (R-AR), 2025-10-08T00:00:00.000Z
- Sen. Lee, Mike [R-UT] (R-UT), 2026-05-19T00:00:00.000Z

## Provisions PRIA read

- Faster death certificates for veterans: benefit, low. If enacted, the bill would require a VA physician or nurse practitioner who was a veteran's primary care provider to sign a death certificate for natural causes within 48 hours after learning of the death. If the VA provider cannot meet 48 hours for a given death, a local coroner or medical examine…
- VA staff must follow state law: benefit, low. If enacted, the bill would clarify that nothing in the Act would require any VA employee to take an action that conflicts with the laws, regulations, or licensing rules of the state or locality where they are licensed or where a death is certified. This would protect VA staff from being forced to a…

## Related bills

- 119-s-1071: National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2026
- 119-s-5526: Agricultural Act of 2026
- 119-s-410: Love Lives On Act of 2025
- 119-s-4429: Connected Vehicle Security Act of 2026
- 119-sres-913: A resolution relating to the death of the Honorable Nancy Kassebaum, former United States Senator for the State of Kansas.
- 119-sres-897: A resolution honoring the life, service, and legacy of the Honorable Jon Llewellyn Kyl, former Senator for the State of Arizona.

## Sources
- [119-s-2309 on Congress.gov](https://www.congress.gov/bill/119th-congress/senate-bill/2309)

## Related
- [119-s-1071: National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2026](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-1071)
- [119-s-5526: Agricultural Act of 2026](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-5526)
- [119-s-410: Love Lives On Act of 2025](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-410)
- [119-s-4429: Connected Vehicle Security Act of 2026](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-4429)
- [119-sres-913: A resolution relating to the death of the Honorable Nancy Kassebaum, former Uni…](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-sres-913)
- [119-sres-897: A resolution honoring the life, service, and legacy of the Honorable Jon Llewel…](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-sres-897)
- [All bills in Congress](https://policyrisk.com/legislation)

Source: PRIA, https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-2309 (as of 2026-07-15).