38 U.S.C. § 7319: Mammography quality standards

Summary

VA medical centers may not give mammograms unless the facility is accredited by a private nonprofit picked by the Secretary. That accrediting group must meet the accrediting-body standards in subsection (e) of section 354 of the Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 263b). The Secretary, working with the HHS Secretary, must set quality and safety rules for how mammograms are done, read, and what equipment and rooms are used. Those rules must be at least as strict as HHS rules. Equipment and facilities used for VA mammograms must be inspected every year like HHS inspections, and a State agency cannot perform those inspections. Mammograms done under VA contract must meet the HHS standards. Mammogram: the meaning given in paragraph (5) of section 354(a) of the Public Health Service Act.

Title 38, §7319

Veterans' Benefits, Source: USLM XML via OLRC

(a)A mammogram may not be performed at a Department facility unless that facility is accredited for that purpose by a private nonprofit organization designated by the Secretary. An organization designated by the Secretary under this subsection shall meet the standards for accrediting bodies established under subsection (e) of section 354 of the Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 263b).

(b)The Secretary, in consultation with the Secretary of Health and Human Services, shall prescribe quality assurance and quality control standards relating to the performance and interpretation of mammograms and use of mammogram equipment and facilities of the Department of Veterans Affairs consistent with the requirements of section 354(f)(1) of the Public Health Service Act. Such standards shall be no less stringent than the standards prescribed by the Secretary of Health and Human Services under section 354(f) of the Public Health Service Act.

(c)(1)The Secretary, to ensure compliance with the standards prescribed under subsection (b), shall provide for an annual inspection of the equipment and facilities used by and in Department health care facilities for the performance of mammograms. Such inspections shall be carried out in a manner consistent with the inspection of certified facilities by the Secretary of Health and Human Services under section 354(g) of the Public Health Service Act.

(2)The Secretary may not provide for an inspection under paragraph (1) to be performed by a State agency.

(d)The Secretary shall ensure that mammograms performed for the Department under contract with any non-Department facility or provider conform to the quality standards prescribed by the Secretary of Health and Human Services under section 354 of the Public Health Service Act.

(e)For the purposes of this section, the term “mammogram” has the meaning given such term in paragraph (5) of section 354(a) of the Public Health Service Act.

Notes & Related Subsidiaries

Editorial Notes

References in Text

section 354 of the Public Health Service Act, referred to in text, is section 354 of act July 1, 1944, ch. 373, which is classified to section 263b of Title 42, The Public Health and Welfare.

Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries

Deadline for Prescribing Standards Pub. L. 104–262, title III, § 321(b), Oct. 9, 1996, 110 Stat. 3195, required the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to prescribe standards under subsection (b) of this section not later than the end of the 120-day period beginning on Oct. 9, 1996. Implementation Report Pub. L. 104–262, title III, § 321(c), Oct. 9, 1996, 110 Stat. 3195, required the Secretary to submit to Congress a report on the Secretary’s implementation of this section not later than 120 days after Oct. 9, 1996.

§7319 Mammography Quality Standards