H.R. 6588 — PROVIDE Act

This section declares congressional findings that (1) the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) has established criteria for priority processing of veterans' disability claims, including for those experiencing extreme financial hardship, homelessness, terminal illness, or participating in the VA's Fully Developed Claim program; (2) no such priority process exists for veterans affected by major disasters such as fires and floods; and (3) priority processing for those veterans will help them rebuild their lives.

This section requires the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to prescribe regulations establishing criteria for priority processing of compensation claims under 38 U.S.C. ch. 11 (i.e., disability payments for service-connected conditions) for (1) veterans experiencing extreme financial hardship, (2) homeless veterans, (3) veterans diagnosed with a terminal illness, (4) participants in the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Fully Developed Claims program (i.e., expedited processing for claims submitted with all evidence), and (5) veterans residing in an area for which the President has declared a major disaster under the Stafford Act (42 U.S.C. §5170). For claims under category (5), the section further requires regulations providing (1) flexible evidence requirements for veterans unable to meet standard requirements due to the disaster and (2) flexible filing deadlines. (Thus, disaster-affected veterans receive expedited claims processing despite documentation challenges.) The section also requires the Secretary to post permanent notice of these eligibility categories on the VA website no later than 60 days after enactment.