U.S. Senators Mike Crapo (R-Idaho) and Angus King (I-Maine) have introduced the State Veterans Home Inspection Simplification Act, a bill designed to reduce redundant inspection requirements for State Veterans Homes (SVHs) across the United States.
Currently, SVHs are subject to annual inspections by both the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) and the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS). These inspections cover similar standards related to safety protocols, facility conditions, and clinical care practices. According to lawmakers, about 75 percent of SVHs undergo audits from both agencies each year.
The proposed legislation would allow SVHs that meet all VA survey requirements to skip the CMS survey. Senator Crapo said, “Overlapping survey requirements take time and resources away from the core mission of State Veterans Homes—providing care to our nation’s heroes. We must remove unnecessary administrative burdens and allow for a more streamlined certification process, all without compromising the quality of care veterans deserve.”
Senator King added, “Maine Veterans Home and state veterans homes across the country are a lifeline to the brave men and women who served. However, redundant inspections hamper their ability to deliver critical services and support. The State Veterans Home Inspection Simplification Act is commonsense legislation that will ensure we continue to provide the highest quality of care to our veterans while streamlining administrative processes. Keeping our promise to veterans everywhere — from Maine to Idaho — should never be partisan and I’m grateful to partner with Senator Crapo on this issue.”
Mark Tschampl, Director of the Idaho Division of Veterans Services, stated: “State Veterans Homes represent a sacred trust we hold to care for those who served our nation. The VA survey process is both rigorous and comprehensive, covering clinical care, financial stewardship, and life safety across all care levels. Duplicative CMS surveys add no meaningful oversight benefit and only increase costs and the burden on facilities and the Veterans we serve. I want to thank Senator Crapo for his leadership in advancing this important bipartisan legislation that restores commonsense oversight while upholding the highest standards of care.”
Diane Lynch, President of the National Association of State Veterans Homes (NASVH), expressed support for the bill: “The National Association of State Veterans Homes (NASVH) strongly supports the State Veterans Home Inspection Simplification Act, a commonsense bill that would prevent unnecessary overregulation of veterans nursing homes. State Veterans Homes operate under the oversight of VA, which includes an annual inspection requiring them to meet about 200 health, safety, and quality standards. However, about 75% of the State Veterans Homes are also required to receive annual inspections by CMS covering substantially the same standards, leading to unnecessary costs and bureaucratic obstacles. This legislation is a vital step toward reducing redundancy in oversight while preserving the quality and accountability veterans deserve. NASVH extends our heartfelt thanks to Senator Crapo and Senator King for introducing this legislation and their unwavering commitment to our nation’s veterans.”
Lawmakers noted that CMS surveys overlap with VA surveys by approximately 90 percent in terms of clinical life safety sections but do not include certain areas such as domiciliary or adult day health care covered by VA reviews.
Key provisions in this act aim at eliminating duplicate annual surveys from both agencies; improving resource efficiency so staff can focus more on veteran well-being; cutting redundant expenses; maintaining quality through reliance on comprehensive VA reports; and using these reports for consumer information on platforms like CMS Compare.
Original co-sponsors include Senators Jim Risch (R-Idaho), Mike Lee (R-Utah), Marsha Blackburn (R-Tennessee), Jim Justice (R-West Virginia), and Tim Sheehy (R-Montana).
As part of recent appropriations legislation passed in November, Senator Crapo also secured a provision requiring a Government Accountability Office study into backlogs affecting SVH construction or renovation projects.
State Veterans Homes are managed at state level through divisions or departments dedicated to veterans’ affairs. There are currently 172 recognized SVHs nationwide offering skilled nursing programs as well as domiciliary or adult health services. Idaho operates four such facilities located in Boise, Lewiston, Pocatello, and Post Falls under its Division of Veterans Services.
