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    38 USC Sec. 1151                                            01/03/05

-EXPCITE-

    TITLE 38 - VETERANS' BENEFITS

    PART II - GENERAL BENEFITS

    CHAPTER 11 - COMPENSATION FOR SERVICE-CONNECTED DISABILITY OR DEATH

    SUBCHAPTER VI - GENERAL COMPENSATION PROVISIONS

-HEAD-

    Sec. 1151. Benefits for persons disabled by treatment or vocational

      rehabilitation

-STATUTE-

      (a) Compensation under this chapter and dependency and indemnity

    compensation under chapter 13 of this title shall be awarded for a

    qualifying additional disability or a qualifying death of a veteran

    in the same manner as if such additional disability or death were

    service-connected. For purposes of this section, a disability or

    death is a qualifying additional disability or qualifying death if

    the disability or death was not the result of the veteran's willful

    misconduct and - 

        (1) the disability or death was caused by hospital care,

      medical or surgical treatment, or examination furnished the

      veteran under any law administered by the Secretary, either by a

      Department employee or in a Department facility as defined in

      section 1701(3)(A) of this title, and the proximate cause of the

      disability or death was - 

          (A) carelessness, negligence, lack of proper skill, error in

        judgment, or similar instance of fault on the part of the

        Department in furnishing the hospital care, medical or surgical

        treatment, or examination; or

          (B) an event not reasonably foreseeable; or

        (2) the disability or death was proximately caused (A) by the

      provision of training and rehabilitation services by the

      Secretary (including by a service-provider used by the Secretary

      for such purpose under section 3115 of this title) as part of an

      approved rehabilitation program under chapter 31 of this title,

      or (B) by participation in a program (known as a "compensated

      work therapy program") under section 1718 of this title.

      (b)(1) Where an individual is, on or after December 1, 1962,

    awarded a judgment against the United States in a civil action

    brought pursuant to section 1346(b) of title 28 or, on or after

    December 1, 1962, enters into a settlement or compromise under

    section 2672 or 2677 of title 28 by reason of a disability or death

    treated pursuant to this section as if it were service-connected,

    then (except as otherwise provided in paragraph (2)) no benefits

    shall be paid to such individual for any month beginning after the

    date such judgment, settlement, or compromise on account of such

    disability or death becomes final until the aggregate amount of

    benefits which would be paid but for this subsection equals the

    total amount included in such judgment, settlement, or compromise.

      (2) In the case of a judgment, settlement, or compromise covered

    by paragraph (1) that becomes final on or after the date of the

    enactment of this paragraph and that includes an amount that is

    specifically designated for a purpose for which benefits are

    provided under chapter 21 or 39 of this title (hereinafter in this

    paragraph referred to as the "offset amount"), if such judgment,

    settlement, or compromise becomes final before the date of the

    award of benefits under chapter 21 or 39 for the purpose for which

    the offset amount was specifically designated - 

        (A) the amount of such award shall be reduced by the offset

      amount; and

        (B) if the offset amount is greater than the amount of such

      award, the excess amount received pursuant to the judgment,

      settlement or compromise, shall be offset against benefits

      otherwise payable under this chapter.

      (c) A qualifying additional disability under this section shall

    be treated in the same manner as if it were a service-connected

    disability for purposes of the following provisions of this title:

        (1) Chapter 21, relating to specially adapted housing.

        (2) Chapter 39, relating to automobiles and adaptive equipment.

-SOURCE-

    (Pub. L. 85-857, Sept. 2, 1958, 72 Stat. 1124, Sec. 351; Pub. L. 87-

    825, Sec. 3, Oct. 15, 1962, 76 Stat. 950; Pub. L. 91-24, Sec. 3,

    June 11, 1969, 83 Stat. 33; Pub. L. 94-433, title IV, Sec. 404(19),

    Sept. 30, 1976, 90 Stat. 1379; Pub. L. 98-223, title II, Sec.

    213(1), Mar. 2, 1984, 98 Stat. 46; renumbered Sec. 1151 and amended

    Pub. L. 102-83, Secs. 4(a)(1), 5(a), Aug. 6, 1991, 105 Stat. 403,

    406; Pub. L. 104-204, title IV, Sec. 422(a), Sept. 26, 1996, 110

    Stat. 2926; Pub. L. 106-419, title III, Sec. 303, Nov. 1, 2000, 114

    Stat. 1853; Pub. L. 108-454, title III, Sec. 304(a),(c), Dec. 10,

    2004, 118 Stat. 3611.)

-REFTEXT-

                            REFERENCES IN TEXT                        

      The date of the enactment of this paragraph, referred to in

    subsec. (b)(2), is the date of enactment of Pub. L. 108-454, which

    was approved Dec. 10, 2004.

-MISC1-

                                AMENDMENTS                            

      2004 - Subsec. (b). Pub. L. 108-454, Sec. 304(c), designated

    existing provision as par. (1), inserted "(except as otherwise

    provided in paragraph (2))" after "service-connected, then", and

    added par. (2).

      Subsec. (c). Pub. L. 108-454, Sec. 304(a), added subsec. (c).

      2000 - Subsec. (a)(2). Pub. L. 106-419 inserted "(A)" after

    "proximately caused" and added cl. (B).

      1996 - Subsec. (a). Pub. L. 104-204, Sec. 422(a)(1), added

    subsec. (a) and struck out former first sentence of section which

    read as follows: "Where any veteran shall have suffered an injury,

    or an aggravation of an injury, as the result of hospitalization,

    medical or surgical treatment, or the pursuit of a course of

    vocational rehabilitation under chapter 31 of this title, awarded

    under any of the laws administered by the Secretary, or as a result

    of having submitted to an examination under any such law, and not

    the result of such veteran's own willful misconduct, and such

    injury or aggravation results in additional disability to or the

    death of such veteran, disability or death compensation under this

    chapter and dependency and indemnity compensation under chapter 13

    of this title shall be awarded in the same manner as if such

    disability, aggravation, or death were service-connected."

      Subsec. (b). Pub. L. 104-204, Sec. 422(a)(2), designated second

    sentence of section as subsec. (b), struck out ", aggravation,"

    after "disability" in two places, and substituted "this subsection

    equals the total amount" for "this sentence equals the total

    amount".

      1991 - Pub. L. 102-83, Sec. 5(a), renumbered section 351 of this

    title as this section.

      Pub. L. 102-83, Sec. 4(a)(1), substituted "administered by the

    Secretary" for "administered by the Veterans' Administration".

      1984 - Pub. L. 98-223 substituted "title 28" for "title 28,

    United States Code," in two places.

      1976 - Pub. L. 94-433 struck out "him" before "under any of the

    laws" and substituted "such veteran's" for "his" in first sentence.

      1969 - Pub. L. 91-24 substituted ", on or after December 1,

    1962," for "hereafter" wherever appearing.

      1962 - Pub. L. 87-825 provided that where an individual is

    awarded a judgment under section 1346(b) of title 28, enters a

    settlement or compromise under section 2672 or 2677 of such title

    by reason of a disability, aggravation, or death treated pursuant

    to this section as if service-connected, then no benefits shall be

    paid such individual for any month beginning after such judgment,

    settlement or compromise becomes final until the aggregate amount

    of benefits equals the total amount included in such judgment,

    settlement, or compromise, and struck out provisions which required

    that no benefits were to be awarded unless application was made

    therefor within two years after an injury or aggravation was

    suffered, or a death occurred.

                     EFFECTIVE DATE OF 2004 AMENDMENT                 

      Pub. L. 108-454, title III, Sec. 304(b), Dec. 10, 2004, 118 Stat.

    3611, provided that:"Subsection (c) of section 1151 of title 38,

    United States Code, as added by subsection (a), shall apply with

    respect to eligibility for benefits and services provided by the

    Secretary of Veterans Affairs on or after the date of the enactment

    of this Act [Dec. 10, 2004]."

                     EFFECTIVE DATE OF 1996 AMENDMENT                 

      Section 422(b), (c) of Pub. L. 104-204 provided that:

      "(b)(1) The amendments made by subsection (a) [amending this

    section] shall take effect on October 1, 1996.

      "(2) Section 1151 of title 38, United States Code (as amended by

    subsection (a)), shall govern all administrative and judicial

    determinations of eligibility for benefits under such section that

    are made with respect to claims filed on or after the effective

    date set forth in paragraph (1) [Oct. 1, 1996], including those

    based on original applications and applications seeking to reopen,

    revise, reconsider, or otherwise readjudicate on any basis claims

    for benefits under such section 1151 or any provision of law that

    is a predecessor of such section.

      "(c) Nothwithstanding [sic] subsection (b)(1), section 421(d)

    [set out as a note under section 1801 of this title], or any other

    provision of this Act [see Tables for classification], section 421

    [enacting sections 1801 to 1806 of this title, amending section

    5312 of this title, and enacting provisions set out as notes under

    section 1801 of this title] and this section [amending this

    section] shall not take effect until October 1, 1997, unless

    legislation other than this Act is enacted to provide for an

    earlier effective date."

                     EFFECTIVE DATE OF 1976 AMENDMENT                 

      Amendment by Pub. L. 94-433 effective Oct. 1, 1976, see section

    406 of Pub. L. 94-433, set out as a note under section 1101 of this

    title.

                     EFFECTIVE DATE OF 1962 AMENDMENT                 

      Amendment by Pub. L. 87-825 effective first day of second

    calendar month which begins after Oct. 15, 1962, see section 7 of

    Pub. L. 87-825, set out as a note under section 110 of this title.