The executive office of health and human services, in conjunction with the department of veterans’ services and the center for health information and analysis, shall conduct a study on veterans’ and their dependents’ access to healthcare providers that are not practicing at facilities of the United States Department of Veterans Affairs. For the purposes of this section, “veteran” shall mean a veteran who receives benefits under the TRICARE program, as defined in 10 U.S.C. 1072(7).

The study shall: (i) identify, after seeking consultation with the United States Department of Veterans Affairs, healthcare providers in the Commonwealth who currently accept TRICARE insurance; (ii) identify geographic location of said healthcare providers; (iii) identify by geographic location transportation barriers to accessing said healthcare providers; (iv) identify said healthcare providers’ characteristics, including but not limited to, practice specialty, race, gender, years of experience as a healthcare provider; (v) determine the number of veterans and veteran dependents in the Commonwealth currently seeking care from said healthcare providers; (vi) recommend if number of healthcare providers in the Commonwealth who accept TRICARE insurance must be expanded to improve veterans’ and veteran dependents’ access to healthcare; (vii) recommend how the department of veterans’ services, in conjunction with the United States Department of Veterans Affairs, can increase the number of said providers in the Commonwealth; (viii) recommend department of veterans’ services program to inform veteran and veteran dependent population of healthcare providers accepting TRICARE insurance in the Commonwealth.

The office shall submit a report on the study to the clerks of the senate and house, the joint committee on veterans and federal affairs, the joint committee on health care financing and the senate and house committees on ways and means not later than December 31, 2021.