Page:United States Statutes at Large Volume 112 Part 1.djvu/88

 112 STAT. 62 PUBLIC LAW 105-174—MAY 1, 1998 Reports. Records. Reports. Establishment. pursuant to section 251(b)(2)(A) of the Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985, as amended: Provided further. That the entire amount shall be available only to the extent that an official budget request for $47,000,000, that includes designation of the entire amount of the request as an emergency requirement as defined in the Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985, as amended, is transmitted by the President to the Congress. SEC. 4. The President is urged to encourage other nations who are allies and friends of the United States to contribute to the burden being borne by the United States in preventing the government of Iraq from using Weapons of Mass Destruction, which pose a threat to the world community. The President is also urged to seek financial, in-kind and other contributions to help defray the costs being incurred by the United States in this operation. For this purpose, a special account shall be established in the Treasury which will accept such financial contributions, and from which funds will be subject to obligation through the normal appropriations process. The Secretary of Defense, after consultation with the Secretary of State, shall provide a report to the Congress within 60 days after enactment as to the status of this effort, and shall make a comprehensive account of the efforts made and results obtained to share the burden of the common defense. The Director of the Office of Management and Budget shall report to the Congress within 30 days as to the establishment of such burden-sharing account in the Department of the Treasury. (INCLUDING TRANSFER OF FUNDS) SEC. 5. (a) QUALITY ASSURANCE REPORT ON MILITARY HEALTH CARE. —The Secretary of Defense shall appoint an independent panel of experts to evaluate recent measures taken by the Acting Assistant Secretary of Defense for Health Affairs and the Surgeons General of the Army, Navy and Air Force to improve the quality of care provided by the Military Health Services System. (b) MEMBERSHIP.— (1) The panel shall be composed of nine members appointed by the Secretary of Defense. At least five of those members shall be persons who are highly qualified in the medical arts, have experience in setting health care standards, and possess a demonstrated understanding of the military health care system and its unique mission requirements. The remaining members shall be persons who are current beneficiaries of the Military Health Services System. (2) The Secretary shall designate one member to serve as chairperson of the panel. (3) The Secretary shall appoint the members of this panel not later than 45 days after enactment of this Act. (c) FUNCTIONS OF THE PANEL.—The panel shall review the Department of Defense Access and Quality Improvement Initiative announced in early 1998 (together with other related quality improvement actions) to assess whether all reasonable measures have been taken to ensure that the Military Health Services System delivers health care services in accordance with consistently high professional standards. The panel shall specifically assess actions of the Department to accomplish the following objectives of that initiative and related management actions: (1) upgrade professional education and training requirements for military physicians and other health care providers;

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