§ 1980A. Traumatic injury protection
(a)
(1)
A member of the uniformed services who is insured under Servicemembers’ Group Life Insurance shall automatically be insured for traumatic injury in accordance with this section. Insurance benefits under this section shall be payable if the member, while so insured, sustains a traumatic injury on or after December 1, 2005, that results in a qualifying loss specified pursuant to subsection (b)(1).
(b)
(1)
A member who is insured against traumatic injury under this section is insured against such losses due to traumatic injury (in this section referred to as “qualifying losses”) as are prescribed by the Secretary by regulation. Qualifying losses so prescribed shall include the following:
(2)
For purposes of this subsection:
(3)
The Secretary may prescribe, by regulation, conditions under which coverage otherwise provided under this section is excluded.
(4)
A member shall not be considered for the purposes of this section to be a member insured under Servicemembers’ Group Life Insurance if the member is insured under Servicemembers’ Group Life Insurance only as an insurable dependent of another member pursuant to subparagraph (A)(ii) or (C)(ii) of section
1967
(a)(1) of this title.
(c)
(1)
A payment may be made to a member under this section only for a qualifying loss that results directly from a traumatic injury sustained while the member is covered against loss under this section and from no other cause.
(2)
(A)
A payment may be made to a member under this section for a qualifying loss resulting from a traumatic injury only for a loss that is incurred during the applicable period of time specified pursuant to subparagraph (B).
(B)
For each qualifying loss, the Secretary shall prescribe, by regulation, a period of time to be the period of time within which a loss of that type must be incurred, determined from the date on which the member sustains the traumatic injury resulting in that loss, in order for that loss to be covered under this section.
(d)
Payments under this section for qualifying losses shall be made in accordance with a schedule prescribed by the Secretary, by regulation, specifying the amount of payment to be made for each type of qualifying loss, to be based on the severity of the qualifying loss. The minimum payment that may be prescribed for a qualifying loss is $25,000, and the maximum payment that may be prescribed for a qualifying loss is $100,000.
(e)
(1)
During any period in which a member is insured under this section and the member is on active duty, there shall be deducted each month from the member’s basic or other pay until separation or release from active duty an amount determined by the Secretary (which shall be the same for all such members) as the share of the cost attributable to provided coverage under this section, less any costs traceable to the extra hazards of such duty in the uniformed services.
(2)
During any month in which a member is assigned to the Ready Reserve of a uniformed service under conditions which meet the qualifications set forth in section
1965
(5)(B) of this title and is insured under a policy of insurance purchased by the Secretary under section
1966 of this title, there shall be contributed from the appropriation made for active duty pay of the uniformed service concerned an amount determined by the Secretary (which shall be the same for all such members) as the share of the cost attributable to provided coverage under this section, less any costs traceable to the extra hazards of such duty in the uniformed services. Any amounts so contributed on behalf of any member shall be collected by the Secretary concerned from such member (by deduction from pay or otherwise) and shall be credited to the appropriation from which such contribution was made in advance on a monthly basis.
(3)
The Secretary shall determine the premium amounts to be charged for traumatic injury protection coverage provided under this section.
(4)
The premium amounts shall be determined on the basis of sound actuarial principles and shall include an amount necessary to cover the administrative costs to the insurer or insurers providing such insurance.
(5)
Each premium rate for the first policy year shall be continued for subsequent policy years, except that the rate may be adjusted for any such subsequent policy year on the basis of the experience under the policy, as determined by the Secretary in advance of that policy year.
(6)
The cost attributable to insuring members under this section for any month or other period specified by the Secretary, less the premiums paid by the members, shall be paid by the Secretary concerned to the Secretary. The Secretary shall allocate the amount payable among the uniformed services using such methods and data as the Secretary determines to be reasonable and practicable. Payments under this paragraph shall be made on a monthly basis or at such other intervals as may be specified by the Secretary and shall be made within 10 days of the date on which the Secretary provides notice to the Secretary concerned of the amount required.
(7)
For each period for which a payment by a Secretary concerned is required under paragraph (6), the Secretary concerned shall contribute such amount from appropriations available for active duty pay of the uniformed service concerned.
(8)
The sums withheld from the basic or other pay of members, or collected from them by the Secretary concerned, under this subsection, and the sums contributed from appropriations under this subsection, together with the income derived from any dividends or premium rate adjustments received from insurers shall be deposited to the credit of the revolving fund established in the Treasury of the United States under section
1869
(d)(1) of this title.
(f)
When a claim for benefits is submitted under this section, the Secretary of Defense or, in the case of a member not under the jurisdiction of the Secretary of Defense, the Secretary concerned, shall certify to the Secretary whether the member with respect to whom the claim is submitted—
(g)
(h)
Coverage for loss resulting from traumatic injury provided under this section shall cease at midnight on the date of the termination of the member’s duty status in the uniformed services that established eligibility for Servicemembers’ Group Life Insurance. The termination of coverage under this section is effective in accordance with the preceding sentence, notwithstanding any continuation after the date specified in that sentence of Servicemembers’ Group Life Insurance coverage pursuant to 1968(a) [1] of this title for a period specified in that section.
(i)
Insurance coverage provided under this section is not convertible to Veterans’ Group Life Insurance.
(j)
Regulations under this section shall be prescribed in consultation with the Secretary of Defense.
(k)
Designation of Fiduciary or Trustee.—
(1)
The Secretary concerned, in consultation with the Secretary, shall develop a process for the designation of a fiduciary or trustee of a member of the uniformed services who is insured against traumatic injury under this section. The fiduciary or trustee so designated would receive a payment for a qualifying loss under this section if the member is medically incapacitated (as determined pursuant to regulations prescribed by the Secretary concerned in consultation with the Secretary) or experiencing an extended loss of consciousness.
[1] So in original. Probably should be preceded by “section”.