By Shirleen Guerra | The Center Square
(The Center Square) – A Virginia congresswoman introduced bipartisan legislation to create a faster, centralized system for verifying medical licenses so military health care providers can treat patients without delays when they transfer.
The Digital Oversight of Credentialing for Service Members (DOCS) Act, sponsored by Rep. Jen Kiggans, R-Va., and co-led by Rep. Sara Jacobs, D-Calif., would standardize and accelerate credentialing for both uniformed and civilian medical professionals working in the military health system.
The bill also requires 90% of licensure verifications are completed within seven days of request, according to documents.
“As a Navy veteran and healthcare provider, I know how frustrating and harmful these delays can be,” Kiggans said in a statement. “The DOCS Act delivers a simple, commonsense solution: verify licenses quickly, centrally, and consistently—so our providers can do what they were trained to do: take care of our service members and their families.”
According to Kiggans’ office, “each move requires re-credentialing, even within the same town, causing delays. Inconsistent verification processes have led to staffing shortages, deployment issues, and care gaps. Some providers are unable to practice for months due to lack of a standardized system.”
The Defense Health Agency oversees care for approximately 9.5 million military beneficiaries, supported by a global workforce of nearly 130,000 military and civilian personnel.
A 2022 Government Accountability Office report found that the Defense Health Agency “does not sufficiently monitor” military treatment facilities’ compliance with credentialing and privileging requirements, stating that “current monitoring is insufficient and additional monitoring has not yet been implemented.”
Jacobs underscored a need to eliminate “red tape” acting as a barrier in treating patients.
“Bureaucratic red tape shouldn’t delay military doctors and nurses from seeing and treating their patients for months,” said Jacobs. “But unfortunately, bottlenecks in military treatment facilities (MTFs) recredentialing – even when moving from one military facility to another – can take up to six months.”
The Military Officers Association of America endorsed the proposal, with MOAA President and CEO Lt. Gen. Brian Kelly (USAF, Ret.) stating, “This commonsense legislation helps protect the value, with high quality and access, of the service-earned health care benefit — a key to the success and stability of the all-volunteer force.”
