The $309.9 billion bill includes more than $80 million for construction and maintenance programs at Eastern North Carolina’s military bases, including funding to restore damaged areas of the runway at Seymour Johnson Air Force Base and to make repairs to the armory at Camp Lejuene.

H.R. 4205 includes provisions secured by Rep. Jones to eliminate pre-authorization requirements for TRICARE beneficiaries seeking mental health care.  The bill would also require health care contractors to bear the cost of travel expenses when referring beneficiaries to network providers more than 100 miles outside the area.

Congressman Jones also made progress in his year-long effort to change the Department of Defense’s mandatory anthrax vaccine program.  Jones was able to secure language in the bill to establish a system for tracking, recording, and reporting military personnel who refuse the vaccine. The bill would also expand the system of surveillance to observe patterns of adverse reactions to the vaccine. 

 The House of Representatives is scheduled to consider the defense authorization bill next week.