Conditional Payment means a NASA payment to a medical provider or eligible individual to pay for the cost of medical monitoring, diagnosis, and treatment. Such conditional payments may be made prior to a formal determination that a psychological or medical condition is spaceflight-associated if payment has not been made or cannot reasonably be expected to be made promptly by the primary payer.

Cost Sharing means a multiparty arrangement under which costs of a program are shared by the involved parties, according to an agreed upon formula. For this program, there is no cost sharing obligation by the eligible individual. The eligible individual is responsible for insurance premiums.

Diagnosis means the identification of a medical or psychological condition consistent with the exercise of professional clinical judgment and accepted standard of care by licensed health professionals.

Eligible Individual means a former United States Government astronaut, including a member of the Uniformed Services, or a former payload specialist who has flown in space, as defined in the TREAT Astronauts Act. The following individuals are specifically excluded from eligible individuals:

(1) Astronauts of other United States Government agencies;

(2) Employees of commercial spaceflight companies who were never employed by NASA nor a member of the Uniformed Services assigned to NASA;

(3) International partner astronauts;

(4) Employees of foreign governments;

(5) Private individuals or tourists who have flown in space; and

(6) Former astronauts, including members of the Uniformed Services, and former payload specialists who have not flown in space.

JSC means Johnson Space Center.

Monitoring means the NASA astronaut spaceflight exposure clinical assessment of medical and psychological health status by licensed health professionals.

Payload Specialist means an individual other than a NASA astronaut (commander, pilot, and mission specialist) whose presence was required onboard the space shuttle vehicle to perform specialized functions with respect to operation of one or more payloads or other essential mission activities.

Primary Payer means the entity, U.S. Government agency or private health insurer, which is responsible to make payment to the eligible individual first, up to the limits of its coverage or authority.

Program means the medical monitoring, diagnosis, and treatment authorized by the TREAT Astronauts Act.

Secondary Payer means the entity that pays after all primary payers have paid, up to the limits of their coverage. Secondary payments, as described in the TREAT Astronauts Act, are payments or reimbursement for the medical monitoring, diagnosis, or treatment secondary to any obligation of the U.S. Government or any third party under any other provision of law or contractual agreement to pay for or provide such medical monitoring, diagnosis, or treatment.

Spaceflight-Associated Condition means a medical or psychological condition that the NASA Administrator or designee designated by the NASA Administrator determines is at least as likely as not to have resulted from participation in spaceflight-related activities.

Treatment means the accepted standard of clinical care for a medical or psychological condition by licensed health professionals.

TREAT Astronauts Act means section 443 of the “To Research, Evaluate, Assess, and Treat Astronauts Act of 2017.”

TREAT Astronauts Act Board or TAAB means the internal NASA review board that provides recommendations to the NASA Administrator or designee as to whether or not a medical claim initiated by an eligible individual meets the standards for spaceflight association for medical monitoring, diagnosis, and treatment under the TREAT Astronauts Act.

U.S. Government Agency means “agency” as defined in 5 U.S.C. 551.


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