5 U.S.C. § 5371: Health care positions

(a) For the purposes of this section, “health care” means direct patient-care services or services incident to direct patient-care services. (b) The Office of Personnel Management may, with respect to any employee described in subsection (c), provide that 1 or more provisions of chapter 74 of title 38 shall apply—(1) in lieu of any provision of chapter 51 or 61, subchapter V of chapter 55, or any other provision of this chapter; or (2) notwithstanding any lack of specific authority for a matter with respect to which chapter 51 or 61, subchapter V of chapter 55, or this chapter, relates. (c) Authority under subsection (b) may be exercised with respect to any employee holding a position—(1) to which chapter 51 applies, excluding any Senior Executive Service position and any position in the Federal Bureau of Investigation and Drug Enforcement Administration Senior Executive Service; and (2) which involves health care responsibilities.