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106th Congress: Bills Supported by the National Committee

Review these bills to see if your members of Congress are cosponsors. If not, write or call them and urge them to add their names and support to these measures. Click on the number for each bill to find its current status. Each bill is linked directly to the Library of Congress's legislative database. You can find the phone numbers and office addresses for your lawmakers at the NCPSSM's website's Congress Watch section.

S. 279/H.R. 519, Senior Citizens Freedom to Work Act, by Sen. John McCain (R-AZ)/Rep. Ben Gilman (R-NY). Would eliminate the Social Security earnings limitation. Under current law, seniors aged 65 to 69 earning over the limit will lose one dollar for every three dollars in wages. Passed by Congress and signed into law on April 7, 2000. The earnings limit repeal is now P.L. 106-182.

S. 286, Senior Citizens' Equity Act, by Sen. McCain (R-AZ)/
H.R. 4865, The Social Security Benefits Tax Repeal Act, by Rep. Archer (R-TX). Repeals the inequitable tax increase on Social Security benefits enacted as part of the 1993 Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act. Would gradually phase out by the year 2001 the tax increase from 85 percent to 50 percent for individual beneficiaries with income above $34,000 or for couples with income above $44,000. H.R. 4865 passed in the House and was placed on the Senate calendar and referred to the Finance Committee.

S. 335, Deceptive Mail Prevention and Enforcement Act, by Rep. Susan Collins (R-ME). Imposes strict financial penalties and tougher enforcement against those who engage in mailing intended to deceive consumers into making excessive or unnecessary purchases. Adopted in the Senate by unanimous vote; Amended and passed in the House; Signed by the President - P.L. 106-168.

S. 472/ H.R. 1837, Medicare Rehabilitation Benefit Improvement Act, by Sens. Charles Grassley (R-IA) and Harry Reid (D-NV)/ Reps. Richard Burr (R-NC) and Ben Cardin (D-MD). To amend the Balance Budget Act of 1997 to relax certain financial limitations on therapy services covered under Medicare Part B. Referred to the Senate Finance Committee/ Referred to the House Ways and Means Committee and the House Commerce Committee. Provisions included in H.R. 3075, the Medicare Balanced Budget Improvement Act of 1999 which was passed and signed into law.

S. 960, Pension Assistance and Counseling Act of 1999, by Sens. Charles Grassley (R-IA) and John Breaux (D-LA), to authorize permanent status of pension counseling programs within the Older Americans Act. Provisions included in which was approved by the Senated Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions. Awaiting Senate Floor Action

S. 1300, Older Workers Pension Protection Act of 1999, by Sen. Tom Harkin (D-IA). Would require that in the instance of employer conversions of traditional defined benefit pension plans to cash balance plans, employees be permitted to retain the precise annuity level accrued at the time of conversion, plus any future accruals under the new cash balance plan. Referred to the Senate Finance Committee.

S. 2232/H.R. 3887,Medicare Wellness Act of 2000, by Sen. Bob Graham, (D-FL)/Rep. Sander Levin (D-MI). To promote good health and prevent disease among the elderly by adding preventive health care benefits to the Medicare program. Referred to Senate Finance Committee.

S. 2225/H.R. 3872, , Long-term Care and Retirement Security Act of 2000 , 2000 by Sens. Charles Grassley (R-IA) and Graham (D-FL) and Reps Nancy Johnson (R-CT) and Karen Thurman (D-FL). To amend the Internal Revenue Code to allow individuals a deduction for qualified long-term care insurance premiums, use of such insurance under cafeteria plans and flexible spending arrangements, and a credit for individuals with long-term care needs. Referred to the Senate Finance Committee and the House Ways and Means Committee.

H.Res 93, by Rep. Jerrold Nadler (D-NY). ). "Sense of the House of Representatives" resolution regarding the strength of the Social Security system to meet the challenges of the next century, Expresses sense of the House that current problems facing Social Security are manageable and that hastily conceived and radical solutions, such as utilizing Social Security system resources to fund private individual accounts, are not necessary to ensure financial solvency of the system and should be rejected. Referred to the House Committee on Ways and Means

H.R. 491, Medicare+Choice Improvement Act of 1999, by Rep. Pete Stark (D-CA). Would permit immediate enrollment in any Medigap Plan or any Medicare+Choice plan for Medicare beneficiaries affected by a managed care plan's withdrawal from Medicare. Would also clarify that federal law does not pre-empt state laws requiring comprehensive drug coverage in plans, and would prohibit cold-calling by those who market Medicare+Choice plans. Referred to the House Committee on Ways and Means and the House Committee on Commerce.

H.R. 664/S. 731, Prescription Drug Fairness for Seniors Act of 1999, by Rep. Tom Allen (D-ME) and Sen. Edward Kennedy (D-MA). Would provide access to discounted prescription drugs for Medicare beneficiaries and the pharmacies that serve them by allowing them to purchase at the prices provided to other federal health plans under the federal supply schedule. Referred to the House Committee on Commerce and the House Committee on Ways and Means, and also the Senate Committee on Finance.

H.R. 745, Medicare Substitute Adult Day Care Services Act of 1999,by Pete Stark (D-CA). Would establish Medicare access to nursing, therapeutic, and dietetic services in a home or in a congregate setting. Referred to the House Committee on Ways and Means and the House Committee on Commerce.

H.R. 773, Older Americans Act Reauthorization of 1999, by Reps. Peter DeFazio (D-OR) and Jo Ann Emerson (R-MO). Would extend budget authority for Older Americans Act programs through 2002 as consistent with current law. Referred to the House Committee on Education and the Workforce.

H.R. 958, by Rep. Gerald Kleczka (D-WI), to restore the non-applicability of private contracts for the provision of Medicare benefits. Would repeal the Kyl private contracting provisions enacted in the Balance Budget Act. Pending before the House Commerce Committee and the House Committee on Ways and Means.

H.R. 1111, Federal Civilian and Uniformed Services Long-Term Care Insurance Act of 1999, by Rep. Constance Morella (R-MD), to make long-term care insurance available at group rates to federal, military and foreign service employees and retirees. Referred to the House Committee on Government Reform and the House Committee on Armed Services.

H.R. 1180/S. 331, Work Incentives Improvement Act, by Rep. Rick Lazio (R-NY) and Sen. James Jeffords (R-VT). To permit continuing Medicare and Medicaid coverage to disabled individuals who return to work. Bill would extend Medicare coverage time and allow for Medicaid buy-ins for such individuals. Passed in the House and Senate. Signed by the President. Public Law 106-170.

H.R. 1187, Medicare Medical Nutrition Therapy Act of 1999, by Rep. Nancy Johnson (R-CT). Would provide Medicare coverage for medical nutrition therapy. Referred to the House Committee on Ways and Mean and the House Commerce Committees.

H.R. 1217/S. 717, Government Pension Offset Reform, by Rep. William Jefferson (D-LA) and Sen. Barbara Mikulski (D-MD). Eliminates the Government Pension Offset for combined benefits up to $1,200 per month. The two-thirds offset would only apply beyond this threshold, which in subsequent years would be indexed for inflation. Referred to the House Committee on Ways and Means and the Senate Finance Committee.

H.R. 1422, Consumer Price Index for Elderly Consumers Act, by Reps. Bernard Sanders (I-VT) and Robert Ney (R-OH), to require the establishment of a new Consumer Price Index for Elderly Consumers to compute cost-of-living increases for Social Security and Medicare benefits. Referred to the House Committee on Ways and Means.

H.R. 2102, Long Term Care and Retirement Security Act of 1999, by Rep. Nancy Johnson (R-CT). Would make certain long-term care insurance premiums fully tax deductible. Referred to the House Committee on Ways and Means and the House Committee on Commerce.

H.R. 2590, The Older Americans Protection Against Violence Act , by Rep. Carolyn Maloney (D-NY). To reauthorize and expand Title VII Vulnerable Elder Rights provisions of the Older Americans Act, to amend the Violence Against Women Act and to otherwise expand and strengthen federal efforts to assist senior crime victims, and to prevent crimes which target seniors - particularly crimes which target older women. Referred to the House Committee on Education and the Workforce, Committee on Banking and Financial Services, Committee on Commerce, and Committee on the Judiciary.

H.R. 4614, The Nursing Staff Accountability and Training Improvement Act of 2000 , by Rep. Peter Stark (D-CA). Would require skilled nursing facilities to submit data to the Secretary of Health and Human Services with respect to nursing staff levels of facility, and require posting of staffing information by facilities and the Secretary. Would also require assessments of the adequacy of training requirements for certified nurse aides and to provide grants to improve the quality of care in nursing facilities. Referred to the House Committees on Commerce and Ways and Means.

Updated September, 2000