amendments to title i of the social security act

amendments to title i of the social security act Sec. 601. (a) The heading of title I of the Social Security Act is amended to read as follows: “TITLE I— GRANTS TO STATES FOR OLD-AGE ASSISTANCE AND MEDICAL ASSISTANCE FOR THE AGED” (b) Sections 1 and 2 of such Act are amended to read as follows: “appropriation “Section 1. For the purpose (a) of enabling each State as far as practicable under the conditions in such State, to furnish financial assistance to aged needy individuals and of encouraging each State, as far as practicable under such conditions, to help such individuals attain self-care, and (b) of enabling each State, as far as practicable under the conditions in such State, to furnish medical assistance on behalf of aged individuals who are not recipients of old-age assistance but whose income and resources are insufficient to meet the costs of necessary medical services, there is hereby authorized to be appropriated for each fiscal year a sum sufficient to carry out the purposes of this title. The sums made available under this section shall be used for making payments to States which have submitted, and had approved by the Secretary of Health, Education, and Welfare (hereinafter referred to as the ‘Secretary’), State plans for old-age assistance, or for medical assistance for the aged, or for old-age assistance and medical assistance for the aged. “state old-age and medical assistance plans “Sec. 2. (a) A State plan for old-age assistance, or for medical assistance for the aged, or for old-age assistance and medical assistance for the aged must— “(1) provide that it shall be in effect in all political subdivisions of the State, and, if administered by them, be mandatory upon them; “(2) provide for financial participation by the State; “(3) either provide for the establishment or designation of a single State agency to administer the plan, or provide for the establishment or designation of a single State agency to supervise the administration of the plan; 74 Stat. 988 “(4) provide for granting an opportunity for a fair hearing before the State agency to any individual whose claim for assistance under the plan is denied or is not acted upon with reasonable promptness; “(5) provide such methods of administration (including methods relating to the establishment and maintenance of personnel standards on a merit basis, except that the Secretary shall exercise no authority with respect to the selection, tenure of office, and compensation of any individual employed in accordance with such methods) as are found by the Secretary to be necessary for the proper and efficient operation of the plan; “(6) provide that the State agency will make such reports, in such form and containing such information, as the Secretary may from time to time require, and comply with such provisions as the Secretary may from time to time find necessary to assure the correctness and verification of such reports; “(7) provide safeguards which restrict the use or disclosure of information concerning applicants and recipients to purposes directly connected with the administration of the State plan; “(8) provide that all individuals wishing to make application for assistance under the plan shall have opportunity to do so, and that such assistance shall be furnished with reasonable promptness to all eligible individuals; “(9) provide, if the plan includes assistance for or on behalf of individuals in private or public institutions, for the establishment or designation of a State authority or authorities which shall be responsible for establishing and maintaining standards for such institutions; “(10) if the State plan includes old-age assistance— “(A) provide that the State agency shall, in determining need for such assistance, take into consideration any other income and resources of an individual claiming old-age assistance; “(B) include reasonable standards, consistent with the objectives of this title, for determining eligibility for and the extent of such assistance; and “(C) provide a description of the services (if any) which the State agency makes available to applicants for and recipients of such assistance to help them attain self-care, including a description of the steps taken to assure, in the provision of such services, maximum utilization of other agencies providing similar or related services; and “(11) if the State plan includes medical assistance for the aged— “(A) provide for inclusion of some institutional and some noninstitutional care and services; “(B) provide that no enrollment fee, premium, or similar charge will be imposed as a condition of any individual’s eligibility for medical assistance for the aged under the plan; “(C) provide for inclusion, to the extent required by regulations prescribed by the Secretary, of provisions (conforming to such regulations) with respect to the furnishing of such assistance to individuals who are residents of the State but are absent therefrom; 74 Stat. 989 “(D) include reasonable standards, consistent with the objectives of this title, for determining eligibility for and the extent of such assistance; and “(E) provide that no lien may be imposed against the property of any individual prior to his death on account of medical assistance for the aged paid or to be paid on his behalf under the plan (except pursuant to the judgment of a court on account of benefits incorrectly paid on behalf of such individual), and that there shall be no adjustment or recovery (except, after the death of such individual and his surviving spouse, if any, from such individual’s estate) of any medical assistance for the aged correctly paid on behalf of such individual under the plan. “(b) The Secretary shall approve any plan which fulfills the conditions specified in subsection (a), except that he shall not approve any plan which imposes, as a condition of eligibility for assistance under the plan— “(1) an age requirement of more than sixty-five years; or “(2) any residence requirement which (A) in the case of applicants for old-age assistance, excludes any resident of the State who has resided therein five years during the nine years immediately preceding the application for old-age assistance and has resided therein continuously for one year immediately preceding the application, and (B) in the case of applicants for medical assistance for the aged, excludes any individual who resides in the State; or “(3) any citizenship requirement which excludes any citizen of the United States. “(c) Nothing in this title shall be construed to permit a State to have in effect with respect to any period more than one State plan approved under this title.” (c) Section 3(a) of such Act is amended to read as follows: “Sec. 3. (a) From the sums appropriated therefor, the Secretary of the Treasury shall pay to each State which has a plan approved under this title, for each quarter, beginning with the quarter commencing October 1, 1960— “(1) in the case of any State other than Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands, and Guam, an amount equal to the sum of the following proportions of the total amounts expended during such quarter as old-age assistance under the State plan (including expenditures for insurance premiums for medical or any other type of remedial care or the cost thereof)— “(A) four-fifths of such expenditures, not counting so much of any expenditure with respect to any month as exceeds the product of $30 multiplied by the total number of recipients of old-age assistance for such month (which total number, for purposes of this subsection, means (i) the number of individuals who received old-age assistance in the form of money payments for such month, plus (ii) the number of other individuals with respect to whom expenditures were made in such month as old-age assistance in the form of medical or any other type of remedial care); plus “(B) the Federal percentage (as defined in section 1101(a)(8)) of the amount by which such expenditures exceed the maximum which may be counted under clause (A), not counting so much of any expenditure with respect to any month as exceeds the product of $65 multiplied by the total number of such recipients of old-age assistance for such month; plus 74 Stat. 990 “(C) the larger of the following: (i) the Federal medical percentage (as defined in section 6(c)) of the amount by which such expenditures exceed the maximum which may be counted under clause (B), not counting so much of any expenditure with respect to any month as exceeds (I) the product of $77 multiplied by the total number of such recipients of old-age assistance for such month, or (II) if smaller, the total expended as old-age assistance in the form of medical or any other type of remedial care with respect to such month plus the product of $65 multiplied by such total number of such recipients, or (ii) 15 per centum of the total of the sums expended during such quarter as old-age assistance under the State plan in the form of medical or any other type of remedial care, not counting so much of any expenditure with respect to any month as exceeds the product of $12 multiplied by the total number of such recipients of old-age assistance for such month; and “(2) in the case of Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands, and Guam, an amount equal to— “(A) one-half of the total of the sums expended during such quarter as old-age assistance under the State plan (including expenditures for insurance premiums for medical or any other type of remedial care or the cost thereof), not counting so much of any expenditure with respect to any month as exceeds $35 multiplied by the total number of recipients of old-age assistance for such month; plus “(B) the larger of the following amounts: (i) one-half of the amount by which such expenditures exceed the maximum which may be counted under clause (A), not counting so much of any expenditure with respect to any month as exceeds (I) the product of $41 multiplied by the total number of such recipients of old-age assistance for such month, or (II) if smaller, the total expended as old-age assistance in the form of medical or any other type of remedial care with respect to such month plus the product of $35 multiplied by the total number of such recipients, or (ii) 15 per centum of the total of the sums expended during such quarter as old-age assistance under the State plan in the form of medical or any other type of remedial care, not counting so much of any expenditure with respect to any month as exceeds the product of $6 multiplied by the total number of such recipients of old-age assistance for such month; and “(3) in the case of any State, an amount equal to the Federal medical percentage (as defined in section 6(c)) of the total amounts expended during such quarter as medical assistance for the aged under the State plan (including expenditures for insurance premiums for medical or any other type of remedial care or the cost thereof); and “(4) in the case of any State, an amount equal to one-half of the total of the sums expended during such quarter as found necessary by the Secretary of Health, Education, and Welfare for the proper and efficient administration of the State plan, including services which are provided by the staff of the State agency (or of the local agency administering the State plan in the political subdivision) to applicants for and recipients of old-age assistance to help them attain self-care.” (d) Section 3(b)(2)(B) of such Act is amended by striking out “old-age assistance” and inserting in lieu thereof “assistance”. 74 Stat. 991 (e) Section 4 of such Act is amended by striking out “State plan for old-age assistance which has been approved” and inserting in lieu thereof “State plan which has been approved under this title”. (f) (1) Section 6 of such Act is amended by striking out “but does not include” and all that follows and inserting in lieu thereof “but does not include— “(1) any such payments to or care in behalf of any individual who is an inmate of a public institution (except as a patient in a medical institution) or any individual who is a patient in an institution for tuberculosis or mental diseases, or “(2) any such payments to any individual who has been diagnosed as having tuberculosis or psychosis and is a patient in a medical institution as a result thereof, or “(3) any such care in behalf of any individual, who is a patient in a medical institution as a result of a diagnosis that he has tuberculosis or psychosis, with respect to any period after the individual has been a patient in such an institution, as a result of such diagnosis, for forty-two days.” (2) Section 6 is further amended by inserting “(a)” immediately after “Sec. 6.” and by adding after such section 6 the following new subsections: “(b) For purposes of this title, the term ‘medical assistance for the aged’ means payment of part or all of the cost of the following care and services for individuals sixty-five years of age or older who are not recipients of old-age assistance but whose income and resources are insufficient to meet all of such cost— “(1) inpatient hospital services; “(2) skilled nursing-home services; “(3) physicians’ services; “(4) outpatient hospital or clinic services; “(5) home health care services; “(6) private duty nursing services; “(7) physical therapy and related services; “(8) dental services; “(9) laboratory and X-ray services; “(10) prescribed drugs, eyeglasses, dentures, and prosthetic devices; “(11) diagnostic, screening, and preventive services; and “(12) any other medical care or remedial care recognized under State law; except that such term does not include any such payments with respect to— “(A) care or services for any individual who is an inmate of a public institution (except as a patient in a medical institution) or any individual who is a patient in an institution for tuberculosis or mental diseases; or “(B) care or services for any individual, who is a patient in a medical institution as a result of a diagnosis of tuberculosis or psychosis, with respect to any period after the individual has been a patient in such an institution, as a result of such diagnosis, for forty-two days. “(c) For purposes of this title, the term ‘Federal medical percentage’ for any State shall be 100 per centum less the State percentage; and the State percentage shall be that percentage which bears the same ratio to 50 per centum as the square of the per capita income of such State bears to the square of the per capita income of the continental United States (including Alaska) and Hawaii; except that (i) the Federal medical percentage shall in no case be less than 50 per centum or more than 80 per centum, and (ii) the Federal medical per-74 Stat. 992 centage for Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands, and Guam shall be 50 per centum. The Federal medical percentage for any State shall be determined and promulgated in accordance with the provisions of subparagraph (B) of section 1101(a)(8) (other than the proviso at the end thereof); except that the Secretary shall, as soon as possible after enactment of the Social Security Amendments of 1960, determine and promulgate the Federal medical percentage for each State— “(1) for the period beginning October 1, 1960, and ending with the close of June 30, 1961, which promulgation shall be based on the same data with respect to per capita income as the data used by the Secretary in promulgating the Federal percentage (under section 1101(a)(8)) for such State for the fiscal year ending June 30, 1961 (which promulgation of the Federal medical percentage shall be conclusive for such period), and “(2) for the period beginning July 1, 1961, and ending with the close of June 30, 1963, which promulgation shall be based on the same data with respect to per capita income as the data used by the Secretary in promulgating the Federal percentage (under section 1101(a)(8)) for such State for such period (which promulgation of the Federal medical percentage shall be conclusive for such period).”