[Congressional Bills 105th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 1600 Introduced in House (IH)]







105th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 1600

    To amend the Federal Coal Mine Health and Safety Act of 1969 to 
 establish a presumption of eligibility for disability benefits in the 
 case of certain coal miners who filed claims under part C of such Act 
                between July 1, 1973, and April 1, 1980.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                              May 14, 1997

Mr. Kanjorski introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
                Committee on Education and the Workforce

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
    To amend the Federal Coal Mine Health and Safety Act of 1969 to 
 establish a presumption of eligibility for disability benefits in the 
 case of certain coal miners who filed claims under part C of such Act 
                between July 1, 1973, and April 1, 1980.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. PRESUMPTION OF ELIGIBILITY FOR DISABILITY BENEFITS UNDER THE 
              BLACK LUNG BENEFITS PROGRAM.

    Section 422 of the Federal Coal Mine Health and Safety Act of 1969 
(30 U.S.C. 932) is amended by adding after subsection (l) the following 
new subsection:
    ``(m)(1) Notwithstanding any other law, rule, or regulation, in the 
case of any claim filed under this part between July 1, 1973, and April 
1, 1980, with respect to a miner who has engaged in coal mining 
employment for at least 10 years, such miner shall be presumed to be 
totally disabled due to pneumoconiosis, or to have been totally 
disabled due to pneumoconiosis, or the death of such miner shall be 
presumed to be due to pneumoconiosis, arising out of that employment, 
if any of the following medical requirements is met:
            ``(A) A single positive chest roentgenogram (X-ray), 
        biopsy, or autopsy indicates the existence of pneumoconiosis.
            ``(B) A single set of positive ventiliatory studies 
        indicates the presence of a chronic respiratory or pulmonary 
        disease.
            ``(C) A single set of positive blood gas studies indicates 
        the presence of an impairment in the transfer of oxygen from 
        the lungs to the blood.
            ``(D) Other medical evidence, including the documented 
        opinion of a physician exercising reasonable medical judgment, 
        indicates the presence of totally disabling respiratory 
        impairment.
    ``(2) The presentation of evidence which meets any of the 
requirements under subparagraphs (A) through (D) of paragraph (1) shall 
be sufficient to invoke the presumption under such paragraph.
    ``(3) Nothing in this subsection shall be construed to require 
proof of any such medical requirement by a preponderance of the 
evidence or by any higher evidentiary standard.''.

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