[Congressional Bills 105th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 2564 Placed on Calendar Senate (PCS)]






                                                       Calendar No. 706
105th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                S. 2564

 To provide for compassionate payments with regard to individuals with 
  blood-clotting disorders, such as hemophilia, who contracted human 
  immunodeficiency virus due to contaminated blood products, and for 
                            other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

              October 7 (legislative day, October 2), 1998

Mr. Jeffords, from the Committee on Labor and Human Resources, reported 
  the following original bill; which was read twice and placed on the 
                                calendar

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
 To provide for compassionate payments with regard to individuals with 
  blood-clotting disorders, such as hemophilia, who contracted human 
  immunodeficiency virus due to contaminated blood products, and for 
                            other purposes.

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

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS.

    (a) Short Title.--This Act may be cited as the ``Ricky Ray 
Hemophilia Relief Fund Act of 1998''.
    (b) Table of Contents.--The table of contents of this Act is as 
follows:

Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents.
                    TITLE I--HEMOPHILIA RELIEF FUND

Sec. 101. Ricky Ray Hemophilia Relief Fund.
Sec. 102. Compassionate payment.
Sec. 103. Determination and payment.
Sec. 104. Limitation on transfer of rights and number of petitions.
Sec. 105. Time limitation.
Sec. 106. Certain claims not affected by payment.
Sec. 107. Limitation on agent and attorney fees.
Sec. 108. Definitions.
     TITLE II--TREATMENT OF CERTAIN PRIVATE SETTLEMENT PAYMENTS IN 
  HEMOPHILIA-CLOTTING-FACTOR SUIT UNDER THE MEDICAID AND SSI PROGRAMS

Sec. 201. Treatment of certain private settlement payments in 
                            hemophilia-clotting-factor suit under the 
                            Medicaid and SSI programs.

                    TITLE I--HEMOPHILIA RELIEF FUND

SEC. 101. RICKY RAY HEMOPHILIA RELIEF FUND.

    (a) Establishment.--There is established in the Treasury of the 
United States a trust fund to be known as the ``Ricky Ray Hemophilia 
Relief Fund'', which shall be administered by the Secretary of the 
Treasury.
    (b) Investment of Amounts in Fund.--Amounts in the Fund shall be 
invested in accordance with section 9702 of title 31, United States 
Code, and any interest on and proceeds from any such investment shall 
be credited to and become part of the Fund.
    (c) Availability of Fund.--Amounts in the Fund shall be available 
only for disbursement by the Secretary of Health and Human Services 
under section 103.
    (d) Termination.--The Fund shall terminate upon the expiration of 
the 5-year period beginning on the date of the enactment of this Act. 
If all of the amounts in the Fund have not been expended by the end of 
the 5-year period, investments of amounts in the Fund shall be 
liquidated, the receipts of such liquidation shall be deposited in the 
Fund, and all funds remaining in the Fund shall be deposited in the 
miscellaneous receipts account in the Treasury of the United States.
    (e) Authorization of Appropriations.--There is authorized to be 
appropriated to the Fund to carry out this title $1,771,400,000.

SEC. 102. COMPASSIONATE PAYMENT.

    (a) Eligible Individuals.--
            (1) In general.--If the conditions described in subsection 
        (b) are met and if there are sufficient amounts in the Fund to 
        make the payment involved, the Secretary shall make a single 
        payment of $100,000 from the Fund to any individual--
                    (A) who--
                            (i) has an HIV infection; or
                            (ii) is diagnosed with AIDS; and
                    (B) who is described in paragraph (2).
            (2) Requirement.--An individual described in this paragraph 
        is any of the following individuals:
                    (A) An individual who--
                            (i) has any form of blood-clotting 
                        disorder, such as hemophilia, and was treated 
                        with antihemophilic factor at any time during 
                        the period beginning on July 1, 1982, and 
                        ending on December 31, 1987; or
                            (ii) was treated with HIV contaminated 
                        blood transfusion, HIV contaminated blood 
                        components, or HIV contaminated human tissue 
                        during the period beginning on January 1, 1982, 
                        and ending on March 31, 1985.
                    (B) An individual who--
                            (i) is the lawful spouse of an individual 
                        described in subparagraph (A); or
                            (ii) is the former lawful spouse of an 
                        individual described in subparagraph (A) and 
                        was the lawful spouse of the individual at any 
                        time after a date, within the applicable period 
                        described in such subparagraph, on which the 
                        individual was treated as described in such 
                        paragraph and through medical documentation can 
                        assert reasonable certainty of transmission of 
                        HIV from the individual described in such 
                        subparagraph.
                    (C) The individual acquired the HIV infection 
                through perinatal transmission from a parent who is an 
                individual described in subparagraph (A) or (B).
    (b) Conditions.--The conditions described in this subsection are, 
with respect to an individual, as follows:
            (1) Submission of medical documentation.--The individual 
        submits to the Secretary written medical documentation that--
                    (A) the individual has (or had) an HIV infection; 
                and
                    (B)(i) in the case of an individual described in 
                subsection (a)(2)(A)(i), that the individual has (or 
                had) a blood-clotting disorder, such as hemophilia, and 
                was treated as described in such section; and
                    (ii) in the case of an individual described in 
                subsection (a)(2)(A)(ii), the individual was treated 
                with HIV contaminated blood transfusion, HIV 
                contaminated blood components, or HIV contaminated 
                human tissue provided by a medical professional during 
                the period described in such subsection.
            (2) Petition.--A petition for the payment is filed with the 
        Secretary by or on behalf of the individual.
            (3) Determination.--The Secretary determines, in accordance 
        with section 103(b), that the petition meets the requirements 
        of this title.

SEC. 103. DETERMINATION AND PAYMENT.

    (a) Establishment of Filing Procedures.--The Secretary of Health 
and Human Services shall establish procedures under which individuals 
may submit petitions for payment under this title.
    (b) Determination.--For each petition filed under this title, the 
Secretary shall determine whether the petition meets the requirements 
of this title.
    (c) Payment.--
            (1) Order of payments.--
                    (A) General rule.--Except as provided in this 
                paragraph, to the extent there are sufficient amounts 
                in the Fund to cover each payment, the Secretary shall 
                pay, from the Fund, each petition that the Secretary 
                determines meets the requirements of this title in the 
                order received.
                    (B) Priority payment.--During the 180 day period 
                beginning on the date on which the Secretary begins 
                accepting petitions under this title, the Secretary 
                shall only make payments to individuals described in 
                section 102(a)(2)(A)(i).
                    (C) Other payments.--Upon the expiration of the 
                period described in subparagraph (B), the Secretary 
                shall make payments under this title as provided for in 
                subparagraph (A).
            (2) Payments in case of deceased individuals.--
                    (A) In general.--In the case of an individual 
                referred to in section 102(a)(1)(A)(ii) who is deceased 
                at the time that payment is made under this section on 
                a petition filed by or on behalf of the individual, the 
                payment shall be made as follows:
                            (i) If the individual is survived by a 
                        spouse who is living at the time of payment, 
                        the payment shall be made to such surviving 
                        spouse.
                            (ii) If the individual is not survived by a 
                        spouse described in clause (i), the payment 
                        shall be made in equal shares to all children 
                        of the individual who are living at the time of 
                        the payment.
                            (iii) If the individual is not survived by 
                        a person described in clause (i) or (ii), the 
                        payment shall be made in equal shares to the 
                        parents of the individual who are living at the 
                        time of payment.
                            (iv) If the individual is not survived by a 
                        person described in clause (i), (ii), or (iii), 
                        the payment shall revert back to the Fund.
                    (B) Filing of petition by survivor.--If an 
                individual eligible for payment under section 102(a) 
                dies before filing a petition under this title, a 
                survivor of the individual may file a petition for 
                payment under this title on behalf of the individual if 
                the survivor may receive payment under subparagraph 
                (A).
                    (C) Definitions.--For purposes of this paragraph:
                            (i) The term ``spouse'' means an individual 
                        who was lawfully married to the relevant 
                        individual at the time of death.
                            (ii) The term ``child'' includes a 
                        recognized natural child, a stepchild who lived 
                        with the relevant individual in a regular 
                        parent-child relationship, and an adopted 
                        child.
                            (iii) The term ``parent'' includes fathers 
                        and mothers through adoption.
            (3) Timing of payment.--The Secretary may not make a 
        payment on a petition under this title before the expiration of 
        the 120-day period beginning on the date of the enactment of 
        this Act or after the expiration of the 5-year period beginning 
        on the date of the enactment of this Act.
    (d) Action on Petitions.--
            (1) In general.--The Secretary shall complete the 
        determination required by subsection (b) regarding a petition 
        not later than 120 days after the date the petition is filed 
        under this title.
            (2) Petitions by certain individuals.--In the case of a 
        petition filed by an individual described in section 
        102(a)(2)(A)(ii), the Secretary may not make a payment on such 
        petition prior to the expiration of the period described in 
        subsection (c)(1)(B).
    (e) Humanitarian Nature of Payment.--This Act does not create or 
admit any claim of or on behalf of the individual against the United 
States or against any officer, employee, or agent thereof acting within 
the scope of employment or agency that relate to an HIV infection 
arising from treatment described in section 102(a)(2). A payment under 
this Act shall, however, when accepted by or on behalf of the 
individual, be in full satisfaction of all such claims by or on behalf 
of that individual.
    (f) Administrative Costs Not Paid From Fund.--No costs incurred by 
the Secretary in carrying out this title may be paid from the Fund or 
set off against, or otherwise deducted from, any payment made under 
subsection (c)(1).
    (g) Termination of Duties of Secretary.--The duties of the 
Secretary under this section shall cease when the Fund terminates.
    (h) Treatment of Payments Under Other Laws.--A payment under 
subsection (c)(1) to an individual--
            (1) shall be treated for purposes of the Internal Revenue 
        Code of 1986 as damages described in section 104(a)(2) of such 
        Code;
            (2) shall not be included as income or resources for 
        purposes of determining the eligibility of the individual to 
        receive benefits described in section 3803(c)(2)(C) of title 
        31, United States Code, or the amount of such benefits, and 
        such benefits shall not be secondary to, conditioned upon 
        reimbursement from, or subject to any reduction because of 
        receipt of, any such payment; and
            (3) shall not be treated as a third party payment or 
        payment in relation to a legal liability with respect to such 
        benefits and shall not be subject (whether by subrogation or 
        otherwise) to recovery, recoupment, reimbursement, or 
        collection with respect to such benefits (including the Federal 
        or State governments or any entity that provides such benefits 
        under a contract).
    (i) Regulatory Authority.--The Secretary may issue regulations 
necessary to carry out this title.
    (j) Time of Issuance of Procedures.--The Secretary shall, through 
the promulgation of appropriate regulations, guidelines, or otherwise, 
first establish the procedures to carry out this title not later than 
120 days after the date of the enactment of this Act.

SEC. 104. LIMITATION ON TRANSFER OF RIGHTS AND NUMBER OF PETITIONS.

    (a) Rights Not Assignable or Transferable.--Any right under this 
title shall not be assignable or transferable.
    (b) 1 Petition With Respect to Each Victim.--With respect to each 
individual described in subparagraph (A), (B), or (C) of section 
102(a)(2), the Secretary may not make payment with respect to more than 
1 petition filed in respect to an individual.

SEC. 105. TIME LIMITATION.

    The Secretary may not make any payment with respect to any petition 
filed under this title unless the petition is filed within 3 years 
after the date of the enactment of this Act.

SEC. 106. CERTAIN CLAIMS NOT AFFECTED BY PAYMENT.

    A payment made under section 103(c)(1) shall not be considered as 
any form of compensation, or reimbursement for a loss, for purposes of 
imposing liability on the individual receiving the payment, on the 
basis of such receipt, to repay any insurance carrier for insurance 
payments or to repay any person on account of worker's compensation 
payments. A payment under this title shall not affect any claim against 
an insurance carrier with respect to insurance or against any person 
with respect to worker's compensation.

SEC. 107. LIMITATION ON AGENT AND ATTORNEY FEES.

    Notwithstanding any contract, the representative of an individual 
may not receive, for services rendered in connection with the petition 
of an individual under this title, more than 5 percent of a payment 
made under this title on the petition. Any such representative who 
violates this section shall be fined not more than $50,000.

SEC. 108. DEFINITIONS.

    For purposes of this title:
            (1) The term ``AIDS'' means acquired immune deficiency 
        syndrome.
            (2) The term ``Fund'' means the Ricky Ray Hemophilia Relief 
        Fund.
            (3) The term ``HIV'' means human immunodeficiency virus.
            (4) Unless otherwise provided, the term ``Secretary'' means 
        Secretary of Health and Human Services.

 TITLE II--TREATMENT OF CERTAIN PAYMENTS IN HEMOPHILIA-CLOTTING-FACTOR 
                       SUIT UNDER THE SSI PROGRAM

SEC. 201. TREATMENT OF CERTAIN PAYMENTS IN HEMOPHILIA-CLOTTING-FACTOR 
              SUIT UNDER THE MEDICAID AND SSI PROGRAMS.

    (a) Private Payments.--
            (1) In general.--Notwithstanding any other provision of 
        law, the payments described in paragraph (2) shall not be 
        considered income or resources in determining eligibility for, 
        or the amount of--
                    (A) medical assistance under title XIX of the 
                Social Security Act, or
                    (B) supplemental security income benefits under 
                title XVI of the Social Security Act.
            (2) Private payments described.--The payments described in 
        this subsection are--
                    (A) payments made from any fund established 
                pursuant to a class settlement in the case of Susan 
                Walker v. Bayer Corporation, et al., 96-C-5024 (N.D. 
                Ill.); and
                    (B) payments made pursuant to a release of all 
                claims in a case--
                            (i) that is entered into in lieu of the 
                        class settlement referred to in subparagraph 
                        (A); and
                            (ii) that is signed by all affected parties 
                        in such case on or before the later of--
                                    (I) December 31, 1997, or
                                    (II) the date that is 270 days 
                                after the date on which such release is 
                                first sent to the persons (or the legal 
                                representative of such persons) to whom 
                                the payment is to be made.
    (b) Government Payments.--
            (1) In general.--Notwithstanding any other provision of 
        law, the payments described in paragraph (2) shall not be 
        considered income or resources in determining eligibility for, 
        or the amount of supplemental security income benefits under 
        title XVI of the Social Security Act.
            (2) Government payments described.--The payments described 
        in this subsection are payments made from the fund established 
        pursuant to section 101 of this Act.
                                     





                                                       Calendar No. 706

105th CONGRESS

  2d Session

                                S. 2564

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL

 To provide for compassionate payments with regard to individuals with 
  blood-clotting disorders, such as hemophilia, who contracted human 
  immunodeficiency virus due to contaminated blood products, and for 
                            other purposes.

_______________________________________________________________________

              October 7 (legislative day, October 2), 1998

                 Read twice and placed on the calendar