[Congressional Bills 106th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 737 Introduced in Senate (IS)]







106th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                 S. 737

 To amend title XIX of the Social Security Act to provide States with 
 options for providing family planning services and supplies to women 
      eligible for medical assistance under the Medicaid Program.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                             March 25, 1999

 Mr. Chafee (for himself and Mrs. Feinstein) introduced the following 
  bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Finance

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
 To amend title XIX of the Social Security Act to provide States with 
 options for providing family planning services and supplies to women 
      eligible for medical assistance under the Medicaid Program.

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

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Family Planning State Flexibility 
Act of 1999''.

SEC. 2. STATE OPTION TO PROVIDE FAMILY PLANNING SERVICES AND SUPPLIES 
              TO WOMEN WITH INCOMES THAT DO NOT EXCEED A STATE'S INCOME 
              ELIGIBILITY LEVEL FOR MEDICAL ASSISTANCE.

    (a) In General.--Title XIX of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 
1396 et seq.) is amended--
            (1) by redesignating section 1935 as section 1936; and
            (2) by inserting after section 1934 the following:

  ``state option to provide family planning services and supplies to 
                             certain women

    ``Sec. 1935. (a) In General.--Subject to subsections (b) and (c), a 
State may elect (through a State plan amendment) to make medical 
assistance described in section 1905(a)(4)(C) available to any woman 
whose family income does not exceed the greater of--
            ``(1) 185 percent of the income official poverty line (as 
        defined by the Office of Management and Budget, and revised 
        annually in accordance with section 673(2) of the Omnibus 
        Budget Reconciliation Act of 1981) applicable to a family of 
        the size involved; or
            ``(2) the eligibility income level (expressed as a percent 
        of such poverty line) that has been specified under a waiver 
        authorized by the Secretary or under section 1902(r)(2)), as of 
        October 1, 1999, for a woman to be eligible for medical 
        assistance under the State plan.
    ``(b) Comparability.--Medical assistance described in section 
1905(a)(4)(C) that is made available under a State plan amendment under 
subsection (a) shall not be less in amount, duration, or scope than the 
medical assistance described in that section that is made available to 
any other individual under the State plan.
    ``(c) Maintenance of Effort.--No payment shall be made under 
section 1903(a)(5) for medical assistance made available under a State 
plan amendment under subsection (a) unless the State demonstrates to 
the satisfaction of the Secretary that, with respect to a fiscal year, 
the State share of funds expended for such fiscal year for all 
Federally funded programs under which the State provides or makes 
available family planning services is not less than the level of the 
State share expended for such programs during fiscal year 2000.
    ``(d) Option To Extend Coverage During a Post-Eligibility Period.--
            ``(1) Initial period.--A State plan amendment made under 
        subsection (a) may provide that any woman who was receiving 
        medical assistance described in section 1905(a)(4)(C) as a 
        result of such amendment, and who becomes ineligible for such 
        assistance because of hours of, or income from, employment, may 
        remain eligible for such medical assistance through the end of 
        the 6-month period that begins on the first day she becomes so 
        ineligible.
            ``(2) Additional extension.--A State plan amendment made 
        under subsection (a) may provide that any women who has 
        received medical assistance described in section 1905(a)(4)(C) 
        during the entire 6-month period described in paragraph (1) may 
        be extended coverage for such assistance for a succeeding 6-
        month period.''.
    (b) Effective Date.--The amendments made by subsection (a) apply to 
medical assistance provided on and after October 1, 1999.

SEC. 3. STATE OPTION TO EXTEND THE POSTPARTUM PERIOD FOR PROVISION OF 
              FAMILY PLANNING SERVICES AND SUPPLIES.

    (a) In General.--Section 1902(e)(5) of the Social Security Act (42 
U.S.C. 1396a(e)(5)) is amended--
            (1) by striking ``eligible under the plan, as though'' and 
        inserting ``eligible under the plan--
            ``(A) as though'';
            (2) by striking the period and inserting ``; and''; and
            (3) by adding at the end the following:
            ``(B) for medical assistance described in section 
        1905(a)(4)(C) for so long as the family income of such woman 
        does not exceed the maximum income level established by the 
        State for the woman to be eligible for medical assistance under 
        the State plan (as a result of pregnancy or otherwise).''.
    (b) Effective Date.--The amendments made by subsection (a) apply to 
medical assistance provided on and after October 1, 1999.
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