[Congressional Bills 109th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 1199 Introduced in Senate (IS)]







109th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                S. 1199

  To amend title II of the Social Security Act to shorten the waiting 
  period for social security disability benefits for individuals with 
                             mesothelioma.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                              June 8, 2005

   Mr. Burns introduced the following bill; which was read twice and 
                  referred to the Committee on Finance

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
  To amend title II of the Social Security Act to shorten the waiting 
  period for social security disability benefits for individuals with 
                             mesothelioma.

    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 ``Prompt Disability Payment to 
Mesothelioma Victims Act of 2005''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    Congress makes the following findings:
            (1) Mesothelioma is a quickly advancing form of cancer.
            (2) Most cases of mesothelioma arise from exposure to 
        asbestos fibers.
            (3) The National Cancer Institute estimates that in 2002, 
        approximately 2,000 new mesothelioma diagnoses were made in the 
        United States.

SEC. 3. SHORTENED WAITING PERIOD FOR SOCIAL SECURITY DISABILITY 
              BENEFITS FOR INDIVIDUALS WITH MESOTHELIOMA.

    (a) In General.--Section 223(c)(2) of the Social Security Act (42 
U.S.C. 423(c)(2)) is amended--
            (1) in the matter preceding subparagraph (A), by inserting 
        ``(or, in the case of an individual with mesothelioma, 30 
        days)'' after ``months''; and
            (2) in subparagraph (B)--
                    (A) in clause (i), by inserting ``(or, in the case 
                of an individual with mesothelioma, the thirteenth 
                month)'' after ``seventeenth month''; and
                    (B) in clause (ii), by inserting ``(or, in the case 
                of an individual with mesothelioma, such thirteenth 
                month)'' after ``such seventeenth month''.
    (b) Effective Date.--The amendments made by subsection (a) apply to 
applications for disability benefits filed or pending on or after the 
date of enactment of this Act and to any individuals with filed 
applications for such benefits as of that date who are within a waiting 
period on such date.
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