[Congressional Record Volume 166, Number 203 (Wednesday, December 2, 2020)]
[Senate]
[Pages S7173-S7174]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




              ALS DISABILITY INSURANCE ACCESS ACT OF 2019

  Mr. GRASSLEY. Mr. President, I have an amendment to offset the costs 
to the Social Security's disability insurance trust fund associated 
with S. 578. Eventhough my amendment did not gain the 60 vote 
threshold, I want my colleagues to know that you just can't tap into 
the Social Security disability trust funds without dire future 
consequences.

[[Page S7174]]

  S. 578 waives a waiting period in the disability program for the 
compelling case of patients with ALS.
  There are, of course, other compelling cases.
  And we have to be mindful of the disability trust fund which will 
eventually face depletion.
  As the Consortium for Citizens with Disabilities, which is an 
umbrella organization representing advocates for a number of disabling 
conditions, puts it:

       ``Bills that only fix the problem for some people who meet 
     the strict eligibility standards for SSDI are likely to lead 
     to interest groups requesting waiver of wait periods for 
     other impairments.''

  So it is likely that Congress will see more requests for waivers of 
waiting periods for those afflicted with disabilities arising from 
conditions other than ALS.
  Waiting periods in the disability insurance program were put into law 
for various policy reasons.
  When we waive waiting periods for specific conditions, some of which 
are terribly disabling and even fatal, we change the nature of the 
disability program.
  We change benefits and don't have any offsetting change to the tax 
that funds the disability insurance trust fund or any offsetting change 
to other benefits.
  However compelling it is to waive waiting periods, whenever we do it, 
we accelerate the exhaustion of the disability trust fund.
  And that affects people with all forms of disability.
  In order to help make Social Security combined disability and 
retirement trust funds whole, my amendment would offset the cost of the 
ALS bill.
  My amendment simply changes the minimum monthly withholding threshold 
for recovery of any overpayment of Social Security benefits to reflect 
the increase in benefits we have seen since SSA established the current 
minimum of $10 in 1960.
  My amendment simply changes the threshold amount from $10 to 10 
percent of the monthly benefit payable, as is already done in the SSI 
program.
  With this change, SSA would recover overpayments more efficiently and 
better fulfill its stewardship obligations to Social Security's trust 
funds, while retaining safeguards for beneficiaries surrounding 
overpayments.
  Guardrails to protect beneficiaries to ensure that collections don't 
create hardships are maintained.
  Nothing in my amendment leads to benefit cuts of even a penny that a 
retiree or disabled worker has earned.
  This policy is something that has been in numerous budgets of the 
President, including President Obama and now President Trump.
  I urge my colleagues to support my amendment, to ensure that we 
protect the integrity of Social Security's trust funds while also 
protecting beneficiaries.

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