Widows of Wartime Veterans Assistance Act

Widows of Wartime Veterans Assistance Act - Increases the maximum annual rates of pensions for surviving spouses of veterans of a period of war. Amends the Social Security Act to require such rate increases to be disregarded for purposes of Medicaid (title XIX) eligibility.

[Congressional Bills 107th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 1648 Introduced in Senate (IS)]







107th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                S. 1648

 To amend title 38, United States Code, to provide an increase in the 
    maximum annual rates of pension payable to surviving spouses of 
          veterans of a period of war, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                            November 7, 2001

 Mrs. Lincoln introduced the following bill; which was read twice and 
             referred to the Committee on Veterans' Affairs

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
 To amend title 38, United States Code, to provide an increase in the 
    maximum annual rates of pension payable to surviving spouses of 
          veterans of a period of war, 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.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Widows of Wartime Veterans 
Assistance Act''.

SEC. 2. INCREASE IN MAXIMUM ANNUAL RATES OF PENSION FOR SURVIVING 
              SPOUSES OF VETERANS OF A PERIOD OF WAR.

    (a) Increase.--Section 1541 of title 38, United States Code, is 
amended--
            (1) in subsection (a), by striking ``as increased'' and 
        inserting ``as increased under subsection (f), and as further 
        increased'';
            (2) by redesignating subsections (f), (g), and (h) as 
        subsections (g), (h), and (i), respectively; and
            (3) by inserting after subsection (e) the following new 
        subsection (f):
    ``(f) Effective for months after November of the year of the 
enactment of this subsection, the annual rate of pension payable to a 
surviving spouse under subsection (b), the first sentence of subsection 
(c), subsection (d)(1), the first sentence of subsection (d)(2), or the 
first sentence of subsection (e)(1) shall be increased by the amount 
equal to poverty line (as that term is defined in section 673(2) of the 
Community Services Block Grant Act (42 U.S.C. 9902(2)) for the year for 
a 1-person family unit in the 48 contiguous States and the District of 
Columbia minus the annual rate of pension provided for under subsection 
(b), in November of the year, as that amount is increased from time to 
time under section 5312 of this title.''.
    (b) Annual Adjustment in Amount of Increase.--(1) Section 5312(a) 
of that title is amended--
            (A) by striking ``1541,'' and inserting ``1541 (including 
        the amount of the increase in annual rates of pension provided 
        for under subsection (f) of that section),''; and
            (B) by striking ``such rates'' and inserting ``such rates 
        and amount''.
    (2) The amendments made by paragraph (1) shall take effect on the 
date of the enactment of this Act.
    (3) The first adjustment under section 5312(a) of title 38, United 
States Code (as amended by paragraph (1)), in the amount of the 
increase of annual rates of pension under section 1541(f) of that 
title, as amended by subsection (a), shall occur in the year following 
the year of the enactment of this Act.
    (c) Disregard of Increased Amount for Purposes of Medicaid 
Eligibility.--Section 1902(r)(1) of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 
1396a(r)(1)) is amended by adding at the end the following new 
subparagraph:
    ``(C) In the case of a surviving spouse of a veteran who receives a 
monthly pension under section 1541 of title 38, United States Code, the 
increase in the annual rate of pension payable to such spouse provided 
for under subsection (f) of that section, including any annual 
adjustments of the annual rate of pension under such subsection (f), 
shall be disregarded for purposes of determining such spouse's 
eligibility for medical assistance under the State plan under this 
title.''.
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