Social Security Amendments

Social Security Amendments - Title I: Old Age, Survivors and Disability Insurance - Increases the minimum primary OASDI insurance amount to $120 per month.

Provides an alternative primary insurance amount, equal to $8 multiplied by the number of years up to 25 that a person has worked under social security and had covered earnings equal to the amounts specified.

Increases the social security tax and benefit base to $15,000 a year.

Increases the exempt amount under the social security earnings test to $3,000 a year ($250 per month).

Provides for automatic increases in the exempt amount in direct proportion to the rise in average wages taxed for social security purposes.

Increases the lump-sum death payment to the smaller of four times the primary insurance amount or 150 percent of the maximum primary insurance amount shown in the benefit table in effect at the time the worker died.

Lowers the retirement age for men to 62 with full benefits and to 60 with actuarially reduced benefits.

Provides that widow's and widower's benefits shall be paid to a widow or widower if that person's spouse died while receiving benefits and the survivor was at least 50 at the time of the spouse's death.

Provides that benefits for disabled widows and widowers shall be paid without regard to their age.

States that a widow shall be eligible for widow's benefits at age 55, provided that her husband is insured by social security, even if he has not begun receiving benefits at the time of his death.

Reinstates full monthly benefits to a social security recipient who elects to receive reduced benefits.

Provides that forced retirees may begin receiving reduced benefits at age 55.

Eliminates the actuarial reduction of a woman's old-age benefit (based on her own earnings) which applies when benefits begin before age 65 in the case of a woman who has had at least 30 years (120 quarters) of work under social security.

Provides for the payment of benefits based on the combined earnings of a husband and wife (when both have worked long enough to qualify for benefits) in cases where a higher total payment than is payable under present law would result.

States that if a beneficiary's payments begin after age 65, that person will receive lifetime payments which actuarially equal the lifetime amount he or she would have received had benefits begun at age 65.

Applies the age 62 benefit computation point for men to current beneficiaries and eliminates the 2-year phase-in period which exists in present law.

Permits a fully insured individual to receive disability benefits, regardless of when his insured quarters of coverage were earned.

Provides for the payment of disability insurance benefits to blind people who have at least six quarters of work under the social security program, regardless of when the quarters are earned.

Permits monthly benefits, similar to mother's benefits, to widowers who have children entitled to children's benefits.

Grants monthly benefits to the dependent parent, age 62 or over, of a retired or disabled worker.

Provides for paying child's benefits to a fulltime student up to age 24, rather than age 22.

Provides for the payment of benefits to divorced wives and surviving divorced wives who had been married to the worker for at least 10 years, rather than for 20 years as in present law.

Eliminates the requirements: (1) that a husband must have been receiving at least one-half of his support from his wife in order to qualify for husband's benefits, and (2) that a widower must have been receiving at least one-half of his support from his deceased wife in order to qualify for widower's benefits.

Provides that marriage or remarriage after a person's 60th birthday will not be a reason for terminating benefits.

Stipulates that employee or self-employed social security contributions shall be optional after age 65.

Permits a person to exchange credits between the social security system and the civil service retirement system in order to obtain maximum benefits under the two systems.

Revises the social security tax schedule.

Provides for payments from general Federal revenues to the social security trust funds.

Specifies that no person's present social security or supplemental security income benefit may be reduced as a result of any of the provisions of this Act.

Title II: Health Insurance - Provides that people entitled to cash benefits under OASDI shall be automatically entitled to supplementary medical insurance benefits and that the cost of these benefits shall be paid out of social security taxes.

Eliminates all deductibles and coinsurance under medicare, except for the $l deductible on drug prescriptions.

Extends medicare coverage to all persons who are receiving social security disability benefits.

Sets forth provisions for the payment of prescription drugs purchased by a medicare beneficiary.

Extends the coverage of the supplementary medical insurance program to include dental services, the cost of prescription eyeglasses, orthopedic shoes and braces, the services of an optometrist, and the cost of influenza vaccination.

Extends medicare coverage to U.S. citizens outside the United States under the same general standards and requirements as apply within the United States.

Provides home health care and private duty nursing services under medicare and medicaid. Extends fire and safety standards requirements to intermediate care facilities and expands public disclosure requirements of finances, expenses, and charges of these facilities.

Authorizes a subsidy program for families who care for their elderly, infirm dependents at home.

Title III: Public Assistance - Extends the Federal supplemental security income program--minimum payment of $130 per individual, $195 per couple--to Puerto Rico, Guam, and the Virgin Islands.

Permits a disabled or blind person to receive Federal supplemental security income payments regardless of any income received by that person's spouse from social security or railroad retirement.

Provides that a person who has reached age 70 and is not covered by social security, and who would be eligible for the minimum Federal supplemental security income--aid to the aged, the blind, and the disabled--but for private pension or annuity income being received, annually shall have the first $7,500 of that pension or annuity disregarded in determining eligibility for the Federal supplemental security income.

Preserves eligibility for food stamps under the federal supplemental security income program.

Provides special housing allowances from social security to elderly low-income persons.

Title IV: Maternal and Child Health and Crippled Children's Programs - Increases the authorization for appropriations for maternal and child health and crippled children's services from $350 million to $650 million a year.

Postpones from July 1973 to July 1977 the date by which State programs will have to offer certain specified services if they are to qualify for Federal grants, and extends from June 30, 1973 to June 30, 1977 the authority to make special project grants to the States for maternity and infant care, health of school and preschool children, and dental health of children.