S. 4255

[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 4255 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

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119th CONGRESS
2d Session
S. 4255

To provide for phased-in payment of Social Security Disability 
Insurance payments during the waiting period for individuals with a 
terminal illness.

_______________________________________________________________________

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

March 26, 2026

Mr. Barrasso (for himself, Ms. Hassan, Ms. Lummis, Mr. Coons, Ms. 
Murkowski, and Mr. Reed) introduced the following bill; which was read 
twice and referred to the Committee on Finance

_______________________________________________________________________

A BILL

To provide for phased-in payment of Social Security Disability 
Insurance payments during the waiting period for individuals with a 
terminal illness.

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 ``Expedited Disability Insurance 
Payments for Terminally Ill Individuals Act of 2026''.

SEC. 2. PHASED-IN PAYMENT OF SSDI BENEFITS DURING THE WAITING PERIOD 
FOR THE TERMINALLY ILL.

(a) In General.--Section 223 of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 
423) is amended--
(1) in subsection (a)--
(A) in paragraph (1), in the matter following 
subparagraph (E), by striking ``or (iii)'' and 
inserting ``(iii) subject to paragraph (2)(B), for each 
month beginning with the first month during all of 
which the individual is determined under subparagraph 
(D) of subsection (d)(2) to be under a disability and 
in which he becomes so entitled to such insurance 
benefits, or (iv)'';
(B) in paragraph (2)--
(i) in the matter preceding subparagraph 
(A), by striking ``section 202(q) and'' and 
inserting ``paragraph (3) of this subsection, 
section 202(q), and'';
(ii) in subparagraph (A), by striking 
``or'' at the end; and
(iii) in subparagraph (B), by striking 
``clause (ii) of paragraph (1)'' and inserting 
``clause (ii), (iii), or (iv) in the matter 
following subparagraph (E) of paragraph (1)''; 
and
(C) by adding at the end the following new 
paragraph:
``(3)(A) For purposes of paragraph (2), in any case in which clause 
(iii) in the matter following subparagraph (E) of paragraph (1) of this 
subsection is applicable to an individual, the amount of the 
individual's monthly disability insurance benefit for the earliest 
period of 2 consecutive calendar months throughout which the individual 
has been entitled to such insurance benefits shall be equal to the 
product of the benefit amount determined for the individual under 
paragraph (2) (before application of this paragraph) and--
``(i) for the first calendar month, 50 percent; and
``(ii) for the second calendar month, 75 percent.
``(B) If an individual who has been determined under subparagraph 
(D) of subsection (d)(2) to be under a disability has been entitled to 
a disability insurance benefit on such basis for 12 consecutive 
calendar months, the individual's disability insurance benefit for any 
month during the subsequent period of 12 consecutive calendar months 
shall be equal to--
``(i) the benefit amount determined for the individual 
under paragraph (2) (before application of this paragraph); 
minus
``(ii) the quotient obtained by dividing the total amount 
of disability insurance benefits provided to the individual 
during the earliest period of five consecutive calendar months 
for which the individual was entitled to such benefits on such 
basis by 12.
``(C) If an individual who has been determined under subparagraph 
(D) of subsection (d)(2) to be under a disability has been entitled to 
a disability insurance benefit on such basis for 24 consecutive 
calendar months, the individual's disability insurance benefit for any 
subsequent month shall be equal to 95 percent of the benefit amount 
determined for the individual under paragraph (2) (before application 
of this paragraph).''; and
(2) in subsection (d)(2), by adding at the end the 
following:
``(D) For purposes of clause (iii) in the matter following 
subparagraph (E) of paragraph (1) of subsection (a), an 
individual shall be determined to be under a disability upon 
submission of a diagnosis of a terminal illness (as defined in 
section 1861(dd)(3)(A)) that has been certified by not less 
than 2 physicians (as defined in section 1861(r)(1)) who are 
not related (as described in section 267(c)(4) of the Internal 
Revenue Code of 1986) and are not in the same physician group 
practice.''.
(b) Reports to Congress.--
(1) Report by social security administration.--Not later 
than 1 year after the date of the enactment of this Act, and 
each year thereafter, the Commissioner of the Social Security 
Administration, in coordination with the Inspector General of 
the Social Security Administration, shall submit to the 
relevant committees of Congress a report that evaluates the 
provision of disability insurance benefits to terminally ill 
individuals, including--
(A) the total number of individuals who--
(i) file applications for disability 
insurance benefits (as determined under section 
223(a)(3) of the Social Security Act) based on 
a diagnosis of a terminal illness;
(ii) receive such benefits;
(iii) die within 6 months of first 
receiving such benefits;
(iv) die within 12 months of first 
receiving such benefits;
(v) receive such benefits during the period 
described in section 223(a)(3)(B) of the Social 
Security Act; and
(vi) receive such benefits during the 
period described in section 223(a)(3)(C) of the 
Social Security Act;
(B) the total amount expended, including related 
administrative expenses, for the provision of 
disability insurance benefits under section 223(a)(3) 
of the Social Security Act to individuals diagnosed 
with a terminal illness; and
(C) recommendations for such legislation and 
administrative actions as are determined appropriate 
for preventing fraud, waste, and abuse related to such 
benefits.
(2) Report by government accountability office.--Not later 
than 2 years after the date of the enactment of this Act, the 
Comptroller General of the United States shall submit a report 
to the relevant committees of Congress that evaluates the 
provision of disability insurance benefits to terminally ill 
individuals and provides recommendations for such legislation 
and administrative actions as are determined appropriate to 
improve the provision of such benefits to such individuals.
(c) Effective Date.--The amendments made by this section shall 
apply to benefits payable for months beginning after December 31, 2026.
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