II 

110TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. 3621 

To amend title 10, United States Code, to authorize extended benefits for 

certain autistic dependents of certain retirees. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

SEPTEMBER 26 (legislative day, SEPTEMBER 17), 2008 

Mr. MARTINEZ introduced the following bill; which was read twice and 

referred to the Committee on Armed Services 

A BILL 

To amend title 10, United States Code, to authorize extended 

benefits for certain autistic dependents of certain retirees. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. FINDINGS. 

4 The Congress finds the following: 

5 (1) The National Institute of Neurological Dis6 orders and Stroke states that autism is a common 

7 condition in a group of developmental disorders 

8 known as the autism spectrum disorders and is char9 acterized by impaired social interaction, problems 

10 with verbal and nonverbal communication, and unVerDate Aug 31 2005 01:14 Sep 29, 2008 Jkt 069200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S3621.IS S3621

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1 usual, repetitive, or severely limited activities and in2 terests. 

3 (2) According to a February 2007 study by the 

4 Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, one in 

5 150 children that had reached the age of 8 had au6 tism or an autism spectrum disorder such as 

7 Asperger’s syndrome, Rett syndrome, childhood dis8 integrative disorder, or a pervasive developmental 

9 disorder not otherwise specified. 

10 (3) The Department of Defense introduced the 

11 Extended Care Health Option program to provide 

12 coverage to active duty members of the Armed 

13 Forces for applied behavioral analysis, a treatment 

14 for the symptoms of autism spectrum disorders. Ac15 tive duty member beneficiaries are covered for ap16 plied behavioral analysis treatment for up to $2,500 

17 per month with a maximum of $30,000 per year. 

18 (4) According to a Harvard School of Public 

19 Health report, without effective intervention, ap20 proximately 90 percent of individuals with an autism 

21 spectrum disorder require lifelong care, which costs 

22 an estimated $3.2 million over a child’s lifetime. Ap23 plied behavioral analysis therapy has been shown to 

24 be effective in reducing the percentage of individuals 

25 with an autism spectrum disorder that require lifeVerDate Aug 31 2005 01:14 Sep 29, 2008 Jkt 069200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S3621.IS S3621

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1 long care to less than 50 percent and reducing the 

2 costs of lifelong care by two-thirds. 

3 (5) Benefits of the Extended Care Health Op4 tion program are not available to military retirees 

5 enrolled in TRICARE, but in a letter dated June 

6 23, 2008, the Department of Defense stated that 

7 there are 8,784 retirees with dependants diagnosed 

8 with an autism spectrum disorder. 

9 SEC. 2. EXTENDED CARE HEALTH OPTION PROGRAM FOR 

10 AUTISTIC DEPENDENTS OF CERTAIN RETIR11 EES. 

12 (a) AUTHORIZATION FOR EXTENDED BENEFITS FOR

13 AUTISTIC DEPENDENTS OF CERTAIN RETIREES.—Sec14 tion 1086 of title 10, United States Code, is amended by 

15 adding at the end the following new subsection: 

16 ‘‘(i)(1) The extended benefits program shall apply to 

17 any covered retiree with respect to any dependent of such 

18 a retiree if the dependent is— 

19 ‘‘(A) described in subparagraph (D) or (I) of 

20 section 1072(2) of this title; 

21 ‘‘(B) diagnosed with autism; and 

22 ‘‘(C) not entitled to benefits under part A of 

23 title XVIII of the Social Security Act. 

24 ‘‘(2) In this subsection: 


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1 ‘‘(A) The term ‘extended benefits program’ 

2 means the program provided pursuant to subsections 

3 (d), (e), and (f) of section 1079 of this title. 

4 ‘‘(B) The term ‘covered retiree’ means any per5 son eligible for health benefits under this section by 

6 reason of coverage by section 1074(b) (as described 

7 in subsection (c)(1) of this section) who is— 

8 ‘‘(i) not entitled to benefits under part A 

9 of title XVIII of the Social Security Act; and 

10 ‘‘(ii) not enrolled under part B of such 

11 title. 

12 ‘‘(C) The term ‘autism’ refers to the autism 

13 spectrum disorders, which are developmental disabil14 ities that cause substantial impairments in the areas 

15 of social interaction, emotional regulation, commu16 nication, and the integration of higher-order cog17 nitive processes and are often characterized by the 

18 presence of unusual behaviors and interests. The 

19 term includes autistic disorder, pervasive develop20 mental disorder (not otherwise specified), Asperger’s 

21 syndrome, and any of the pervasive disorders as de22 fined by the most recent edition of the Diagnostic 

23 and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders.’’. 

24 (b) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendment made by 

25 subsection (a) shall apply to benefits under the extended 


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1 benefits program for items and services furnished on or 

2 after the date of the enactment of this Act. 

Æ 


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