I 
108TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION 
H. R. 627
To amend title 38, United States Code, to suspend for five years the authority 
of the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to increase the copayment amount 
in effect for medication furnished by the Secretary on an outpatient 
basis for the treatment of non-service-connected disabilities and to pro-
vide 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 HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
FEBRUARY 5, 2003
Mr. STRICKLAND (for himself, Mr. BERRY, Mr. BACA, Mr. BROWN of Ohio, 
Mr. CARSON of Oklahoma, Mr. HINCHEY, Mr. INSLEE, Mrs. JONES of 
Ohio, Mr. LATOURETTE, Mrs. LOWEY, Mr. MCGOVERN, Ms. NORTON, 
Mr. PAUL, Mr. SANDERS, Mr. SANDLIN, Ms. WOOLSEY, Ms. SOLIS, Mr. 
SERRANO, Mr. WHITFIELD, Mr. PALLONE, Mr. NEY, Mr. ACKERMAN, 
Ms. BALDWIN, Mr. MCDERMOTT, Mr. MICA, Mr. GRIJALVA, Mr. FROST, 
Mr. CROWLEY, Ms. MCCOLLUM, Mr. KENNEDY of Rhode Island, Mr. 
CAPUANO, and Mr. COSTELLO) introduced the following bill; which was 
referred to the Committee on Veterans’ Affairs, and in addition to the 
Committee on Energy and Commerce, for a period to be subsequently de-
termined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions 
as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned 
A BILL 
To amend title 38, United States Code, to suspend for five 
years the authority of the Secretary of Veterans Affairs 
to increase the copayment amount in effect for medica-
tion furnished by the Secretary on an outpatient basis 
for the treatment of non-service-connected disabilities 
and 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 Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Veterans’ Prescription 
Drug and Surviving Spouses Assistance Act of 2003’’. 
SEC. 2. SUSPENSION OF AUTHORITY TO INCREASE COPAY-
MENT AMOUNT. 
Section 1722A(d) of title 38, United States Code, is 
amended—
(1) by inserting ‘‘(1)’’ after ‘‘(d)’’; and 
(2) by adding at the end the following: 
‘‘(2) The Secretary may not exercise the authority 
provided by subsection (b)(1) during the five-year period 
beginning on the date of the enactment of this paragraph, 
and any increase before that date in the copayment 
amount in effect under subsection (a) shall not be in effect 
during that five-year period.’’. 
SEC. 3. INCREASE IN MAXIMUM ANNUAL RATES OF PEN-
SION 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 fol-
lowing new subsection (f): 
‘‘(f)(1) 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 a provision 
referred to in paragraph (2) shall be increased for any 
year by the amount equal to the difference between—
‘‘(A) the current 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 that year 
for a one-person family unit in the 48 contiguous 
States and the District of Columbia; and 
‘‘(B) the annual rate of pension in effect under 
subsection (b) in November of that year. 
‘‘(2) A provision referred to in this paragraph is any 
of the following provisions of this section: 
‘‘(A) Subsection (b). 
‘‘(B) The first sentence of subsection (c). 
‘‘(C) Subsection (d)(1). 
‘‘(D) The first sentence of subsection (d)(2).
‘‘(E) The first sentence of subsection (e)(1).’’. 
(b) DISREGARD OF INCREASED AMOUNT FOR PUR-
POSES OF MEDICAID ELIGIBILITY.—Section 1902(r)(1) of 
the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1396a(r)(1)) is amend-
ed by adding at the end the following new subparagraph: 
‘‘(C) In determining for purposes of this title the in-
come of a surviving spouse of a veteran who receives a 
monthly pension under section 1541 of title 38, United 
States Code, such income shall not include any amount 
attributable to the application of subsection (f) of that sec-
tion.’’.
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