I 
112TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION 
H. R. 798 
To require the establishment of a Consumer Price Index for Elderly Con-
sumers to compute cost-of-living increases for Social Security and Medi-
care benefits under titles II and XVIII of the Social Security Act. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
FEBRUARY 18, 2011 
Mr. DEFAZIO (for himself, Mr. ROONEY, Mr. HINCHEY, Mr. OLVER, Mr. 
ENGEL, Ms. DELAURO, Mr. MURPHY of Connecticut, Mr. HOLT, Ms. 
WASSERMAN SCHULTZ, Mr. CRITZ, and Mr. ROTHMAN of New Jersey) 
introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on 
Ways and Means, and in addition to the Committees on Energy and 
Commerce and Education and the Workforce, for a period to be subse-
quently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such 
provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned 
A BILL 
To require the establishment of a Consumer Price Index 
for Elderly Consumers to compute cost-of-living increases 
for Social Security and Medicare benefits under titles 
II and XVIII of the Social Security Act. 
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 ‘‘Consumer Price Index 
for Elderly Consumers Act of 2011’’. 
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SEC. 2. CONSUMER PRICE INDEX FOR ELDERLY CON-
SUMERS. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—The Bureau of Labor Statistics 
of the Department of Labor shall prepare and publish an 
index for each calendar month to be known as the ‘‘Con-
sumer Price Index for Elderly Consumers’’ that indicates 
changes over time in expenditures for consumption which 
are typical for individuals in the United States who are 
62 years of age or older. 
(b) EFFECTIVE DATE.—Subsection (a) shall apply 
with respect to calendar months ending on or after July 
31 of the calendar year following the calendar year in 
which this Act is enacted. 
(c) AUTHORIZATION
OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 
are authorized to be appropriated such sums as are nec-
essary to carry out the provisions of this section. 
SEC. 3. COMPUTATION OF COST-OF-LIVING INCREASES. 
(a) AMENDMENTS TO TITLE II.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—Section 215(i) of the Social 
Security Act (42 U.S.C. 415(i)) is amended— 
(A) in paragraph (1)(G), by inserting be-
fore the period the following: ‘‘, and, solely with 
respect to any monthly insurance benefit pay-
able under this title to an individual who has 
attained age 62, effective for adjustments under 
this subsection to the primary insurance 
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amount on which such benefit is based (or to 
any such benefit under section 227 or 228) oc-
curring after such individual attains such age, 
the applicable Consumer Price Index shall be 
deemed to be the Consumer Price Index for El-
derly Consumers and such primary insurance 
amount shall be deemed adjusted under this 
subsection using such Index’’; and 
(B) in paragraph (4), by striking ‘‘and by 
section 9001’’ and inserting ‘‘, by section 
9001’’, and by inserting after ‘‘1986,’’ the fol-
lowing: ‘‘and by section 3(a) of the Consumer 
Price Index for Elderly Consumers Act,’’. 
(2) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS IN APPLICABLE 
FORMER LAW.—Section 215(i)(1)(C) of such Act, as 
in effect in December 1978 and applied in certain 
cases under the provisions of such Act in effect after 
December 1978, is amended by inserting before the 
period the following: ‘‘, and, solely with respect to 
any monthly insurance benefit payable under this 
title to an individual who has attained age 62, effec-
tive for adjustments under this subsection to the pri-
mary insurance amount on which such benefit is 
based (or to any such benefit under section 227 or 
228) occurring after such individual attains such 
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age, the applicable Consumer Price Index shall be 
deemed to be the Consumer Price Index for Elderly 
Consumers and such primary insurance amount 
shall be deemed adjusted under this subsection using 
such Index’’. 
(3) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made 
by paragraph (1) shall apply to determinations made 
with respect to cost-of-living computation quarters 
ending on or after September 30 of the second cal-
endar year following the calendar year in which this 
Act is enacted. 
(b) AMENDMENTS TO TITLE XVIII.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—Title XVIII of such Act (42 
U.S.C. 1395 et seq.) is amended— 
(A) in section 1814(i)(2)(B), by inserting 
‘‘(i) for accounting years ending before October 
1 of the second calendar year following the cal-
endar year in which the Consumer Price Index 
for Elderly Consumers Act was enacted,’’ after 
‘‘for a year is’’, and by inserting after ‘‘fifth 
month of the accounting year’’ the following: ‘‘, 
and (ii) for accounting years ending after Octo-
ber 1 of such calendar year, the cap amount de-
termined under clause (i) for the last account-
ing year referred to in such clause, increased or 
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decreased by the same percentage as the per-
centage increase or decrease, respectively, in the 
medical care expenditure category (or cor-
responding category) of the Consumer Price 
Index for Elderly Consumers, published by the 
Bureau of Labor Statistics, from March of such 
calendar year to the fifth month of the account-
ing year’’; 
(B) in section 1821(c)(2)(C)(ii)(II), by 
striking ‘‘consumer price index for all urban 
consumers (all items; United States city aver-
age)’’ and inserting ‘‘Consumer Price Index for 
Elderly Consumers’’; 
(C) in section 1833(h)(2)(A)(i), by striking 
‘‘Consumer Price Index for All Urban Con-
sumers (United States city average)’’ and in-
serting ‘‘Consumer Price Index for Elderly Con-
sumers’’; 
(D) in section 1833(i)(2)(C)(i), by striking 
‘‘Consumer Price Index for all urban consumers 
(U.S. city average)’’ and inserting ‘‘Consumer 
Price Index for Elderly Consumers’’; 
(E) in each of subparagraphs (K), (L), 
and (M) of section 1834(a)(14), by striking 
‘‘consumer price index for all urban consumers 
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