Title: Territories Medicare Prescription Drug Assistance Equity Act of 2017
Policy area: Health

Summary:
Territories Medicare Prescription Drug Assistance Equity Act of 2017
This bill makes certain subsidies available to Medicare prescription drug program beneficiaries who reside in Puerto Rico or another U.S. territory. Current law makes such beneficiaries ineligible for premium and cost-sharing subsidies, but establishes a process for U.S. territories to apply for financial assistance with respect to the provision of Medicare prescription drugs. The bill eliminates this process and makes the subsidies available to beneficiaries who reside in a U.S. territory and are otherwise eligible.

[Congressional Bills 115th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 815 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

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115th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                 S. 815

   To amend titles XVIII and XIX of the Social Security Act to make 
  premium and cost-sharing subsidies available to low-income Medicare 
part D beneficiaries who reside in Puerto Rico or another territory of 
                           the United States.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                             April 4, 2017

Mr. Nelson (for himself, Mr. Menendez, Mr. Blumenthal, Mrs. Gillibrand, 
 and Mr. Schumer) introduced the following bill; which was read twice 
                and referred to the Committee on Finance

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
   To amend titles XVIII and XIX of the Social Security Act to make 
  premium and cost-sharing subsidies available to low-income Medicare 
part D beneficiaries who reside in Puerto Rico or another territory of 
                           the United States.

    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 ``Territories Medicare Prescription 
Drug Assistance Equity Act of 2017''.

SEC. 2. ELIMINATING EXCLUSION OF PART D ELIGIBLE INDIVIDUALS RESIDING 
              IN TERRITORIES FROM ELIGIBILITY FOR PREMIUM AND COST-
              SHARING SUBSIDIES.

    (a) In General.--Section 1860D-14(a)(3) of the Social Security Act 
(42 U.S.C. 1395w-114(a)(3)) is amended--
            (1) in subparagraph (A), in the matter preceding clause 
        (i), by striking ``subject to subparagraph (F),'';
            (2) in subparagraph (B)(v), in the matter preceding 
        subclause (I), by striking ``Subject to subparagraph (F), the 
        Secretary'' and inserting ``The Secretary'';
            (3) in subparagraph (C), by adding at the end the following 
        new sentence: ``In the case of an individual who is not a 
        resident of the 50 States or the District of Columbia, the 
        poverty line (as such term is defined in clause (ii)) that 
        shall apply to such individual shall be the poverty line for 
        the 48 contiguous States and the District of Columbia.''; and
            (4) by striking subparagraph (F).
    (b) Application of Medicaid Provisions.--Section 1935 of the Social 
Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1396u-5) is amended--
            (1) in subsection (a), by striking ``subject to subsection 
        (e)'' in the matter preceding paragraph (1); and
            (2) by striking subsection (e).
    (c) Conforming Amendment.--Section 1108(f) of the Social Security 
Act (42 U.S.C. 1308(f)) is amended by striking ``and section 
1935(e)(1)(B)'' in the matter preceding clause (i).
    (d) Effective Date.--The amendments made by this section shall take 
effect on January 1, 2018.
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