Title: To amend title XIX of the Social Security Act to count portions of income from annuities of a community spouse as income available to institutionalized spouses for purposes of eligibility for medical assistance, and for other purposes.
Policy area: Health

Summary:
This bill amends title XIX (Medicaid) of the Social Security Act to count as available income, for purposes of determining the Medicaid eligibility of an institutionalized individual, portions of certain annuity income made in the name of the individual's spouse.
The bill does not apply to annuity income from specified pensions and retirement accounts.

[Congressional Bills 115th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 181 Introduced in House (IH)]

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115th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 181

  To amend title XIX of the Social Security Act to count portions of 
  income from annuities of a community spouse as income available to 
   institutionalized spouses for purposes of eligibility for medical 
                  assistance, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                            January 3, 2017

Mr. Mullin (for himself and Mr. Guthrie) introduced the following bill; 
       which was referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
  To amend title XIX of the Social Security Act to count portions of 
  income from annuities of a community spouse as income available to 
   institutionalized spouses for purposes of eligibility for medical 
                  assistance, and for other purposes.

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

SECTION 1. COUNTING PORTIONS OF INCOME FROM ANNUITIES OF A COMMUNITY 
              SPOUSE AS INCOME AVAILABLE TO INSTITUTIONALIZED SPOUSES 
              FOR MEDICAID ELIGIBILITY.

    (a) In General.--Section 1924(b)(2) of the Social Security Act (42 
U.S.C. 1396r-5(b)(2)) is amended by adding at the end the following new 
subparagraph:
                    ``(E) Annuity income.--
                            ``(i) In general.--In the case of payment 
                        of income from a qualifying annuity--
                                    ``(I) if payment of income is made 
                                solely in the name of the community 
                                spouse, one-half of the income shall be 
                                considered available to the 
                                institutionalized spouse and one-half 
                                to the community spouse;
                                    ``(II) if payment of income is made 
                                in the names of the institutionalized 
                                spouse and the community spouse, one-
                                half of the income shall be considered 
                                available to the institutionalized 
                                spouse and one-half to the community 
                                spouse; and
                                    ``(III) if payment of income is 
                                made in the names of the community 
                                spouse and another person or persons, 
                                one-half of the proportion of the 
                                community spouse's interest in such 
                                income shall be considered available to 
                                the institutionalized spouse.
                            ``(ii) Qualifying annuity.--In this 
                        subparagraph, the term `qualifying annuity' 
                        means an annuity that--
                                    ``(I) is purchased after the date 
                                that is 60 months before the date 
                                specified in subparagraph (B)(ii) of 
                                section 1917(c)(1) for an amount that 
                                is equal to or greater than fair market 
                                value; and
                                    ``(II) is not described in clause 
                                (i) of subparagraph (G) of such 
                                section.
                            ``(iii) Inapplicability of other rules.--
                        The rules of subparagraphs (A) and (B) shall 
                        not apply with respect to income from a 
                        qualifying annuity.''.
    (b) Effective Date.--The amendment made by subsection (a) shall 
apply with respect to annuities purchased or established on or after 
the date of the enactment of this Act.
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