Coronavirus Relief for Seniors and People with Disabilities Act of 2020
Latest action · Mar 19, 2020 Read twice and referred to the Committee on Finance.
Progress
Where this bill reached, and when. A stage with no date was not reached; one that failed a vote and later carried shows the date it carried.
- IntroducedMar 19, 2020
- Passed SenateNot reached
- Passed HouseNot reached
- To the PresidentNot reached
- Became lawNot reached
Summary
Coronavirus Relief for Seniors and People with Disabilities Act of 2020
This bill expands support programs for older adults and individuals with disabilities during the COVID-19 (i.e., coronavirus disease 2019) public health emergency.
Specifically, the bill provides supplemental appropriations for (1) the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services for quality improvement and laboratory certification activities; (2) the Administration on Community Living to expand nutrition and other programs for older adults; and (3) the Department of Agriculture to provide food packages to low-income, elderly individuals. The funds are designated as an emergency requirement and are therefore exempt from discretionary funding limits and other budget enforcement rules.
In addition, the bill (1) temporarily requires state Medicaid programs to provide Medicare cost-sharing assistance to certain individuals who qualify for, or are enrolled in, the low-income subsidy program under the Medicare prescription drug benefit; and (2) authorizes a grant program to support Medicaid home- and community-based services during the public health emergency.
The bill also allows states to transfer funds, in greater amounts and without prior approval, between congregate and home-delivered nutrition programs,
The Department of Health and Human Services must prioritize home-delivered nutrition services for individuals who are unable to obtain nutrition as a result of the emergency, such as those under quarantine, just as it prioritizes delivery to individuals who are homebound by illness.
Cosponsors 28
Members who signed on, in the order they did. Signatures ran from Mar 19, 2020 to Aug 4, 2020; 23 are original cosponsors, there from the day it was introduced.
| Seat | Cosponsor | Signed on | |
|---|---|---|---|
| D-MN | Amy Klobuchar | Original | Mar 19, 2020 |
| I-VT | Bernard Sanders | Original | Mar 19, 2020 |
| D-NV | Catherine Cortez Masto | Original | Mar 19, 2020 |
| D-NJ | Cory A. Booker | Original | Mar 19, 2020 |
| D-AL | Doug Jones | Original | Mar 19, 2020 |
| D-MA | Edward J. Markey | Original | Mar 19, 2020 |
| D-MA | Elizabeth Warren | Original | Mar 19, 2020 |
| D-MI | Gary C. Peters | Original | Mar 19, 2020 |
| D-RI | Jack Reed | Original | Mar 19, 2020 |
| D-NV | Jacky Rosen | Original | Mar 19, 2020 |
| D-NH | Jeanne Shaheen | Original | Mar 19, 2020 |
| D-OR | Jeff Merkley | Original | Mar 19, 2020 |
| D-MT | Jon Tester | Original | Mar 19, 2020 |
| D-NY | Kirsten E. Gillibrand | Original | Mar 19, 2020 |
| I-AZ | Kyrsten Sinema | Original | Mar 19, 2020 |
| D-NH | Margaret Wood Hassan | Original | Mar 19, 2020 |
| D-CT | Richard Blumenthal | Original | Mar 19, 2020 |
| D-NJ | Robert Menendez | Original | Mar 19, 2020 |
| D-OH | Sherrod Brown | Original | Mar 19, 2020 |
| D-WI | Tammy Baldwin | Original | Mar 19, 2020 |
| D-IL | Tammy Duckworth | Original | Mar 19, 2020 |
| D-VA | Tim Kaine | Original | Mar 19, 2020 |
| D-MN | Tina Smith | Original | Mar 19, 2020 |
| D-MD | Chris Van Hollen | May 19, 2020 | |
| D-DE | Christopher A. Coons | May 19, 2020 | |
| D-CA | Kamala D. Harris | May 19, 2020 | |
| D-CO | Michael F. Bennet | May 19, 2020 | |
| D-WA | Maria Cantwell | Aug 4, 2020 |
Committees 1
Where it was sent and what each committee and subcommittee did with it, in order.
| Chamber | Committee | What it did |
|---|---|---|
| Senate | Finance Committee | Referred Mar 19, 2020 |
Actions 2
Everything that happened, newest first.
- Mar 19, 2020Introduced in Senate
- Mar 19, 2020Read twice and referred to the Committee on Finance.
In the Congressional Record 1
Days the Record’s own index lists this bill, newest first, with the pages and the members it names. Pages starting H are the House, S the Senate, E Extensions of Remarks.
| Where | In the Record | Members | Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| Senate | Debate and remarks S4916 | Robert P. Casey Jr. D-PA | Aug 5, 2020 |
Research
What has been written about this bill: committee reports, cost estimates, the sponsor’s authority statement, printed hearings and the Congressional Research Service’s work.
Printed hearings 1
Hearings whose printed record names this bill, newest first: hearings on it, and wider hearings where it came up.
| Number | Hearing | Committee | Held |
|---|---|---|---|
| S. Hrg. 116-533 | COMBATING SOCIAL ISOLATION AND LONELINESS DURING THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC77 pages | Aging (Special) Committee | Jun 11, 2020 |
Related bills 1
Companion bills and other measures the record links to this one.
| Bill | Title | Relationship | Latest action |
|---|---|---|---|
| HR 6305 | Coronavirus Relief for Seniors and People with Disabilities Act of 2020 | Related bill | Mar 19, 2020 |
Titles 2
Every title it has carried, official and short, at each stage.
- Official Title as Introduced
- A bill to assist older Americans and people with disabilities affected by COVID-19.
- Short Title(s) as Introduced
- Coronavirus Relief for Seniors and People with Disabilities Act of 2020
Subjects
Assigned by the Library of Congress. Policy area: Social Welfare.
- Aging
- Appropriations
- Cardiovascular and respiratory health
- Department of Agriculture
- Department of Health and Human Services
- Disability assistance
- Emergency medical services and trauma care
- Employee leave
- Executive agency funding and structure
- Family services
- Food assistance and relief
- Government information and archives
- Health care costs and insurance
- Health care coverage and access
- Health facilities and institutions
- Health personnel
- Health programs administration and funding
- Health technology, devices, supplies
- Home and outpatient care
- Indian social and development programs
- Infectious and parasitic diseases
- Intergovernmental relations
- Licensing and registrations
- Long-term, rehabilitative, and terminal care
- Medicaid
- Medical tests and diagnostic methods
- Medicare
- Mental health
- Minority health
- Nutrition and diet
- Social Security Administration
- Social security and elderly assistance
- Social Welfare
- Social work, volunteer service, charitable organizations
- State and local finance
- Wages and earnings
Text 1
Each version as it was printed, newest first.
- Mar 19, 2020Introduced in Senate
Everything here is as published by Congress: the summary is the Congressional Research Service's, the action wording is the clerks', and the subjects are the Library of Congress's. How far it got is read from the actions themselves, taking the most recent one of each kind, so a bill that failed a vote and later passed is shown as having passed. Records come from this bill on Congress.gov and govinfo.gov; cost estimates are the Congressional Budget Office's, and the hearings are the printed hearings GovInfo publishes, which can appear months after the hearing.
