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Bill would let workers with disabilities keep benefits
Posted
11-1-99 Washington. Disabled Americans would be able to enter the work force without fearing the loss of their government-funded health insurance under a bill overwhelmingly approved last week by the House of Representatives. The Work Incentives Improvement Act of 1999 passed by a vote of 412-9. It would allow many of the nation's 9 million disabled adults currently collecting federal disability benefits to buy the health insurance they would otherwise be entitled to if they did not work. By a vote of 99-0, a similar bill recently passed in the Senate, and President Clinton is expected to sign it into law, perhaps before the end of the year. "Since so many jobs don't include health insurance, many disabled adults choose not to work because, if they do, they risk losing their coverage," said Heather O'Farrell, a spokesperson for Rep. Rick Lazio, R-N.Y., chief sponsor of the bill. The maximum income a person can earn before losing health benefits varies. But, as an example, Social Security disability cuts off once someone earns as little as $700 a month, O'Farrell said. Although advocates for the disabled applaud the bill, they say it's not perfect. "We were disappointed with some of the changes made prior to passage," said Anne-Marie Hughey, executive director of the National Council on Independent Living, based in Arlington, Va. "We hope to work with the members of the conference committee to remove this weakening language." For example, the House bill caps the buy-in at an annual salary of $35,000. The Senate version has no such cap.
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