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Allows people diagnosed with certain incurable, short‑lived illnesses to start receiving Social Security disability insurance (SSDI) right away by waiving the usual five‑month waiting period in exchange for a permanent 7% reduction in monthly benefits. It also shifts authority over which conditions qualify for "Compassionate Allowances" from the Social Security Administration (SSA) to Congress, creates a process for SSA to offset disability benefits when a recipient also receives unemployment pay, and lets SSA recoup overpayments by withholding less than the full benefit (but not below a 10% withholding floor).
The bill expedites and clarifies access to SSDI for some terminally ill people and provides procedural and recovery protections, but it shifts needy‑case authority to Congress, imposes permanent cuts and irrevocable tradeoffs for beneficiaries, raises privacy and administrative burdens, and risks added costs to the disability system.
Terminally ill people on the published qualifying list can receive SSDI beginning the first month they're disabled (removing the 5‑month wait), giving earlier income support to patients and their families and creating a rulemaking-based list updated every 5 years for clearer eligibility.
Adds explicit Congressional approval and oversight for additions to the Compassionate Allowances list, increasing public accountability and legislative control over which conditions receive expedited processing.
Clarifies authority and information‑sharing between state unemployment agencies and SSA to reduce duplicate benefit payments and improve timely eligibility determinations, while preserving procedural protections (notice and hearing) for claimants.
Beneficiaries who elect immediate SSDI payments face a permanent 7% reduction in their monthly benefit, lowering long-term income for people with disabilities and older beneficiaries.
Requiring Congressional approval to add conditions to the Compassionate Allowances list will slow or block timely additions and reduces SSA's ability to use medical expertise, risking delays in expedited decisions for people with rapidly fatal or severe conditions.
People who receive both unemployment benefits and disability insurance risks having their Social Security disability checks reduced, lowering household income for already vulnerable individuals.
Introduced January 15, 2026 by Diana Harshbarger · Last progress January 15, 2026