093_HB3847

 
                                     LRB093 13436 SJM 18832 b

 1        AN ACT concerning public benefits.

 2        Be it enacted by the People of  the  State  of  Illinois,
 3    represented in the General Assembly:

 4        Section   5.   The  Senior  Citizens and Disabled Persons
 5    Property Tax Relief  and  Pharmaceutical  Assistance  Act  is
 6    amended by changing Section 4 as follows:

 7        (320 ILCS 25/4) (from Ch. 67 1/2, par. 404)
 8        Sec. 4.  Amount of Grant.
 9        (a)  In general.  Any individual 65 years or older or any
10    individual  who  will become 65 years old during the calendar
11    year in which a claim is filed, and any surviving  spouse  of
12    such  a  claimant,  who  at the time of death received or was
13    entitled to receive a grant pursuant to this  Section,  which
14    surviving  spouse  will  become 65 years of age within the 24
15    months immediately following the death of such  claimant  and
16    which  surviving  spouse  but for his or her age is otherwise
17    qualified to receive a grant pursuant to  this  Section,  and
18    any  disabled  person  whose  annual household income is less
19    than $14,000 for grant years before  the  1998  grant  year;,
20    less  than  $16,000  for  the 1998 and 1999 grant years;, and
21    less than (i) $21,218 for a household containing one  person,
22    (ii)  $28,480  for a household containing 2 persons, or (iii)
23    $35,740 for a household containing 3 or more persons for  the
24    2000  through 2003 grant years; and (i) $40,000 or less for a
25    household containing one person or (ii) $50,000 or less for a
26    household containing 2 or more persons  for  the  2004  grant
27    year and thereafter and whose household is liable for payment
28    of  property  taxes  accrued  or  has  paid rent constituting
29    property taxes accrued and is domiciled in this State at  the
30    time  he or she files his or her claim is entitled to claim a
31    grant under  this  Act.  With  respect  to  claims  filed  by
 
                            -2-      LRB093 13436 SJM 18832 b
 1    individuals  who will become 65 years old during the calendar
 2    year in which a claim is filed, the amount of  any  grant  to
 3    which  that household is entitled shall be an amount equal to
 4    1/12 of the amount to which the claimant would  otherwise  be
 5    entitled  as  provided  in  this  Section,  multiplied by the
 6    number of months in which the claimant was 65 in the calendar
 7    year in which the claim is filed.
 8        (b)  Limitation.   Except  as   otherwise   provided   in
 9    subsections  (a)  and (f) of this Section, the maximum amount
10    of grant which a claimant is entitled to claim is the  amount
11    by  which  the  property  taxes  accrued  which  were paid or
12    payable  during  the  last  preceding  tax   year   or   rent
13    constituting  property  taxes  accrued  upon  the  claimant's
14    residence  for the last preceding taxable year exceeds 3 1/2%
15    of the claimant's household income for that year  but  in  no
16    event  is the grant to exceed (i) $700 less 4.5% of household
17    income for that year for those with  a  household  income  of
18    $14,000 or less or (ii) $70 if household income for that year
19    is more than $14,000.
20        (c)  Public  aid  recipients.  If household income in one
21    or more months during a  year  includes  cash  assistance  in
22    excess  of $55 per month from the Department of Public Aid or
23    the Department of Human Services (acting as successor to  the
24    Department  of  Public  Aid  under  the  Department  of Human
25    Services Act) which was determined under regulations of  that
26    Department  on  a  measure of need that included an allowance
27    for actual rent or property taxes paid by  the  recipient  of
28    that  assistance, the amount of grant to which that household
29    is entitled, except as otherwise provided in subsection  (a),
30    shall  be  the  product of (1) the maximum amount computed as
31    specified in subsection (b) of this Section and (2) the ratio
32    of the number of months in which  household  income  did  not
33    include  such  cash assistance over $55 to the number twelve.
34    If household income did not include such cash assistance over
 
                            -3-      LRB093 13436 SJM 18832 b
 1    $55 for any months during the year, the amount of  the  grant
 2    to  which  the  household  is  entitled  shall be the maximum
 3    amount computed  as  specified  in  subsection  (b)  of  this
 4    Section.    For   purposes   of  this  paragraph  (c),  "cash
 5    assistance" does not include any amount  received  under  the
 6    federal Supplemental Security Income (SSI) program.
 7        (d)  Joint  ownership.  If title to the residence is held
 8    jointly by the claimant with a person who is not a member  of
 9    his  or  her  household, the amount of property taxes accrued
10    used in computing the amount of grant to which he or  she  is
11    entitled  shall  be  the  same  percentage  of property taxes
12    accrued as  is  the  percentage  of  ownership  held  by  the
13    claimant in the residence.
14        (e)  More than one residence.  If a claimant has occupied
15    more  than  one  residence in the taxable year, he or she may
16    claim only one residence for any part of  a  month.   In  the
17    case  of property taxes accrued, he or she shall prorate 1/12
18    of the total property taxes accrued on his or  her  residence
19    to  each  month  that  he  or  she  owned  and  occupied that
20    residence; and, in the case  of  rent  constituting  property
21    taxes  accrued,  shall  prorate each month's rent payments to
22    the residence actually occupied during that month.
23        (f)  There   is   hereby   established   a   program   of
24    pharmaceutical assistance to  the  aged  and  disabled  which
25    shall  be  administered  by the Department in accordance with
26    this Act, to consist of payments to authorized pharmacies, on
27    behalf of beneficiaries of the program,  for  the  reasonable
28    costs  of  covered  prescription drugs.  Each beneficiary who
29    pays $5 for an identification card shall  pay  no  additional
30    prescription  costs.   Each  beneficiary  who pays $25 for an
31    identification  card  shall  pay  $3  per  prescription.   In
32    addition, after a beneficiary  receives  $2,000  in  benefits
33    during  a  State  fiscal year, that beneficiary shall also be
34    charged 20% of  the  cost  of  each  prescription  for  which
 
                            -4-      LRB093 13436 SJM 18832 b
 1    payments  are made by the program during the remainder of the
 2    fiscal year.  To become a beneficiary under  this  program  a
 3    person must: (1) be (i) 65 years of age or older, or (ii) the
 4    surviving spouse of such a claimant, who at the time of death
 5    received or was entitled to receive benefits pursuant to this
 6    subsection,  which  surviving  spouse will become 65 years of
 7    age within the 24 months immediately following the  death  of
 8    such  claimant  and which surviving spouse but for his or her
 9    age is otherwise qualified to receive  benefits  pursuant  to
10    this  subsection,  or (iii) disabled, and (2) be domiciled in
11    this State at the time he or she files his or her claim,  and
12    (3)  have a maximum household income of less than $14,000 for
13    grant years before the 1998 grant year;,  less  than  $16,000
14    for the 1998 and 1999 grant years;, and less than (i) $21,218
15    for  a  household  containing  one person, (ii) $28,480 for a
16    household containing  2  persons,  or  (iii)  $35,740  for  a
17    household containing 3 more persons for the 2000 through 2003
18    grant  years;  and  (i)  $40,000  or  less  for  a  household
19    containing one person or (ii) $50,000 or less for a household
20    containing  2  or  more  persons  for the 2004 grant year and
21    thereafter.  In  addition,  each  eligible  person  must  (1)
22    obtain an identification card from the Department, (2) at the
23    time  the card is obtained, sign a statement assigning to the
24    State of Illinois benefits which  may  be  otherwise  claimed
25    under  any  private  insurance  plans,  and  (3)  present the
26    identification card to the dispensing pharmacist.
27        The Department may adopt rules  specifying  participation
28    requirements   for  the  pharmaceutical  assistance  program,
29    including  copayment  amounts,  identification   card   fees,
30    expenditure  limits,  and the benefit threshold after which a
31    20% charge is imposed on the cost of each prescription, to be
32    in effect on and after  July  1,  2004.  Notwithstanding  any
33    other  provision  of  this paragraph, however, the Department
34    may not increase the identification card fee above the amount
 
                            -5-      LRB093 13436 SJM 18832 b
 1    in effect on May 1, 2003 without the express consent  of  the
 2    General   Assembly.   To   the   extent   practicable,  those
 3    requirements shall  be  commensurate  with  the  requirements
 4    provided  in rules adopted by the Department of Public Aid to
 5    implement  the  pharmacy  assistance  program  under  Section
 6    5-5.12a of the Illinois Public Aid Code.
 7        Whenever a generic equivalent for a covered  prescription
 8    drug  is  available,  the Department shall reimburse only for
 9    the reasonable costs of  the  generic  equivalent,  less  the
10    co-pay  established  in  this Section, unless (i) the covered
11    prescription drug contains one or more ingredients defined as
12    a narrow therapeutic index drug at 21 CFR  320.33,  (ii)  the
13    prescriber  indicates  on the face of the prescription "brand
14    medically necessary", and (iii) the prescriber specifies that
15    a substitution  is  not  permitted.   When  issuing  an  oral
16    prescription for covered prescription medication described in
17    item  (i)  of  this paragraph, the prescriber shall stipulate
18    "brand medically necessary" and that a  substitution  is  not
19    permitted.    If   the  covered  prescription  drug  and  its
20    authorizing prescription do  not  meet  the  criteria  listed
21    above,   the   beneficiary   may   purchase  the  non-generic
22    equivalent of the covered prescription  drug  by  paying  the
23    difference  between the generic cost and the non-generic cost
24    plus the beneficiary co-pay.
25        Any  person   otherwise   eligible   for   pharmaceutical
26    assistance  under this Act whose covered drugs are covered by
27    any public program for assistance in purchasing  any  covered
28    prescription  drugs  shall be ineligible for assistance under
29    this Act to the extent such costs are covered by  such  other
30    plan.
31        The   fee  to  be  charged  by  the  Department  for  the
32    identification card shall be equal to $5  per  coverage  year
33    for persons below the official poverty line as defined by the
34    United States Department of Health and Human Services and $25
 
                            -6-      LRB093 13436 SJM 18832 b
 1    per coverage year for all other persons.
 2        In  the event that 2 or more persons are eligible for any
 3    benefit  under  this  Act,  and  are  members  of  the   same
 4    household,   (1)  each  such  person  shall  be  entitled  to
 5    participate  in  the   pharmaceutical   assistance   program,
 6    provided  that he or she meets all other requirements imposed
 7    by this  subsection  and  (2)  each  participating  household
 8    member  contributes  the  fee required for that person by the
 9    preceding  paragraph  for  the  purpose   of   obtaining   an
10    identification card.
11    (Source: P.A.  92-131,  eff.  7-23-01;  92-519,  eff. 1-1-02;
12    92-651, eff. 7-11-02; 93-130, eff. 7-10-03.)

13        Section 99.  Effective date.  This Act takes effect  upon
14    becoming law.