State of Illinois
92nd General Assembly
Legislation

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92_HB2438

 
                                              LRB9207067ACcdA

 1        AN ACT concerning taxation.

 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, less
20    than $16,000 for the 1998 and 1999 grant years, and less than
21    (i)  $21,218  for  a  household  containing  one person, (ii)
22    $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 grant year and thereafter and whose household is  liable
25    for  payment  of  property  taxes  accrued  or  has paid rent
26    constituting property taxes accrued and is domiciled in  this
27    State  at  the time he files his claim is entitled to claim a
28    grant under  this  Act.  With  respect  to  claims  filed  by
29    individuals  who will become 65 years old during the calendar
30    year in which a claim is filed, the amount of  any  grant  to
31    which  that household is entitled shall be an amount equal to
 
                            -2-               LRB9207067ACcdA
 1    1/12 of the amount to which the claimant would  otherwise  be
 2    entitled  as  provided  in  this  Section,  multiplied by the
 3    number of months in which the claimant was 65 in the calendar
 4    year in which the claim is filed.
 5        (b)  Limitation.   Except  as   otherwise   provided   in
 6    subsections  (a)  and (f) of this Section, the maximum amount
 7    of grant which a claimant is entitled to claim is the  amount
 8    by  which  the  property  taxes  accrued  which  were paid or
 9    payable  during  the  last  preceding  tax   year   or   rent
10    constituting  property  taxes  accrued  upon  the  claimant's
11    residence  for the last preceding taxable year exceeds 3 1/2%
12    of the claimant's household income for that year  but  in  no
13    event  is the grant to exceed (i) $700 less 4.5% of household
14    income for that year for those with  a  household  income  of
15    $14,000 or less or (ii) $70 if household income for that year
16    is more than $14,000.
17        (c)  Public  aid  recipients.  If household income in one
18    or more months during a  year  includes  cash  assistance  in
19    excess  of $55 per month from the Department of Public Aid or
20    the Department of Human Services (acting as successor to  the
21    Department  of  Public  Aid  under  the  Department  of Human
22    Services Act)  which was determined under regulations of that
23    Department on a measure of need that  included  an  allowance
24    for  actual  rent  or property taxes paid by the recipient of
25    that assistance, the amount of grant to which that  household
26    is  entitled, except as otherwise provided in subsection (a),
27    shall be the product of (1) the maximum  amount  computed  as
28    specified in subsection (b) of this Section and (2) the ratio
29    of  the  number  of  months in which household income did not
30    include such cash assistance over $55 to the  number  twelve.
31    If household income did not include such cash assistance over
32    $55  for  any months during the year, the amount of the grant
33    to which the household  is  entitled  shall  be  the  maximum
34    amount  computed  as  specified  in  subsection  (b)  of this
 
                            -3-               LRB9207067ACcdA
 1    Section.   For  purposes  of  this   paragraph   (c),   "cash
 2    assistance"  does  not  include any amount received under the
 3    federal Supplemental Security Income (SSI) program.
 4        (d)  Joint ownership.  If title to the residence is  held
 5    jointly  by the claimant with a person who is not a member of
 6    his household, the amount of property taxes accrued  used  in
 7    computing  the  amount of grant to which he is entitled shall
 8    be the same percentage of property taxes accrued  as  is  the
 9    percentage   of   ownership  held  by  the  claimant  in  the
10    residence.
11        (e)  More than one residence.  If a claimant has occupied
12    more than one residence in the taxable  year,  he  may  claim
13    only  one  residence for any part of a month.  In the case of
14    property taxes accrued, he shall pro rate 1/12 of  the  total
15    property taxes accrued on his residence to each month that he
16    owned  and  occupied that residence; and, in the case of rent
17    constituting property taxes  accrued,  shall  pro  rate  each
18    month's  rent  payments  to  the  residence actually occupied
19    during that month.
20        (f)  There   is   hereby   established   a   program   of
21    pharmaceutical assistance to  the  aged  and  disabled  which
22    shall  be  administered  by the Department in accordance with
23    this Act, to consist of payments to authorized pharmacies, on
24    behalf of beneficiaries of the program,  for  the  reasonable
25    costs  of  covered  prescription drugs.  Each beneficiary who
26    pays $5 for an identification card shall  pay  no  additional
27    prescription  costs.    Each  beneficiary who pays $25 for an
28    identification  card  shall  pay  $3  per  prescription.   In
29    addition, after a beneficiary  receives  $2,000  in  benefits
30    during  a State fiscal year through December 31, 2001 and, on
31    and after January  1,  2002,  after  a  beneficiary  receives
32    $2,000  in  benefits during a calendar year, that beneficiary
33    shall also be charged 20% of the cost  of  each  prescription
34    for  which  payments  are  made  by  the  program  during the
 
                            -4-               LRB9207067ACcdA
 1    remainder of the fiscal year through December 31,  2001  and,
 2    on  and  after  January  1, 2002, during the remainder of the
 3    calendar year.  To become a beneficiary under this program  a
 4    person  must  be:  (1)  (i)  65  years  or older, or (ii) the
 5    surviving spouse of such a claimant, who at the time of death
 6    received or was entitled to receive benefits pursuant to this
 7    subsection, which surviving spouse will become  65  years  of
 8    age  within  the 24 months immediately following the death of
 9    such claimant and which surviving spouse but for his  or  her
10    age  is  otherwise  qualified to receive benefits pursuant to
11    this subsection, or (iii) disabled, and (2) is  domiciled  in
12    this State at the time he files his or her claim, and (3) has
13    a  maximum  household  income  of less than $14,000 for grant
14    years before the 1998 grant year, less than $16,000  for  the
15    1998  and  1999  grant years, and less than (i) $21,218 for a
16    household containing one person, (ii) $28,480 for a household
17    containing 2  persons,  or  (iii)  $35,740  for  a  household
18    containing  3  more  persons  for  the  2000  grant  year and
19    thereafter. In addition, each eligible person must (1) obtain
20    an identification card from the Department, (2) at  the  time
21    the card is obtained, sign a statement assigning to the State
22    of Illinois benefits which may be otherwise claimed under any
23    private  insurance plans, (3) present the identification card
24    to the dispensing pharmacist.
25        Whenever a generic equivalent for a covered  prescription
26    drug  is  available,  the Department shall reimburse only for
27    the reasonable costs of  the  generic  equivalent,  less  the
28    co-pay  established  in  this Section, unless (i) the covered
29    prescription drug contains one or more ingredients defined as
30    a narrow therapeutic index drug at 21 CFR  320.33,  (ii)  the
31    prescriber  indicates  on the face of the prescription "brand
32    medically necessary", and (iii) the prescriber specifies that
33    a substitution  is  not  permitted.   When  issuing  an  oral
34    prescription for covered prescription medication described in
 
                            -5-               LRB9207067ACcdA
 1    item  (i)  of  this paragraph, the prescriber shall stipulate
 2    "brand medically necessary" and that a  substitution  is  not
 3    permitted.    If   the  covered  prescription  drug  and  its
 4    authorizing prescription do  not  meet  the  criteria  listed
 5    above,   the   beneficiary   may   purchase  the  non-generic
 6    equivalent of the covered prescription  drug  by  paying  the
 7    difference  between the generic cost and the non-generic cost
 8    plus the beneficiary co-pay.
 9        Any  person   otherwise   eligible   for   pharmaceutical
10    assistance  under this Act whose covered drugs are covered by
11    any public program for assistance in purchasing  any  covered
12    prescription  drugs  shall be ineligible for assistance under
13    this Act to the extent such costs are covered by  such  other
14    plan.
15        The   fee  to  be  charged  by  the  Department  for  the
16    identification card shall be equal to $5  per  coverage  year
17    for persons below the official poverty line as defined by the
18    United States Department of Health and Human Services and $25
19    per  coverage  year  for  all  other  persons.  On and before
20    December  31,  2001,  coverage  under   this   pharmaceutical
21    assistance  program  shall  begin  on the date of application
22    approval and be in effect for 12 months. On and after January
23    1,  2002,  coverage  under  this  pharmaceutical   assistance
24    program shall be in effect on a calendar year basis.
25        In  the event that 2 or more persons are eligible for any
26    benefit  under  this  Act,  and  are  members  of  the   same
27    household,   (1)  each  such  person  shall  be  entitled  to
28    participate  in  the   pharmaceutical   assistance   program,
29    provided  that he or she meets all other requirements imposed
30    by this  subsection  and  (2)  each  participating  household
31    member  contributes  the  fee required for that person by the
32    preceding  paragraph  for  the  purpose   of   obtaining   an
33    identification card.
34    (Source: P.A.  90-650,  eff.  7-27-98;  91-357, eff. 7-29-99;
 
                            -6-               LRB9207067ACcdA
 1    91-699, eff. 1-1-01.)

 2        Section 99.  Effective date.  This Act takes effect  upon
 3    becoming law.

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