United States · United States Congress · 25 June 2003
Rachel Granger Act of 2003 - Amends title II (Old Age, Survivors and Disability Insurance) (OASDI) of the Social Security Act to authorize waivers by the Commissioner of Social Security of the five-month waiting period for entitlement to benefits based on disability in cases in which the Commissioner determines that such waiting period would cause undue hardship to terminally ill beneficiaries.
United States · United States Congress · 25 June 2003
Medicare Prescription Drug and Modernization Act of 2003 - Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act (SSA) to add a new part D (Voluntary Prescription Drug Benefit Program) under which each individual who is entitled to benefits under Medicare part A (Hospital Insurance) or enrolled under Medicare part B (Supplemental Medical Insurance) is entitled to obtain qualified prescription drug coverage. Authorizes the individual to elect to enroll: (1) in a Medicare Advantage (MA) plan (replacing the current Medicare+Choice plans under Medicare part C (Medicare+Choice)); (2) in an enhanced fee-for-service (EFFS) plan; or (3) in a prescription drug plan (PDP) if the individual is not enrolled in an MA-EFFS plan (a Medicare Advantage plan and an EFFS plan). Establishes a Medicare Prescription Drug Trust Fund. Outlines standard coverage benefit packages for FY 2006. Includes for the standard package an annual deductible of $250, and requires insurers to cover 80 percent of enrollees drug costs up to the initial coverage limit of $2,000. Requires enrollees to cover all costs between $2,001 and $3,500, and Medicare to cover the entire cost once the beneficiary has reached the $3,500 catastrophic out-of-pocket threshold. Prescribes a formula for adjustment of: (1) such deductible and annual limits for inflation; and (2) such catastrophic limit for each enrollee in a PDP or in an MA-EFFS Rx plan (an MA-EFFS plan which provides qualified prescription drug coverage) whose adjusted gross income exceeds $60,000. Establishes a competitive bidding process for negotiating the terms and conditions of PDP sponsors. Provides for full premium subsidy and reduction of cost-sharing for individuals with incomes below 135 percent of the Federal poverty level. Contains subsidy payments for qualifying entities to promote the participation of PDP and MA-EFFS Rx plan sponsors. Sets out: (1) a new Medicare prescription drug discount card and assistance program under the Medicare program; and (2) requirements for combating waste, fraud, and abuse under Medicare. Makes a number of other changes with regard to Medicare: (1) part A concerning rural health care, inpatient hospital services, skilled nursing facility services, and hospices; (2) part B concerning physicians services and other services; and (3) part A and B concerning home health services, direct graduate medical education, and voluntary chronic care improvement. Establishes the Medicare Benefits Administration in the Department of Health and Human Services. Amends SSA title XVIII part F (Miscellaneous) (currently part D) to include a number of regulatory, contracting, and administrative changes, such as the: (1) coordination of educational funding; (2) transfer of responsibility for Medicare appeals; (3) provision of expedited access to judicial review of Medicare appeals; (4) recovery of overpayments; and (5) revision of reassignment provisions. Amends the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (FFDCA) with regard to: (1) the 30-month of Food and Drug Administration approval for any new drug in certain circumstances; and (2) forfeiture of the 180-day marketing exclusivity period by the first new drug applicant to a subsequent applicant. Provides for manufacture, marketing, or sale agreements between a generic drug applicant and a brand name drug applicant, subject to Federal Trade Commission review. Amends the FFDCA to direct the Secretary of Health and Human Services to promulgate regulations permitting pharmacists, wholesalers, and individuals to import prescription drugs from Canada into the United States, subject to specified conditions.
United States · United States Congress · 23 June 2003
Chiropractic Medicare Freedom and Benefit Protection Act - Amends part D (Miscellaneous Provisions) of title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act to: (1) revise the definition of chiropractor, specifying the scope of chiropractic services that may be furnished under Medicare, namely, those which are clinically necessary care when examination by a chiropractor demonstrates objective evidence of a subluxation; and (2) provide for payment of chiropractic services as physicians' services.
United States · United States Congress · 18 June 2003
College Loan Assistance Act of 2003 - Amends the Higher Education Act of 1965 to revise student aid requirements for student loans and Pell Grants. Allows refinancing of student consolidation loans under the Federal Family Education Loan (FFEL) program. Reduces the amount of a cap on interest rate under the FFEL program. Extends authority for the Pell Grant program. Increases the maximum amount of an individual Pell Grant award to $7,000 for each of academic years 2004-2005 and 2005-2006. Prohibits eligible lenders or the Secretary of Education from collecting origination fees from borrowers, under the FFEL or the Federal direct loan program, for any loan made on or after the first July 1 after the date of enactment of the Student Loan Relief Act of 2003 (sic).
United States · United States Congress · 17 June 2003
Greater Access to Affordable Pharmaceuticals Act - Amends the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act to: (1) limit a brand name drug manufacturer to one Food and Drug Administration (FDA) 30-month stay of competition in a patent infringement suit against a generic drug applicant; (2) permit a generic applicant being sued to file a counterclaim to correct or delete patent information; (3) limit damages that a brand name manufacturer may recover in an instance where such manufacturer failed to file certain patent information; (4) permit a generic drug applicant to seek declaratory judgment regarding patent infringement prior to marketing a drug; (5) forfeit the180-day market exclusivity period for a first generic drug applicant to a subsequent generic applicant if the first applicant engages in certain activities which impede such drug's timely marketing; and (6) permit alternative means to determine bioequivalence for drugs that are not absorbed into the bloodstream.
United States · United States Congress · 16 June 2003
Veterans Health Care Full Funding Act - Requires each fiscal year budget submitted to Congress by the President to include requests for amounts for veterans health care programs. Requires amounts appropriated for such programs to be available for two consecutive fiscal years. Establishes the Veterans Health Care Funding Review Board within the Department of Veterans Affairs. Directs the Board, beginning with FY 2005, to determine the level of funding needed for such programs for that fiscal year and the next and to publish such determination in the Federal Register. Outlines veterans' health care needs factors to be considered by the Board in arriving at such determination. Repeals requirements for certain congressional notifications in connection with a funding request for a Department major medical facility project or lease. Provides a 30-day standard for access to medical care for veterans seeking primary or specialized care, as measured from: (1) the time the veteran contacts the Department seeking an appointment until the date a visit is completed (primary care); and (2) the date on which the veteran is referred to a specialist until the date a visit is completed (specialty care). Directs the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to develop a standard of waiting time during a visit and to periodically review the performance of Department facilities compared to that standard.
United States · United States Congress · 16 June 2003
Constitutional Amendment - Authorizes the President, in the case of any bill, order, resolution, or vote presented to the President by the House of Representatives and the Senate, to decline to approve in whole any dollar amount of discretionary budget authority, any item of new direct spending, or any tax benefit.
United States · United States Congress · 12 June 2003
Death Tax Repeal Permanency Act of 2003 - Declares that the sunset provisions of the Economic Growth and Tax Relief Reconciliation Act of 2001 shall not apply to Title V: Estate, Gift, and Generation-skipping Transfer Tax Provisions of such Act. (Makes the repeal of estate and generation-skipping taxes under the Internal Revenue Code, and certain reductions of the gift tax, permanent.)
United States · United States Congress · 10 June 2003
Department of Veterans Affairs Chiropractic Employment Act - Authorizes the appointment of, and provision of medical care by, chiropractors within the Veterans Health Administration (VHA) of the Department of Veterans Affairs. Includes chiropractors within VHA provisions concerning: (1) qualifications of appointees, periods of appointment, and pay grades; (2) temporary and part-time appointments; (3) residencies and internships; (4) malpractice and negligence protection; (5) treatment as scarce medical specialists for contracting purposes; (6) reimbursement for continuing professional education expenses; and (7) collective bargaining exemptions.
United States · United States Congress · 5 June 2003
Establishes a standard for access to care for veterans seeking care from the Department of Veterans Affairs of 30 days from the date the veteran contacts the Department seeking an appointment until the date on which a visit with a primary care provider is completed, or 30 days from the date on which the veteran is referred for specialty care until that date on which a visit with an appropriate specialty care provider is completed. Directs the Secretary to develop and disseminate an appropriate standard of waiting time between the time a veteran's visit is scheduled and the time the veteran is seen by the provider. Requires periodic review of the performance of Department facilities compared to that standard. Requires the Secretary, when unable to meet the standard for access to care, to furnish health care and services for that veteran in a non-Department facility.
United States · United States Congress · 5 June 2003
State Veterans Cemetery Fairness Act of 2003 - Makes the burial plot allowance for a veteran who dies in a Department of Veterans Affairs facility or a facility providing Department-contracted care $300 (current law) or the lesser of the actual costs or $750 in the case of a State in which ground burial in a national cemetery is not available.
United States · United States Congress · 5 June 2003
The TRICARE Retirees Opportunity Act of 2003 - Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act to: (1) waive the part B (Supplementary Medical Insurance) late enrollment penalty for certain military retirees who enroll by December 31, 2004; and (2) provide a special part B enrollment period for such retirees.
United States · United States Congress · 22 May 2003
Reduction in Distribution of Spam Act of 2003 - Prohibits a person from initiating in interstate commerce the transmission of any unsolicited commercial electronic (UCE) mail message unless the message contains: (1) identification as an advertisement or solicitation; (2) notice of an opt-out opportunity, along with a mechanism for doing so; and (3) a valid physical street address of the vendor. Prohibits the transmission of UCE mail: (1) after valid objection; (2) with fraudulent header information; and (3) from illegally harvested email addresses. Provides a right of enforcement action for: (1) providers of Internet access service; (2) States on behalf of any of their residents; and (3) the Federal Trade Commission (FTC). Amends the Federal Criminal code to provide criminal penalties for: (1) falsifying the identify of an UCE mail sender; (2) failing to place warning labels on UCE mail containing sexually oriented material; (3) bulk email violations and repeat offenses; and (4) illegal harvesting of email addresses. Provides for enforcement of such penalties through actions by Internet service providers, the Attorney General, and State attorneys general. Requires the FTC to issue regulations to implement this Act. Requires the FTC and the Federal Communications Commission to report to Congress: (1) regarding the need to protect the rights of users of email to avoid receiving unwanted commercial email; and (2) a detailed analysis of the effectiveness and enforcement of the provisions of this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 22 May 2003
Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services to revise the definitions under Medicare regulations of "rehabilitation hospital" and "rehabilitation unit" for purposes of determining the applicable payment methodology under title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act. Requires the Secretary, in determining whether a rehabilitation hospital or unit is eligible for reimbursement for services furnished to Medicare beneficiaries under the prospective payment system (PPS) for inpatient rehabilitation facilities, to modify the list of treatment categories otherwise applicable (commonly referred to as the "75 Percent Rule") to include all rehabilitation impairment categories (except miscellaneous) established by the Secretary for purposes of such prospective payment system. (The "75 Percent Rule" requires that a rehabilitation hospital or unit show that during its most recent 12-month cost reporting period it served an inpatient population of whom at least 75 percent required intensive rehabilitative services for treatment of one or more of specified conditions.)
United States · United States Congress · 20 May 2003
Excludes the lump-sum proceeds of any life insurance policy on a veteran from consideration as income for purposes of determining veterans' pensions. Removes the requirement that application for a death pension must be made within 45 days from the date of a veteran's death (thereby making the effective date of its award the same as that for death compensation and dependency compensation (i.e., the first day of the month in which the death occurred)).
United States · United States Congress · 20 May 2003
Extends the delimiting period of eligibility for military survivors' and dependents' education assistance, with respect to a member who is involuntarily ordered to full-time National Guard duty, for the length of such duty plus four months.
United States · United States Congress · 20 May 2003
National Guard and Reserve Comprehensive Health Benefits Act of 2003 - Makes members of the Selected Reserve and the Individual Ready Reserve eligible for either the Prime or Standard option of the TRICARE Program (a Department of Defense managed health care program), allowing for either self-coverage or self-and-family coverage. Requires the Secretary of Defense to: (1) provide at least one open enrollment period each year for such members; and (2) charge applicable premiums, deductibles, and copayments for such coverage. Directs the Secretary of the military department concerned to pay the applicable premium to continue in force any qualified health plan coverage for a reserve member (and his or her dependents) while the member is serving on active duty pursuant to a call or order issued during a war or national emergency declared by the President or Congress. Requires the continuation of COBRA coverage during such period. Prohibits simultaneous coverage under both the qualified health plan and TRICARE.
United States · United States Congress · 14 May 2003
Old Man of the Mountain Commemorative Coin Act - Directs the Secretary of the Treasury to mint and issue not more than 50,000 $5 gold coins and 350,000 $1 silver coins emblematic of the Old Man of the Mountain (the granite symbol of New Hampshire's fierce independence). Directs that surcharges be paid by the Secretary to the Old Man of the Mountain Revitalization Fund, Inc., to be used for the objects and purposes of such fund.
United States · United States Congress · 14 May 2003
Long-Term Care and Retirement Security Act of 2003 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow: (1) a deduction (increasing percentages with full deductibility as of 2008) for eligible long-term care insurance premiums for a taxpayer, spouse, and dependents and (2) long-term care insurance to be offered under cafeteria plans and flexible spending arrangements. Allows an income-adjusted (limited) credit for eligible individuals with long-term care needs. Sets forth specified requirements for qualifying long-term care insurance contracts. Treats an exchange of qualified long-term care insurance contracts as a disposition of property for which no gain or loss is recognized.
United States · United States Congress · 13 May 2003
Commends: (1) President Bush, Secretary of Defense Rumsfeld, and U.S. Central Command commander General Franks for their planning and execution of successful military campaigns in Operations Enduring Freedom and Iraqi Freedom; (2) the members of the U.S. armed forces who participated in such operations; and (3) Department of Defense civilian employees, civilian contractors, and defense contractor personnel whose skills made possible the equipping of the armed forcesr. Expresses: (1) the Nation's gratitude to the 21 allies in Operation Enduring Freedom and to the 49 coalition members in Operation Iraqi Freedom; and (2) sympathy and condolences to the families and friends of the members of U.S. and coalition forces who have been injured, wounded, or killed during those operations. Calls upon communities across the Nation to prepare appropriate ceremonies to honor and welcome home the members of the armed forces participating in such operations and to recognize their contributions to U.S. homeland security and to the Global War on Terrorism. Recommits the United States to ensuring the safety of the U.S. homeland, to preventing weapons of mass destruction from reaching the hands of terrorists, and to helping the people of Iraq and Afghanistan build free democratic societies.
United States · United States Congress · 9 May 2003
Preservation of Localism, Program Diversity, and Competition in Television Broadcast Service Act of 2003 - Amends the Communications Act of 1934 to prohibit the Federal Communications Commission from permitting any license for a commercial television broadcast station to be granted, transferred, or assigned to any party if such action would result in that party owning, operating, controlling, or having a cognizable interest in stations which have an aggregate national audience reach exceeding 35 percent. Requires any party currently having licenses in excess of such limit to divest as necessary to comply with such limit within one year.
United States · United States Congress · 8 May 2003
Pledge Protection Act of 2003 - Amends the Federal judicial code to deny jurisdiction to any court established by Act of Congress to hear or determine any claim that the recitation of the Pledge of Allegiance violates the first amendment of the Constitution.
United States · United States Congress · 7 May 2003
Leave No Securities Behind Act - Amends the Federal National Mortgage Association Charter Act to extend Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) authority to mortgage-backed and subordinate obligations, and corporate securities (with an exemption for approved sellers) of the Federal National Mortgage Association (Fannie Mae). Amends the Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation Act to extend SEC authority to corporate securities (with an exception for approved sellers) of the Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation (Freddie Mac). Amends the Securities Act of 1933 to limit specified SEC registration fees.
United States · United States Congress · 7 May 2003
Christopher Reeve Paralysis Act - Permits the Director of the National Institutes of Health (the "Director" of NIH), acting through the Director of the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, to expand and coordinate the activities of NIH with respect to research on paralysis. Allows the Director to award grants to public or nonprofit entities to fund Christopher Reeve Paralysis Research Consortia for paralysis research. Permits the Director to solicit public input regarding paralysis research programs. Allows the Director, acting through the Director of the National Institute on Child Health and Human Development and the National Center for Rehabilitation Research and in collaboration with other agencies, to expand and coordinate the activities of NIH with respect to research with implications for enhancing daily function for persons with paralysis. Permits the Director to make grants to multicenter networks of clinical sites that will collaborate on rehabilitation intervention protocols. Permits the Secretary of Health and Human Services, acting through the Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, to study the unique health challenges associated with paralysis and other physical disabilities to improve the quality of life and long-term health status of individuals with such conditions. Allows the Secretary to undertake direct research and to make grants. Provides for the formation of a national paralysis and physical disability quality of life plan and a hospital-based paralysis registry. Permits the Secretary to award grants to: (1) State and local health and disability agencies, including for the purpose of establishing paralysis registries; and (2) nonprofit private health and disability organizations, including for the purpose of disseminating information to the public. Allows the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to: (1) establish within the Department of Veterans Affairs centers for paralysis research, education, and clinical activities; and (2) carry out initiatives, through the award of grants, for quality enhancement of research on paralysis.
United States · United States Congress · 1 May 2003
Jamestown 400th Anniversary Commemorative Coin Act of 2003 - Directs the Secretary of the Treasury to mint and issue not more than 100,000 $5 gold coins and 500,000 $1 silver coins, which shall be emblematic of the settlement of Jamestown, Virginia (the first permanent English settlement in America). Provides for a $35 per coin surcharge for the $5 dollar coins and $10 per coin for the $1 dollar coins. Directs that: (1) half of the surcharges be used to support programs to promote the understanding of the legacies of Jamestown (to be paid to the Jamestown-Yorktown Foundation); and (2) half be used to sustain the ongoing mission of preserving Jamestown, to enhance national and international educational programs relating to Jamestown, to improve infrastructure and archeological research activities relating to Jamestown, and conduct other programs to support the commemoration of the 400th anniversary of the settlement of Jamestown (to be distributed by the Secretary in equal shares to the Secretary of the Interior, the Association for the Preservation of Virginia Antiquities, and the Jamestown-Yorktown Foundation).
United States · United States Congress · 1 May 2003
Directs the Secretary of Defense to provide transportation on Department of Defense aircraft, on a space-available basis, for veterans with service-connected disabilities rated at 50 percent or more, and for their dependents, on the same basis that such transportation is provided to former military personnel entitled to retired or retainer pay.
United States · United States Congress · 1 May 2003
Genetic Nondiscrimination in Health Insurance and Employment Act - Amends the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974, the Public Health Service Act , the Internal Revenue Code, and Medicare supplemental policy provisions to prohibit health plans and insurers, with respect to protected genetic information, from discriminating in enrollment, eligibility, contribution rates, and premium rates based on such information. Makes it an unlawful employment practice for an employer, employment agency, labor organization, or training program to discriminate because of protected genetic information.
United States · United States Congress · 1 May 2003
Medicare Vision Rehabilitation Services Act of 2003 - Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act (SSA) to provide for coverage of outpatient vision rehabilitation services under part B (Supplementary Medical Insurance) of the Medicare program.
United States · United States Congress · 30 April 2003
Authorizes the President to present a gold medal in recognition of Jackie Robinson's contributions to the Nation. Calls for designation of a national day recognizing Robinson's accomplishments.
United States · United States Congress · 30 April 2003
Self-Employed Health Care Affordability Act of 2003 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to permit as a net earnings deduction the health insurance costs of a self-employed individual.
United States · United States Congress · 12 April 2003
Syria Accountability and Lebanese Sovereignty Restoration Act of 2003 - Declares the sense of Congress that: (1) the Government of Syria should immediately and unconditionally halt support for terrorism, permanently and openly declare its total renunciation of all forms of terrorism, and close all terrorist offices and facilities in Syria, including the offices of Hamas, Hizballah, the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine, and the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine-General Command; (2) the Government of Syria should take other specified steps to withdraw its armed forces from Lebanon, halt development of certain weapons, halt illegal imports and transshipments of Iraqi oil and illegal sales and supplies of weapons and military-related equipment to Iraq; (3) the Government of Lebanon should deploy the Lebanese armed forces to all areas of Lebanon, including South Lebanon, in accordance with United Nations Security Council Resolution 520 (September 17, 1982) (Security Council Resolution 520); (4) the Governments of Lebanon and Syria should enter into serious unconditional bilateral negotiations with the Government of Israel in order to realize a full and permanent peace; (5) the United States should continue to provide humanitarian and educational assistance to the people of Lebanon only through appropriate private, nongovernmental organizations and appropriate international organizations, until such time as the Government of Lebanon asserts sovereignty and control over all of its territory and borders and achieves full political independence; and (6) being in violation of several key United Nations Security Council resolutions and pursuing policies which undermine international peace and security, Syria should not have been permitted to join the United Nations Security Council or serve as the Security Council's President, and should be removed from the Security Council. Declares that it is U.S. policy: (1) Syria will be held responsible for attacks committed by Hizballah and other terrorist groups with offices or other facilities in Syria, or bases in areas of Lebanon occupied by Syria; (2) the United States shall impede Syria's ability to support acts of international terrorism and efforts to develop or acquire weapons of mass destruction; (3) the Secretary of State will continue to list Syria as a state sponsor of terrorism until it ends support for terrorism, including its support of Hizballah and other terrorist groups in Lebanon and its hosting of terrorist groups in Damascus, and comes into full compliance with U.S. law relating to terrorism and United Nations Security Council Resolution 1373 (September 28, 2001); (4) efforts against Hizballah will be expanded given the recognition that Hizballah is equally or more capable than al Qaeda; (5) the full restoration of Lebanon's sovereignty, political independence, and territorial integrity is in the U.S. national security interest; (6) Syria is in violation of Security Council Resolution 520 through its continued occupation of Lebanese territory and its encroachment upon its political independence; (7) Syria's obligation to withdraw from Lebanon is not conditioned upon progress in the Israeli-Syrian or Israeli-Lebanese peace process but derives from Syria's obligation under Security Council Resolution 520; (8) Syria's acquisition of weapons of mass destruction and ballistic missile programs threaten the security of the Middle East and U.S. national security interests; (9) Syria is in violation of United Nations Security Council Resolution 661 (August 6, 1990) and subsequent relevant resolutions through its continued purchase of oil from Iraq and shipments of weapons and other military equipment to Iraq; (10) Syria will be held accountable for any harm to Coalition armed forces of Operation Iraqi Freedom caused by shipments of military supplies from Syria to Iraq; and (11) the United States will not provide any assistance to Syria and will oppose multilateral assistance for Syria until Syria withdraws its armed forces from Lebanon, halts the development and deployment of weapons of mass destruction and medium and long range surface to surface ballistic missiles, and complies with Security Council Resolution 661 and subsequent relevant resolutions. Sets forth the following penalties against Syria until the President determines and certifies to Congress that Syria meets the requirements of this Act. Directs the President to prohibit the export to Syria of any item, including the issuance of an export license, on the United States Munitions List or Commerce Control List of dual-use items in the Export Administration Regulations. Requires the President, at the same time, to impose two or more of the following sanctions: (1) prohibit the export to Syria of U.S. products (other than food and medicine); (2) prohibit U.S. businesses from investing or operating in Syria; (3) restrict Syrian diplomats in Washington, D.C., and at the United Nations in New York City, to travel only within a 25-mile radius of Washington, D.C., or the United Nations headquarters building, respectively; (4) prohibit aircraft of any air carrier owned or controlled by Syria to take off from, land in, or overfly the United States; (5) reduce U.S. diplomatic contacts with Syria (other than those required to protect U.S. interests or carry out the purposes of this Act); and (6) block transactions in any property in which the Government of Syria has any interest, by any person, or with respect to any property, subject to U.S. jurisdiction. Authorizes the President to waive such sanctions for one or more six-month periods if the President determines that it is in the vital national security interest of the United States to do so and reports his reasons to Congress. Authorizes the President to provide development assistance to Syria and Lebanon under the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 if he certifies to Congress that: (1) Syria meets the requirements of this Act; (2) substantial progress has been made both in negotiations aimed at achieving a peace agreement between Israel and Syria and in negotiations aimed at achieving a peace agreement between Israel and Lebanon; and (3) the Government of Syria is strictly respecting the sovereignty, territorial integrity, unity, and political independence of Lebanon under the sole and exclusive authority of the Government of Lebanon through the Lebanese army throughout Lebanon, as required under Security Council Resolution 520. Requires annual reports to the appropriate congressional committees on Syria's progress in complying with the requirements of this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 12 April 2003
Commemorates the loss of the U.S.S. Thresher on April 10, 1963. Urges the Secretary of the Army to erect a memorial in Arlington National Cemetery honoring the crew of the U.S.S. Thresher and all U.S. submariners who have lost their lives in the line of duty.
United States · United States Congress · 11 April 2003
Family Opportunity Act of 2003 or Dylan Lee James Act - Amends title XIX (Medicaid) of the Social Security Act (SSA) to: (1) give States the option of allowing families of disabled children to purchase Medicaid coverage for them; and (2) provide for treatment of inpatient psychiatric hospital services for individuals under age 21 under waivers allowing for payment of part or all of the cost of home or community-based services. Amends SSA title V (Maternal and Child Health Services) to make appropriations to the Secretary of Health and Human Services for special projects of regional and national significance for development and support of family-to-family health information centers. Amends SSA title XIX to provide for the restoration of Medicaid eligibility to certain Supplemental Security Income (SSA title XVI) beneficiaries under age 21.
United States · United States Congress · 11 April 2003
Fire Sprinkler Incentive Act of 2003 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to classify automatic fire sprinkler systems as five-year depreciable property. .
United States · United States Congress · 10 April 2003
Health Care Parity for Legal Transportation and Recreational Activities Act - Amends the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974, the Public Health Service Act, and the Internal Revenue Code to prohibit a group health plan or health insurance issuer from denying benefits otherwise provided for the treatment of an injury solely because such injury resulted from the participation of the participant or beneficiary in a legal transportation and recreational activity such as motorcycling or skiing.
United States · United States Congress · 10 April 2003
Veterans Earn and Learn Act - Adjusts the Montgomery GI Bill veterans' educational assistance entitlement charges for each month that an eligible veteran is paid a job training assistance allowance through the Department of Veterans Affairs. Increases such charge for any month in which the veteran fails to complete 120 hours of such training. Directs the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to pay a lump-sum incentive payment to an individual who successfully completes a full-time program of job apprenticeship before his or her assistance allowance is exhausted, under the educational assistance programs for: (1) the post-Vietnam era; (2) survivors and dependents; and (3) the Selected Reserve. Increases the assistance payable under such programs for each month in which an individual pursuing a full-time program of apprenticeship or other on-job training is also enrolled in a course of classroom instruction related to such training. Directs the Secretary, when determining the period of a competency-based program of apprenticeship, to consider the approximate program term in registered apprenticeship program standards recognized by the Secretary of Labor. Requires the sponsor of any job training to notify the Secretary upon the successful completion of that program by the veteran or other eligible person. Directs the Secretary to conduct a pilot program of up to three years for training Department employees to become qualified adjudicators of claims for veterans' compensation, dependency and indemnity compensation, and pensions. Requires the Secretary of Defense to furnish to the Secretary, at the time of a member's discharge, pertinent information concerning each registered apprenticeship pursued by such member during his or her service.
United States · United States Congress · 10 April 2003
Military Surviving Spouses Equity Act - Repeals, as of the later of October 1, 2003, or the date of enactment of this Act, certain provisions which require the offset of amounts paid in dependency and indemnity compensation from Survivor Benefit Plan (SBP) annuities for the surviving spouses of former military personnel who are entitled to military pay or who would be entitled to retired pay except for being under 60 years of age. Provides for the recoupment of certain amounts previously paid to SBP recipients in the form of a retired pay refund.
United States · United States Congress · 10 April 2003
Breast Cancer and Environmental Research Act of 2003 - Amends the Public Health Service Act to direct the Director of the National Institute of Environmental Health Services, based on recommendations from the Breast Cancer and Environmental Research Advisory Panel (established by this Act), to make grants, after a process of peer review and programmatic review, to public or nonprofit private entities for the development and operation of not more than eight centers for the purpose of conducting multidisciplinary and multi-institutional research on environmental factors that may be related to the etiology of breast cancer.
United States · United States Congress · 10 April 2003
Acknowledges the 15th anniversary of the enactment of the Genocide Convention Implementation Act of 1987 (the Proxmire Act) on November 4, 2003. Encourages the people and Government of the United States to rededicate themselves to ending genocide.
United States · United States Congress · 9 April 2003
Teacher Education for Autistic Children Act of 2003 - TEACH Act of 2003 - Authorizes additional appropriations for: (1) training of special education teachers with expertise in autism spectrum disorders (ASD); and (2) improving results for children with ASD, under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA). Directs the Secretary of Education (the Secretary) to carry out a student loan forgiveness program of assuming the obligation to repay up to specified amounts of certain loans under the Higher Education Act of 1965 for borrowers who are employed as full-time special education teachers of children with ASD for three consecutive complete school years. Provides for additional amounts to be repaid at the end of each of the next two additional consecutive years of such employment, up to a total maximum amount. Amends IDEA to require local educational agencies receiving IDEA assistance to report on autism early intervention activities. Directs the Secretary: (1) acting through the Assistant Secretary for Special Education and Rehabilitative Services to establish and provide administrative support for a task force on ASD; (2) with the Secretary of Labor to study and report to Congress on the effectiveness of Federal vocational training programs in providing appropriate assistance to individuals with ASD; and (3) to make grants to each State that establishes and operates at least one State autism ombudsman office.
United States · United States Congress · 9 April 2003
Recognizes the necessity to pursue justice and national reconciliation in Iraq through the establishment of a special court or other appropriate tribunal or commission which should adjudicate the cases of those accused of bearing greatest responsibility for war crimes and crimes against humanity, including prosecuting Saddam Hussein and other Iraqi officials, military leaders, and other citizens who may have committed crimes in contravention of the Hague and Geneva Conventions on the laws of war. Considers the International Criminal Court not to be the appropriate forum for the prosecution of such crimes since that court only has jurisdiction to hear cases relating to crimes committed after July 1, 2002. Calls upon the Secretary of Defense and the Secretary of State to notify Congress of the steps the United States and allied coalition nations are taking to seek justice for the violations of international law against the Iraqi people and others.
United States · United States Congress · 8 April 2003
Apprenticeship Enhancement Act of 2003 - Amends the National Apprenticeship Act to direct the Secretary of Labor to ensure that applications relating to apprenticeship programs are processed in a fair and timely manner. Allows aggrieved applicants to file petitions for judicial review of final determinations by the Secretary or applicable designee.
United States · United States Congress · 7 April 2003
Amends Federal provisions relating to the military Survivor Benefit Plan (SBP) to change from October 1, 2008, to October 1, 2003, the effective date on or after which no reduction may be made in the retired pay of an SBP participant for any month after the later of: (1) the 360th month for which such pay was so reduced; and (2) the month during which the participant attains 70 years of age.
United States · United States Congress · 31 March 2003
Directs the Speaker of the House of Representatives and the President Pro Tempore of the Senate to arrange for the presentation, on behalf of Congress, of a gold medal to Prime Minister Tony Blair of the United Kingdom in recognition of his outstanding and enduring contributions to maintaining the security of all freedom-loving nations. Requires the Secretary of the Treasury to: (1) strike such gold medal (and authorizes the Secretary to strike and sell duplicate bronze medals); and (2) deposit sums received from the sale of the bronze medals into the U.S. Mint Public Enterprise Fund.
United States · United States Congress · 27 March 2003
Veterans Entrepreneurship Act of 2003 - Authorizes a State agency to approve entrepreneurship (business education) courses for attendance by veterans using veterans' basic educational assistance provided through the Department of Veterans Affairs. Prohibits the Secretary of Veterans Affairs from treating a business owner as already qualified for such purposes. Includes entrepreneurship courses within authorized programs of veterans' education assistance. Authorizes any person entitled to a veterans' rehabilitation program to establish self-employment as a vocational goal. Amends the Small Business Act to authorize a Federal contracting officer to award a sole source contract to any small business owned and controlled by service-disabled veterans if: (1) the business is determined to be responsible with respect to the performance of the contract opportunity and the contracting officer does not expect two or more such businesses to submit offers for such contract; (2) the anticipated award price of the contract will not exceed a specified amount; and (3) the contract award can be made at a fair and reasonable price. Allows a contracting officer to restrict contract competition to such businesses if the officer can reasonably expect two or more such businesses to submit offers. Allows for the appeal by the Administrator of the Small Business Administration of a contracting officer's decision not to award a contract opportunity to such a business.
United States · United States Congress · 25 March 2003
Colon Cancer Screen for Life Act of 2003 - Expresses the sense of the Congress with respect to the use of and reimbursement for colorectal cancer screening tests covered under the Medicare program under title XVIII of the Social Security Act (SSA). Amends SSA title XVIII to: (1) increase reimbursement for colorectal cancer screening and diagnostic tests; (2) cover an outpatient office visit or consultation for the purpose of beneficiary education before a colorectal cancer screening test consisting of a screening colonoscopy or in conjunction with the beneficiary's decision to obtain such a screening, regardless of whether such screening is medically indicated with respect to the beneficiary; and (3) waive the deductible for colorectal cancer screening tests.
![Official portrait of Rep. Bradley, Jeb [R-NH-1]](https://www.congress.gov/img/member/b001246_200.jpg)