A bill to make a technical correction to the ALS Disability Insurance Access Act of 2019.
Public Law 117-3 · S. 579 · 117th Congress · began in the Senate
Signed by Joe Biden (D) on Mar 23, 2021 · Social Welfare
Sponsor: Sen. Mike Braun (R-IN)
Cosponsors (3): Sen. Christopher Coons, Sen. Tom Cotton,
Passage votes
- HouseUnanimous consent
- SenateUnanimous consent
Data notes
The final version of the law, as each chamber passed it. A chamber that passed it by voice vote or unanimous consent has no count. “Method not stated” means the record does not say how the chamber voted. Where the record has a member-by-member vote, the “Who voted for it” section shows who voted yea.
Summary
The Congressional Research Service’s plain-language summary of what the law does.
This bill retroactively eliminates the waiting period for Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) benefits for certain individuals with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). Commonly known as Lou Gehrig's Disease, ALS is a progressive neurodegenerative disease that affects nerve cells in the brain and spinal cord.
Under current law, most SSDI recipients must wait five months after becoming disabled before their benefit payments may begin. The ALS Disability Insurance Access Act of 2019 eliminated the waiting period for individuals with ALS but only covers individuals who apply for benefits after the date of enactment (December 20, 2020). As a result, individuals with ALS who applied for SSDI benefits in the five months before that date are still subject to the waiting period. This bill eliminates the waiting period for those individuals.
Committees
The record shows no committee referral for this bill.
Data notes
A committee links to its page only where it exists in the current Congress; older and renamed committees are named without a link.
Related bills
1 bill the Library of Congress relates to this one.
H.R. 1649Identical bill
To make a technical correction to the ALS Disability Insurance Access Act of 2019.
Data notes
Related bills are identified by the Congressional Research Service, the House and the Senate: companion and identical bills, bills with similar text, bills that were folded into this law, and rules that brought it to the floor. A bill that is itself a public law in this site’s data links here; the others link to Congress.gov.
Timeline
From introduction to signing, newest first: the committees, the floor and the president. 12 actions.
- Mar 23, 2021Became lawBecame law · Became Public Law No: 117-3.
- Became lawBecame law · Signed by President.
- Mar 22, 2021FloorFloor · Presented to President.
- Mar 11, 2021FloorFloor · Motion to reconsider laid on the table. Agreed to without objection.
- FloorFloor · On passage Passed without objection.
- FloorFloor · Considered by unanimous consent.
- FloorFloor · Mr. Thompson (CA) asked unanimous consent to take from the Speaker's table and consider.
- Mar 8, 2021FloorFloor · Held at the desk.
- FloorFloor · Received in the House.
- FloorFloor · Message on Senate action sent to the House.
- Mar 3, 2021FloorFloor · Introduced in the Senate, read twice, considered, read the third time, and passed without amendment by Unanimous Consent.
- IntroducedIntroduced · Introduced in Senate
Data notes
Every action the Library of Congress lists for the bill, from introduction to signing, plus the dated committee hearings. The source lists many steps twice (the chamber’s own entry and the Library of Congress copy, or a presidential and a became-law entry with the same words); those are shown once. Amendments are listed in their own section.
Amendments
No amendments to this bill are on record.
Data notes
Amendments offered to this bill in either chamber, as the Library of Congress records them: each with a status read from its last recorded step: agreed to, rejected, withdrawn, ruled out of order, fell with another amendment, or offered with no vote recorded (most Senate amendments are only ever offered). The wording of each amendment is the source’s. Amendments to amendments and amendments to other bills are not listed.
Official record
The bill’s full text is on Congress.gov. Data through Oct 7, 2026.