To amend title 38, United States Code, to authorize the payment of dependency and indemnity compensation to the surviving spouses of certain former prisoners of war dying with a service-connected disability rated totally disabling at the time of death.

Authorizes the payment of dependency and indemnity compensation to the surviving spouse of a veteran who died while totally disabled from a service-connected disability, who was a former prisoner of war who died after September 30, 1999, and who had been diagnosed as having one of the diseases specified as being service-connected (and therefore compensable) under veterans' disability compensation or benefits provisions.

[Congressional Bills 106th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 784 Introduced in House (IH)]







106th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 784

  To amend title 38, United States Code, to authorize the payment of 
   dependency and indemnity compensation to the surviving spouses of 
    certain former prisoners of war dying with a service-connected 
        disability rated totally disabling at the time of death.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                           February 23, 1999

 Mr. Bilirakis (for himself, Mr. Stump, Mr. Evans, Mr. Shows, and Mr. 
   Filner) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
                     Committee on Veterans' Affairs

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
  To amend title 38, United States Code, to authorize the payment of 
   dependency and indemnity compensation to the surviving spouses of 
    certain former prisoners of war dying with a service-connected 
        disability rated totally disabling at the time of death.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. DEPENDENCY AND INDEMNITY COMPENSATION FOR SURVIVING SPOUSES 
              OF FORMER PRISONERS OF WAR.

    (a) Eligibility.--Section 1318(b) of title 38, United States Code, 
is amended--
            (1) by striking ``that either--'' in the matter preceding 
        paragraph (1) and inserting ``rated totally disabling if''; and
            (2) by adding at the end the following new paragraph:
            ``(3) the veteran was a former prisoner of war who died 
        after September 30, 1999, and who had been diagnosed as having 
        one of the diseases specified in section 1112(b) of this 
        title.''.
    (b) Conforming Amendments.--Such section is further amended--
            (1) in paragraph (1)--
                    (A) by inserting ``the disability'' after ``(1)''; 
                and
                    (B) by striking ``or'' after ``death;''; and
            (2) in paragraph (2)--
                    (A) by striking ``if so rated for a lesser period, 
                was so rated continuously'' and inserting ``the 
                disability was continuously rated totally disabling''; 
                and
                    (B) by striking the period at the end and inserting 
                ``; and''.
                                 <all>