Increasing Nutrition Access for Seniors Act of 2025

[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 5055 Introduced in House (IH)]

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119th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 5055

 To amend the Food and Nutrition Act of 2008 to simplify supplemental 
     nutrition assistance program access for elderly and disabled 
                              individuals.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                            August 26, 2025

   Mr. Riley of New York (for himself, Mr. Lawler, Mrs. Dingell, Ms. 
 Tlaib, Mr. Thanedar, Ms. Brown, Mr. Kennedy of New York, Mrs. McClain 
Delaney, Ms. Norton, Ms. Kelly of Illinois, Mr. Espaillat, Mr. Johnson 
of Georgia, Mr. Mannion, and Mr. Carson) introduced the following bill; 
           which was referred to the Committee on Agriculture

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
 To amend the Food and Nutrition Act of 2008 to simplify supplemental 
     nutrition assistance program access for elderly and disabled 
                              individuals.

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

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Increasing Nutrition Access for 
Seniors Act of 2025''.

SEC. 2. AMENDMENTS.

    (a) Definition.--Section 3(f) of the Food and Nutrition Act of 2008 
(7 U.S.C. 2012(f)) is amended in the second sentence by inserting ``, 
or 36 months if that household has no earned income'' before the period 
at the end.
    (b) Excess Medical Expense Deduction.--Section 5(e)(5)(A) of the 
Food and Nutrition Act of 2008 (7 U.S.C. 2014(e)(5)(A)) is amended--
            (1) by inserting ``(i)'' before ``A'', and
            (2) by adding at the end the following:
                    ``(ii)(I) A State agency may establish a standard 
                medical deduction option for elderly or disabled 
                household members who self-attest to having medical 
                expenses in excess of $35 a month (exclusive of special 
                diets).
                    ``(II) The standard medical deduction amount shall 
                be--
                            ``(aa) for fiscal year 2026, $155; and
                            ``(bb) for each subsequent fiscal year, 
                        equal to the applicable amount for the 
                        immediately preceding fiscal year as adjusted 
                        to reflect changes for the 12-month period 
                        ending the preceding June 30 in the Consumer 
                        Price Index for All Urban Consumers: Medical 
                        Care published by the Bureau of Labor 
                        Statistics of the Department of Labor.
                    ``(III) For any fiscal year, a State agency may 
                establish a greater standard medical expense deduction 
                than described in subclause (II) if the State provides 
                reasonable evidence for a more accurate assessment of 
                average monthly medical costs in their State.''.
    (c) Administration.--Section 11(e)(3) of the Food and Nutrition Act 
of 2008 (7 U.S.C. 2020(e)(3)) is amended by inserting after ``this 
Act'' the second place it appears the following:
``(except that State agency may use data matches in lieu of income 
verification if the household qualifies for a 36-month certification 
period under section 3(f))''.

SEC. 3. EFFECTIVE DATE; APPLICATION OF AMENDMENTS.

    (a)  Effective Date.--Except as provided in subsection (b), this 
Act and the amendments made by this Act shall take effect 180 days 
after the date of the enactment of this Act.
    (b) Application of Amendments.--The amendments made by this Act 
shall not apply with respect to certification periods that begin before 
the effective date of this Act.
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