Blake Moore: “Today I rise in support of the ALS Disability Insurance Access Act. This important bill eliminates the mandatory…”

“Today I rise in support of the ALS Disability Insurance Access Act. This important bill eliminates the mandatory five-month waiting period for patients with ALS seeking to access the Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) benefits they earned. The waiting period creates an undue financial burden when ALS patients are already facing enormous financial stress. But while we act today to alleviate the hardship created by this waiting period for ALS patients, Congress must extend similar relief to other beneficiaries who are equally deserving. What sense does it make to have require SSDI beneficiaries to endure a five-month waiting period after they have been determined eligible for their earned SSDI benefits? This requirement creates an unnecessary delay for some of our nation's most vulnerable. We must ensure that all individuals who qualify for SSDI can access the benefits for which they have already qualified without undue delay. I urge my colleagues to not only support the ALS Disability Insurance Access Act, but to end the waiting period for all SSDI beneficiaries. The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the gentleman from Connecticut (Mr. Larson) that the House suspend the rules and pass the bill, S. 578. The question was taken; and (two-thirds being in the affirmative) the rules were suspended and the bill was passed. A motion to reconsider was laid on the table. ____________________”