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-19- S. Rept. 2133, 84th Cong., 2d sess. (1956), pp. 3 and 4.

It did, however, recommend the adoption of the provisions relating to the payment of childhood disability benefits, except that it removed the restriction that. the child must be on the benefit rolls prior to attainment of 18; it sufficed that the child became disabled before 18. So Ion? as that occurred, the childhood disability benefit would be paid to the child whenever the insured worker died or became entitled to old-age insurance benefits. The committee did not believe that the serious difficulties involved in paying benefits to disabled workers applied to children disabled before age 18, since most of the cases involving children would be the result of congenital conditions or conditions existing since esrly -sic- childhood, including mental deficiency. -20-

-20- Ibid., p.2.

When H.R. 7225 was acted upon by the Senate, an amendment providing for disability insurance benefits was adopted on the floor by a 47 to 45 vote. The amendment followed very closely the provision adopted by the House of Representatives in the preceding year with one notable exception -- a separate trust fund was set up for the purpose of paying disability insurance benefits. This fund is held separate from the trust fund from which other benefits are paid and is the only source from which disability insurance benefits can be paid. The rate of contributions to this fund was one-half of 1 percent on wages (an employer rate of one-fourth of 1 percent and an employee rate of one-fourth of 1 percent) and three-eighths of 1 percent on the earnings of the self-employed.

In conference it was agreed to adopt the Senate's version of the disability insurance program with its separate trust fund, including the more liberal provision for the payment of childhood disability benefits.

As passed in 1956, the following pertinent provisions appeared:

(1) Benefits were payable if the individual was insured, was between the ages of 50 and 65, was under a disability, and had applied for benefits. Benefits were payable beginning July 1957, and, except in the case of applications filed before January 1958, there was retroactivity of benefit payments.

(2) Insured status provision : The individual must have been a cur-rently insured individual (a requirement similar to the one then existing under the "freeze" of 6 quarters of coverage in the 1.3 quarters ending with the quarter of disablement) and he must have had 20 quarters of coverage out of the last 40 calendar quarters.

(3) The definition of disability stated that in order for a person to be under a disability he must be unable to engage in any substantial gainful activity by reason of any medically determinable physical or mental impairment which must be expected to result in death or to be of long-continued and indefinite duration. The definition for "blindness" was similar to that of the freeze except that a blind person had to meet the substantial gainful activity test.

(4) There must have been 6 months of disability before benefits could be paid.

(5) Disability insurance benefits were reduced in any case where the individual was receiving another Federal disability benefit or a State work-men's compensation payment.

(6) In addition to the provision on rehabilitation enacted as part of the 1954 amendments, further provision on rehabilitation were added, those dealing with the withholding of benefits for refusing rehabilitation services and the rendering of services under a State plan for vocational rehabilitation.

(7) The provisions relating to the definition of disability, rehabilita-tion, and reduction as applied to disabled insured workers were also applicable to childhood disability benefits.

(8) Determinations of disability were to be made by the States under the same conditions as determinations of disability were made under the freeze.

The Conference report also stated :

it is understood and expected that the Secretary of Health, Education, and Welfare will fully utilize his authority to review and revise determi-nations of State agencies in order to assure uniform administration of the disability benefits and to protect the Federal Disability Insur-ance Trust Fund from unwarranted costs.-21-

-21- H. Rept. 2936, 84th Cong., p.26

Amendments to the Social Security Act in 1957 (Public Law 85-109)

These amendments (Public Law 85-109) made the following changes:

(1) The 12-month limitation on retroactivity of the disability "freeze" did not apply if the application were filed prior to July 1, 1957. The 1957 amendments extended this date to July 1, 1958. The Committee on Ways and Means indicated concern :

that many persons who became disabled some time ago will, if they fail to file applications before July 1, 1957, lose all their protection under the old-age and survivors insurance program * * * it is only fair to give workers now disabled a further opportunity to avoid loss of these valuable rights * * *. -22-