Health Care Worker and First Responder Fairness Act

This bill would exempt wages earned by health care professionals and first responders during the COVID-19 pandemic from the Social Security Retirement Earnings Test, which typically reduces benefits for individuals below full retirement age who exceed certain income limits. Additionally, the legislation would allow the Social Security Administration to issue waivers to these workers during declared public health emergencies involving labor shortages. Earnings for individuals granted these waivers would also be exempt from benefit reductions under the retirement earnings test.

This bill affects Social Security beneficiaries who are younger than the full retirement age and work as health care professionals or first responders. It specifically impacts those who earned wages in these roles during the COVID-19 pandemic or during future declared public health emergencies involving worker shortages. Additionally, the Social Security Administration is affected as the agency responsible for issuing waivers to exempt these specific earnings from the Retirement Earnings Test.

• Exemption from the Social Security Retirement Earnings Test. The bill exempts wages earned by health care professionals and first responders during the COVID-19 pandemic from the Social Security Retirement Earnings Test (RET). This prevents the reduction of benefits for individuals younger than full retirement age who earned wages above the standard annual limit in these roles.
• Waiver authority for public health emergencies. The Social Security Administration is authorized to issue waivers to health care professionals and first responders working during declared public health emergencies involving worker shortages. Wages earned by individuals who receive these waivers are exempt from the Retirement Earnings Test.

The bill applies to wages earned during the COVID-19 pandemic and during future declared public health emergencies involving health care worker shortages.

This bill modifies the application of the Social Security Retirement Earnings Test (RET), which currently reduces benefits for individuals under full retirement age who earn income above specific limits. It creates exemptions to these rules for wages earned by health care professionals and first responders during the COVID-19 pandemic and future declared public health emergencies.

The bill aims to prevent Social Security benefit reductions for health care professionals and first responders who earned wages during the COVID-19 pandemic or future declared public health emergencies. It establishes exemptions and waivers for the Social Security Retirement Earnings Test to ensure these workers are not penalized for exceeding annual income limits while addressing staffing shortages.