PNA Modernization Act
The Personal Needs Allowance Modernization Act (PNA Modernization Act) would raise the minimum monthly Personal Needs Allowance (PNA) for people who are institutionalized under Medicaid (Title XIX) and for couples living in such facilities. Specifically, it would increase the per-person PNA from $30 to $60 and the per-couple PNA from $60 to $120, with these increases taking effect on January 1, 2026. Additionally, the bill imposes automatic annual increases to these PNA amounts if Social Security benefits rise due to the automatic cost-of-living adjustments (COLAs under section 215(i) of the Social Security Act), applying to the month after any such increase. In short, the bill modernizes and indexed the PNA to inflation and SSA benefit changes.
Key Points
- 1Increases the minimum monthly PNA for institutionalized individuals to $60 and for couples to $120, effective January 1, 2026.
- 2Adds an automatic increase mechanism: if Social Security benefits rise due to 215(i) COLAs after November 2025, the PNA amounts must rise by the same percentage for the following month.
- 3The changes amend Title XIX of the Social Security Act, specifically section 1902(q)(2), to implement the new amounts and the automatic indexing.
- 4The bill is titled the Personal Needs Allowance Modernization Act (PNA Modernization Act).
- 5Introduced in the 119th Congress on October 3, 2025 by Rep. Moore (and co-sponsors) and referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce.