# 119-hr-6543: Health Care Worker and First Responder Fairness Act

119-hr-6543, Health Care Worker and First Responder Fairness Act, is a 119th Congress bill sponsored by Rep. Thompson, Glenn [R-PA-15] (R-PA); status introduced; PRIA reads it as touching household money (as of 2026-04-21).

- Canonical: https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-6543
- As of: 2026-04-21
- Plain-text twin of the page above; the HTML and this file carry the same facts.

## Facts
- Bill: 119-hr-6543
- Congress: 119
- Title: Health Care Worker and First Responder Fairness Act
- Status: introduced
- Introduced: 2025-12-09
- Sponsor: Rep. Thompson, Glenn [R-PA-15] (R-PA)
- Cosponsors: 2
- Policy area: Social Welfare
- Touches household money: yes
- Last recorded action: 2026-04-21

## Summary

**This bill would exempt certain wages of health care workers and first responders from the Social Security retirement earnings test.** It creates a time-limited exemption for a defined pandemic-era period and a framework to allow similar exemptions during future public health emergencies, and it authorizes the Social Security Commissioner to issue waivers and report on staffing shortages. - Health care workers and first responders: Wages paid during the covered historical period and during declared public health emergencies would not count toward excess earnings that can reduce retirement benefits. This protects pay earned while responding to shortages. - Social Security beneficiaries who return to work: Older adults collecting retirement benefits who worked in qualifying roles would face fewer benefit reductions tied to the earnings test for excluded pay. - Social Security Administration and emergency response: The bill lets the Commissioner waive rules and requires reporting on waivers and personnel shortages to guide emergency responses.

## Cosponsors (2)

- Rep. McClain Delaney, April [D-MD-6] (D-MD), 2025-12-09T00:00:00.000Z
- Rep. Vindman, Eugene Simon [D-VA-7] (D-VA), 2025-12-16T00:00:00.000Z

## Provisions PRIA read

- Ignore past health worker wages for retirees: benefit, medium. If enacted, Social Security would ignore wages you earned as a health care professional or first responder from January 31, 2020 through May 11, 2023 when checking for excess earnings that reduce retirement benefits. You would need to attest and provide evidence that you worked in that job during t…
- Protect Social Security checks for health workers: benefit, medium. If enacted, Social Security could exclude wages you earn as a health care professional or first responder during an HHS-declared public health emergency if the Commissioner grants you a waiver. The HHS Secretary must determine there is a shortage of health workers before waivers are allowed. You wo…

## Related bills

- 119-hr-7567: Farm, Food, and National Security Act of 2026
- 119-hr-3151: SHIPS for America Act of 2025
- 119-hr-1262: Mikaela Naylon Give Kids a Chance Act
- 119-hr-1383: Secure Rural Schools Reauthorization Act of 2025
- 119-hr-3184: PFAS Alternatives Act
- 119-hr-1317: I CAN Act

## Sources
- [119-hr-6543 on Congress.gov](https://www.congress.gov/bill/119th-congress/house-bill/6543)

## Related
- [119-hr-7567: Farm, Food, and National Security Act of 2026](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-7567)
- [119-hr-3151: SHIPS for America Act of 2025](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-3151)
- [119-hr-1262: Mikaela Naylon Give Kids a Chance Act](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-1262)
- [119-hr-1383: Secure Rural Schools Reauthorization Act of 2025](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-1383)
- [119-hr-3184: PFAS Alternatives Act](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-3184)
- [119-hr-1317: I CAN Act](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-1317)
- [All bills in Congress](https://policyrisk.com/legislation)

Source: PRIA, https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-6543 (as of 2026-04-21).