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MEDICAL SERVICES POLICY MANUAL,SECTION O O-500 SSI Related Treatment of Income (AABD-MN)

O 510 Income Evaluation

O-500 SSI Related Treatment of Income (AABD-MN)

MS Manual 01/01/14 Income is defined as the receipt of assets by an individual in cash or in-kind during a month. To be considered as income, the assets received by the individual must be something of value for his own use and benefit in providing the basic requirements of food, clothing, and shelter. Lump sum or one time payments are considered as income for the month of receipt. Income may be received in cash (including checks, money orders, etc.) or in- kind (including items such as free rent, free food, etc.). The cash value of items received in-kind must be determined. The value of infrequently and irregularly received items such as small gifts of clothing will not be considered as income.

O-510 Income Evaluation MS Manual 01/01/14 Evaluations of income for the AABD Medically Needy will be made as follows: 1. Individuals with countable income less than the SSI payment limitations are not eligible for Medically Needy consideration unless they are: (a) deceased or other persons for whom SSI retroactive eligibility cannot be determined; (b) individuals in non-LTC institutions who are subject to the SSI $30.00 countable income limit (Re. MS O-141); or (c) individuals with disabilities who meet the requirements at MS F-120. The net monthly income of an individual in any of the above groups will be compared to the monthly Medically Needy Income Level to determine EC eligibility. 2. Those individuals whose countable income is greater than the SSI payment limitations will be evaluated on a quarterly basis to determine Medically Needy Spend Down (SD) eligibility. The individual or couple’s net quarterly income in these cases will be compared to the Quarterly Medically Needy Income Level to determine SD liability and eligibility. The specific process for determining Spend Down eligibility is found in MS O-740.