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PLACE OF APPLICATION: Individuals can apply at any field OPA, by mail, telephone or online. Field offices must allow individuals to drop off or pick up applications at any time during regular working hours and days, including the lunch hour. COMPLETE APPLICATION: Applicants can submit a signed first page of an application to establish their application date. Medicaid cannot be approved or authorized until a completed and signed application is received. RECEIVING MEDICAID IN ANOTHER STATE: Medicaid must be closed in the state the client moved from before a Montana Medicaid application can be approved. Medicaid can only overlap for a one-month period when a person moves to Montana and was receiving Medicaid in another state. ELIGIBILITY INVESTIGATION: A signed application authorizes an investigation to determine eligibility. Investigations include securing reasonably available information (e.g., income statements, medical bills, etc.) and gathering information from other sources including Universal Inquiry. The agency’s goal is not to prove or disprove eligibility, but rather to investigate information, determine eligibility if enough information is present, and render a decision. ELIGIBILITY DETERMINATION: Each decision is supported by facts documented in the case file, and a decision is rendered in each case within: • 90 days for applications requiring a disability determination; and • 45 days for all other applications. Time frames begin on the application date and end the day a decision notice is mailed to the applicant/authorized representative. These time frames are not used as waiting periods before determining eligibility. Once necessary information is submitted, the agency cannot delay the eligibility determination. The time frames are limits on the agency, rather than allowances for the agency. Medicaid cannot be denied simply because necessary verification is not provided within 45 days (or 90 days, as applicable) of the application. These timeframes can be extended based on continued communication with the client. See ‘Extension Requests’ below.