Page 175

UPDATED: NOVEMBER 2009 612

OTHER ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS SATISFACTORY IMMIGRATION STATUS

QUALIFIED ALIENS

• Persons for whom deportation has been withheld under Section 243(h) or 241 (b) (3) of the INA; • Cuban/Haitian entrants, as defined in Section 501(e) of the Refugee Education Assistance Act of 1980 (P.L. 96-422); • Qualified immigrants lawfully residing in the State who are on active duty in the armed forces, or who have received an honorable discharge from the armed forces and their spouses and unmarried dependent children, who are also qualified aliens.

NOTE: Non-citizen veterans and Active Duty Military personnel and their spouses and children are exempt from most of the immigration status related restrictions under the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act (PRWORA). For example they are eligible for Supplemental Security Income (SSI) and Food Stamps and are exempt from the five year ban.

• Refugees under Section 207 of the INA (including Amerasian immigrants admitted under the provisions of Public Law 100-202). • Victims of a severe form of trafficking are qualified aliens who receive Medicaid to the same extent as refugees. A comprehensive discussion of this group is in the section “Victims of Trafficking” of this Reference Guide. Federal Financial Participation (FFP) should be claimed for Medicaid provided to these qualified aliens.

ALL OTHER QUALIFIED ALIENS WHO ARE NOT IN THE ABOVE TWO GROUPS:

This group of qualified aliens may receive all care and services available under the Medicaid program, provided s/he is determined to be otherwise eligible. However, for these individuals the date they physically entered the United States will determine whether or not Federal Financial Participation (FFP) is available. This date is called the “Date Entered Country” (DEC). During their first five years in the U.S. with a status as qualified alien, FFP is not available. The cost of their Medicaid coverage will be born solely by State and local shares (50% State/50% local). Once a qualified alien in this group has resided in the United States as a qualified alien for a period of five years, FFP will become available. This means the federal government will pay a share of their Medicaid costs.

Qualified aliens in this group include the following: (MRG)