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West Virginia Income Maintenance Manual Chapter 4
West Virginia Income Maintenance Manual Page 71 Chapter 4 Income
certification period. The actual monthly payment to the credit card company is not an allowable medical expense. An AG that is certified for 24 months may elect to have one-time only costs deducted as follows: • Costs reported during the first 12 months of the certification period may be: o Deducted for one month; o Averaged over the remainder of the first 12 months; or o Averaged over the remainder of the 24-month certification period. • Costs reported after the twelfth month may be: o Deducted for one month; or o Averaged over the remainder of the certification period. ➢ Estimated and Actual Medical Expenses Clients may choose to use a combination of estimated and actual expenses. ▪ Estimated Expenses The client may claim a medical deduction by providing a reasonable estimate of medical expenses for the certification period. Such expenses may include current verified medical expenses, anticipated changes in ongoing expenses, an anticipated new ongoing expenses, or an anticipated one-time only expense. The client must verify that his estimate is reasonable. Information used to determine that an estimate is reasonable may include, but is not limited to: • Current verified medical expenses • Statement from a physician, dentist, or other healthcare professional to establish the need for and/or date of an anticipated procedure, course of treatment, etc. The Worker and/or Supervisor may establish need based upon knowledge of the client’s current or prior circumstances, or information in the client’s record. • Cost estimate from the provider of an anticipated procedure, course of treatment, etc. • Information about third-party coverage, including Medicaid, for current and/or anticipated expenses Once the client provides a reasonable estimate of expenses for the certification period, he is not required to report further, even if the estimated expenses increase, decrease, or are not incurred. However, changes reported by the AG must be acted on.