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West Virginia Income Maintenance Manual Chapter 8

West Virginia Income Maintenance Manual Page 3 Chapter 8 Resource Development

applicant’s name, address, date of birth, and Social Security number (SSN). The Buy-In Unit contacts Social Security to facilitate enrollment. This avoids any late enrollment penalty that may apply to the individual and permits enrollment outside the yearly open enrollment period. 8.2.3 WV WORKS EXCEPTIONS WV WORKS clients are expected to take the necessary steps to develop resources that may be available to them. The development of such resources is part of the Personal Responsibility Contract (PRC)/Self-Sufficiency Plan (SSP). As such, the application is not held pending until the client initiates development of the resource. WV WORKS clients must apply for and/or accept SSI benefits. If the client has appealed a disability decision, he is not expected to accept a reduced amount of disability compensation pending completion of the appeal process. The Veteran’s and Survivor’s Improvement Act of 1978 provided Veterans Affairs (VA) pensioners receiving a pension in December 1978 the option of choosing to receive a higher “improved” pension after December 31, 1978. Some pensioners who chose this option lost Aid to Families with Dependent Children (AFDC) cash assistance eligibility due to higher income. Those who lived in states without a Medically Needy Program also lost Medicaid eligibility. To remedy this, Section 1133 of the Social Security Act allowed these pensioners to revert to their previous pension level to regain their benefits. Therefore, these VA pensioners who elected lower pensions cannot be required to reapply for the improved pension as a condition of eligibility, even if the receipt to the improved pension did not or would not render them ineligible for the Department of Human Services (DoHS) benefit.