SR 00-34 Dated 08/00 (FSM)

STATE OF NEW HAMPSHIRE

INTER-DEPARTMENT COMMUNICATION

SUMMARY

Refugee Cash Assistance (RCA) and Refugee Medical Assistance (RMA) are available for up to 8 months following the refugee’s arrival in the US, for those refugees who are not categorically eligible for a regular DFA financial or medical assistance program. Several changes have been made to the refugee assistance program as a result of changes in federal regulations. These changes are effective August 1, 2000, and are addressed in the Policy Section below.

Manual pages related to the revised policy, as well as other RCA and RMA policy changes, will be released in a forthcoming SR as part of a major restructuring of RCA/RMA policy and release of Family Assistance Manual (FAM) Part 247, REFUGEE ASSISTANCE.

Refugee policy not addressed in this SR remains unchanged, such as verification of NH residency, refugee status, household size and composition, and income and resources. Refer to the FAM, SR’s Retained in the Manual, for further information.

POLICY

RCA and RMA policy changes include a new application processing timeframe, eligibility for RCA and RMA for asylees based on the date asylee status is granted, ineligibility of full time students in higher education, treatment of cash grants from the Department of State and the Department of Justice Reception and Placement (R & P) Programs, and a food stamp work registration exemption for certain refugees. Revised policy is addressed under the headings below.

Due to the scope of these and other forthcoming changes, no changes to New HEIGHTS programming for RCA and RMA will occur until further notice. Technical assistance is available to District Offices through the New HEIGHTS Help Desk at 1-800-852-3345, extension 8427.

Determining RCA and RMA Eligibility for Asylees Based on Date Asylee Status Is Granted

The federal Office of Refugee Resettlement (ORR) has determined that, effective June 15, 2000, aliens granted asylee status are eligible for Refugee Cash or Refugee Medical Assistance (RCA/RMA) beginning the date the individual is granted asylum in the U.S., if all other eligibility requirements are met. The date the individual is granted asylee status will be considered the "date of entry" into the U.S. for purposes of counting the 8 month eligibility period for RCA/RMA.

Prior policy required that all refugees, including asylees, have their eligibility for RCA and RMA based on the date of entry into the US. Since asylee status (which is considered the same as refugee status for purposes of RCA/RMA) is granted after the individual has arrived in the U.S. (sometimes many months later), most individuals granted asylum would be ineligible for RCA/RMA under the previous policy due to the length of time that has elapsed between the asylee’s date of entry and the application date for RCA/RMA. Using the date the individual was granted asylee status as the "date of entry" for purposes of RCA/RMA eligibility enables the individual to receive RCA/RMA for up to 8 months from the later of the 2 dates.

EXAMPLE

An alien enters the U.S. on December 1, 1999, as a tourist, then applies for asylee status on April 1, 2000. Asylee status is granted on September 1, 2000. Under previous policy, the individual would not be eligible for RCA/RMA, because more than 8 months have passed since she entered the U.S. However, under the revised policy, the individual’s "date of entry" is now considered to be September 1, 2000, so she may be eligible for RCA/RMA for 8 months from that date.

Effective immediately, individuals with a verified INS status of asylee who do not meet categorical requirements of an existing cash or medical assistance program must not be denied RCA/RMA. Consider the verified date on which asylee status is granted as the "date of entry" for purposes of determining the begin date of the 8 month allowable period of RCA/RMA eligibility.

Any of the following documents will confirm the date asylee status was granted:

INS Form I-94, Arrival/Departure Card, noting that the individual has been admitted under Section 208 of the Immigration and Naturalization Act (INA);

INS Form I-94, Arrival/Departure Card, with the admission codes AS-1, AS-2, or AS-3;

INS Form I-94, Arrival/Departure Card, with Visa 93 (or V-93);

Order of an Immigration Judge Granting Asylum under Section 208 of the INA; or

Asylum Approval Letter from an INS Asylum Office.

Application Processing

30 Day Processing Timeframe

Eligibility for refugee cash and medical assistance must be determined within 30 days of the date of application.

Note: As the Pending Applications report will not be modified to reflect this change, District Offices must track these applications manually to ensure timely processing.

Separate Income Eligibility Determinations Required for RCA and RMA

When determining initial RMA eligibility for refugees, District Offices must determine eligibility based on income and resources available on the date of application. Unlike RCA, even if the refugee expects an increase in income during the application month, income cannot be averaged or projected for the initial eligibility determination for RMA. This is especially important if the individual expects an increase in earned income, as the intent of the regulations is to encourage refugees to begin work as soon as possible without the fear of losing medical assistance (once an individual is eligible for RCA or RMA, continuing eligibility for RMA for the maximum 8 month period is unaffected by increases in earned income, even if RCA is terminated due to the increase in earned income. See Admin Memo, dated 04/96 in the FAM, SR’s Retained in the Manual). Therefore, District Offices should use the following procedures when RMA and other programs are requested:

If there is other case program involvement, such as RCA or food stamps, and the assistance group expects no changes in income during the application month, process the case normally within the required 30 day timeframe, making an effort to confirm eligibility for RMA as soon as possible.

If there is other case program involvement and the assistance group expects an increase in earned income to occur in the month of application (e.g., the individual reports that she will be starting a job next week), do the following:

·   At the Program of Assistance (POA) screen, check only Medical Assistance.

·   Complete the interactive interview as usual, but enter only income available on the date of application.

·   Run eligibility to the confirmation screen. If RMA eligibility passes, confirm RMA.

·   If other programs were also requested, such as RCA or food stamps, return to the POA screen and select those programs. Enter any additional information required, and run eligibility. Do not confirm RCA or regular Food Stamps unless RMA has already opened.

Exception: if New HEIGHTS determines eligibility for expedited food stamps, these benefits may be confirmed and issued prior to confirmation of RMA.

·   Once RMA eligibility has been confirmed, eligibility for all other programs may be run through confirmation.

District Offices should contact the Help Desk for additional assistance in implementing this policy correctly.

In and Out Processing for Cases Income Ineligible for RMA

Refugee assistance cases whose income at application is over the RMA limit for the appropriate group size must be allowed to spenddown to the RMA limit, if otherwise eligible.

Note: Because New HEIGHTS is not programmed to determine eligibility for In and Out RMA, tracking of the "spenddown" must be done manually, using the following procedures:

1. deny RMA based on income and suppress the New HEIGHTS Notice of Decision (NOD);

2. manually compute the spenddown;

3. inform the refugee about the spenddown process by a manually prepared NOD;

4. manually track verified expenses to meet the spenddown; and

5. if the spenddown is met prior to the expiration of the 8 month eligibility period, reactivate the original application for RMA, decrease the original income figure by the amount of the incurred expenses, and run eligibility through confirmation. Take care that the end date of RMA eligibility is no later than the last day of the 8th month since the refugee’s entry into the U.S.

Transfer from Categorically Eligible Medical Assistance to RMA

Refugees who have been in the US less than 8 months, are receiving medical assistance as categorically eligible refugees, and whose eligibility for regular medical assistance has been terminated due to employment, are guaranteed eligibility for RMA without an eligibility determination. Such a refugee will be eligible for RMA until 8 months have elapsed from the date of entry into the US.

Note: TANF-recipient refugees who are transferred to 12 month EMA due to new or increased earnings or hours of employment are potentially eligible for regular EMA for the full 12 months. It is only necessary to transfer the case to RMA if the refugee becomes ineligible for 12 month EMA, and as a result would receive less than 8 months of medical assistance from the date of entry into the US.

EXAMPLE

A refugee family enters the U.S. January 1, and is determined eligible for TANF financial and medical assistance effective February 1. On March 1, the TANF assistance group closes due to increased earnings, and is transferred to 12 month EMA. In May, the youngest dependent child in the home turns age 18 and is not in school, terminating EMA effective May 31. The District Office transfers the case to RMA, effective June 1, without a separate eligibility determination. The entire family group, including the 18 year old child, is RMA-eligible through August 31, 8 full months from the date of entry into the US.

Ineligibility for RCA of Full Time Students in Higher Education

Full time students in higher education are not eligible for RCA. No exceptions are allowed. However, that individual may be eligible for RMA, if all other eligibility requirements are met. District Offices should use the manual NOD reason message below when denying refugee cash assistance based on student status.

NOD REASON MESSAGE

FULL TIME STUDENTS IN HIGHER EDUCATION ARE NOT ELIGIBLE FOR REFUGEE CASH ASSISTANCE. SR 00-34.

Cash Grants from the Department of State and the Department of Justice Reception and Placement (R & P) programs

Cash grants from the Department of State and the Department of Justice Reception and Placement (R & P) programs are excluded when determining eligibility for refugee assistance. Since this type of income has not been added to New HEIGHTS, District Offices must not enter this income on the system. District Offices must document receipt of this income in the case record.

FS Work Registration Exemption for Refugees Who Participate in Work Programs Approved or Funded by the Office of Refugee Resettlement

Refugee Assistance recipients who participate in work programs approved or funded by the Office of Refugee Resettlement are exempt from food stamp work registration requirements and time limits. Since it is the policy of the New Hampshire State Refugee and Resettlement Agency to provide a variety of appropriate work and training programs for refugees, do not refer RCA or RMA applicants for food stamps to NHES for employment services, nor require that they meet requirements applicable to Able Bodied Adults without Dependents (ABAWD’s).

Note: Effective August 1, 2000, as an interim solution until full New HEIGHTS programming changes for refugee assistance are accomplished, District Offices will be able to manually select a new food stamp work registration exemption reason on New HEIGHTS for refugees. If a refugee assistance applicant requests food stamps, and is determined mandatory for work registration by New HEIGHTS:

1. Navigate to the Work Registration Referral screen.

2. Change the individual’s status from Mandatory to Exempt.

3. Using the Drop-down box, select as the reason "Refugee in ORR Sponsored WP."

IMPLEMENTATION

This SR is effective August 1, 2000.

CLIENT NOTIFICATION

No special client notification is needed or planned.

TRAINING

No training is planned. Assistance is available through the New HEIGHTS Help desk if needed.

DISPOSITION

This SR should be retained in electronic form until it is posted to the "SR’s Retained" section of the On-Line Family Assistance and Food Stamp Manuals effective with the September 5, 2000, On-Line Manual distribution. Hard copy holders of the Family Assistance and Food Stamp Manuals should retain the hard copy version of this SR until a forthcoming SR releases manual pages for the revised refugee assistance policy.

DISTRIBUTION

This SR will be distributed according to the electronic distribution list for Division of Family Assistance policy releases. This SR will be available for agency staff in the On-Line Manual Library, and for public access on the Internet at http://www.dhhs.state.nh.us/PMIndex.htm, effective September 5, 2000. This SR will be distributed under separate cover to all hard copy holders of the Family Assistance and Food Stamp Manuals.

DFA/SJC:s