Obtaining medical coverage when you don’t have a job and no money can be difficult, but that is what Medicaid is for. Many people are unaware of the requirements to qualify for Medicaid, below are some specifics to know to help people understand the Medicaid program.
Medicaid is a jointly funded, Federal-State health insurance program for low-income and needy people. It covers children, the aged, blind, and/or disabled and other people who are eligible to receive federally assisted income maintenance payments.
Thirty-two states and the District of Columbia provide Medicaid eligibility to people eligible for Supplemental Security Income (SSI ) benefits. In these States, the SSI application is also the Medicaid application. Medicaid eligibility starts the same months as SSI eligibility.
The following jurisdictions use the same rules to decide eligibility for Medicaid as SSA uses for SSI, but require the filing of a separate application: Alaska, Idaho, Kansas, Nebraska, Nevada, Oregon, Utah, Northern Mariana Islands
The following States use their own eligibility rules for Medicaid, which are different from SSA`s SSI rules. In these States a separate application for Medicaid must be filed: Connecticut, Hawaii, Illinois, Indiana, Minnesota, Missouri, New Hampshire, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Virginia.
What happens to Medicaid coverage if a SSI recipient works?
If a recipient`s State provides Medicaid to people on SSI, the recipient will continue to be eligible for Medicaid. Please refer to the general Work Incentives section for more information about SSI work incentives.
Medicaid coverage can continue even it a recipient`s earnings along with other income become too high for a SSI cash payment. How does a recipient qualify?
To qualify a recipient must:
- Have been eligible for an SSI cash payment for at least one month;
- Still be disabled;
- Still meet all other eligibility rules, including the resources test;
- Need Medicaid in order to work; and
- Have gross earned income that is insufficient to replace SSI, Medicaid, and any publicly funded attendant care. (Refer to Red Book for the “threshold amount” section.)
The Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services (formerly HCFA) oversees State administration of Medicaid. You may go to that web site at: http://www.cms.hhs.gov.
