The CAO must allow specific deductions from the income of each Healthy Beginnings family member before comparing the total family income to the income limit for the family size. 55 Pa. Code § 140.82 55 Pa. Code § 140.81
Deductions from unearned income must take place before deductions from earned income.
Each Healthy Beginnings family member with unearned income can deduct money he or she needed to pay to get the income. These deductions can include:
Bank fees for an account that is used to save unearned income. This includes cost of standard checks, minimum balance and per check fees, and ATM withdrawal and annual fees.
Attorney fees.
Court costs.
Transportation costs including the cost of obtaining unearned income. This can be the actual cost of public transportation or the vehicle of another individual. If a client uses their individual vehicle, CAO will use the current deduction set in Management Directive 230.10, Section 9.1.
Expenses related to getting rental income. 55 Pa. Code § 140.84
The CAO must allow a deduction from unearned rental income for money paid to another individual or a rental agency to manage the property.
The Healthy Beginnings budget group is entitled to receive one support disregard in the Healthy Beginnings eligibility determination. 55 Pa. Code § 140.62
The CAO must disregard:
Actual amount of support up to the maximum of $50 for spousal support.
Actual amount of support up to the maximum of $100 if there is one countable child in the budget group.
Actual amount of support up to the maximum of $200 if there is more than one countable child in the budget group.
NOTE: Actual or maximum of $200 is given if one child is receiving support and there are two or more countable children in the budget group.
NOTE: The budget group cannot receive a support disregard for both child and spousal support in the same determination. If the budget group receives both child and spousal support give the disregard that will most benefit the budget group.
Example: Mrs. Smith is applying for Medical Assistance for herself and her two children. Mrs. Smith receives $60/month child support for her 10-year-old son John S. and $80/month child support for her 12-year-old daughter Jane Miller.
|
John Smith Monthly Child Support Income |
$60 |
|
Jane Miller Monthly Child Support Income |
+ $80 |
|
Total Monthly Support |
$140 |
|
Support Disregard (actual or maximum of $200) |
- $140 |
|
Total Countable Support Income |
$0 |
Each employed member of the Healthy Beginnings family is allowed certain income deductions for expenses related to working for an employer or for himself or herself. 55 Pa. Code § 140.81
The CAO must allow earned income deductions in the order listed below: 55 Pa. Code § 140.81
1. Work expense deduction of $120 for all applicants and individuals.
2. Ongoing earned income incentive deduction of 50%, if the family member qualifies to receive the incentive.
3. Dependent care expenses.
The earned income incentive deduction is intended to encourage people to work. The CAO must allow the 50% deduction for each employed individual included in the family size if he or she is qualified to receive it. 55 Pa. Code § 140.81(2)
NOTE: A pregnant woman who is presumptively eligible cannot receive the earned income incentive deduction.
The 50% earned income incentive deduction is allowed for an employed individual who is one of the following:
A recipient of Healthy Beginnings.
NOTE: A family member who is not actually receiving benefits is not considered a recipient of Healthy Beginnings.
An applicant or family member who has received TANF benefits or who has received or is currently receiving MA in a TANF-related category in one of the four calendar months before the month of application or before the month the family member is included
An applicant or family member who has received cash assistance or who has received or is currently receiving MA in a GA-related category in one of the four calendar months before the month of application or before the month the family member is included, and whose child or stepchild in the household was receiving TANF, MA, or SSI benefits at the same time.
An individual in the family of a Healthy Beginnings applicant or recipient who (a) receives TANF-related NMP/MNO or GA-related NMP/MNO, (b) has a child or stepchild who receives Healthy Beginnings at the same time and (c) begins working after the month of application for MA can receive the 50% earned income incentive deduction.
The earned income incentive deduction must be allowed if the CAO has proof that the individual received qualifying benefits in another state.
Once an individual is found eligible for the Healthy Beginnings earned income incentive, the individual’s eligibility for the incentive does not have to be reviewed unless (a) the individual has left the Healthy Beginnings household and returned or (b) the Healthy Beginnings case is closed.
NOTE: Receiving SSI, Healthy Horizons, or other SSI-related MA categories does not qualify a individual to receive the earned income incentive deduction.
NOTE: There is no incentive eligibility test for Healthy Beginnings. If the employed individual does not meet one of the above conditions, the CAO must not apply the incentive deduction to that individual's earnings.
Reminder: A newborn’s application month is the month in which he or she was born. If the parents were recipients at that time, they are eligible for the work incentive.
Example: Mr. And Mrs. Harris apply for medical assistance on May 7. Mrs. Harris is pregnant and is not working. Healthy Beginnings is approved for Mrs. Harris on the basis of Mr. Harris’s income. Mr. Harris is not eligible for MA. On July 16, Mrs. Harris gives birth to a daughter. Mrs Harris gets her 60 days of eligibility following the birth. At the end of that period (September 30), she is found ineligible for any other MA benefits. Mrs. Harris returns to work on October 18. The following July, Mrs. Harris completes a renewal of Healthy Beginnings benefits for her daughter on the basis of the one-year guaranteed eligibility. Mrs. Harris can receive the work incentive, as she was an MA individual in one of the four months before her daughter’s birth. Mr. Harris cannot get the earned income incentive, as he was not a individual in one of the four months before the birth.
An employed Healthy Beginnings family member is entitled to a deduction for the cost of care for a dependent child or an incapacitated individual if:
The child or incapacitated individual lives in the household.
No other good plan can be made for the individual's care.
NOTE: The child or incapacitated individual does not need to be a member of the Healthy Beginnings family.
The amount of the deduction is the actual cost of care, with the following limits:
$175 per month for each child age two or older or incapacitated individual when the client works full-time.
$150 per month for each child age two or older or incapacitated individual when the client works part-time.
$200 per month for each child under age two, regardless of whether employment is full or part-time.
Updated February 14, 2012, Replacing October 13, 2009