The Department of Human Services(DHS), through the Office of Children, Youth, and Families, claims Federal reimbursement for eligible children in placement under Title IV-E of the Social Security Act. Title IV-E Placement Maintenance gives reimbursement for care and maintenance costs of children in placement and for Title IV – E training and administrative costs.
The CCYA determines whether children entering Foster Care are eligible for Title IV-E based on AFDC eligibility requirements in the State Plan on July 16, 1996. AFDC eligibility criteria include:
Financial need (income and resources)
Deprivation of parental support
Living with a specified relative
Citizenship
Age
See Appendix B for the July 16, 1996 AFDC eligibility criteria that differ from TANF eligibility criteria.
When determining IV-E eligibility, do not count TANF benefits as income.
Because of changes to the Social Security Act after TANF, along with changes to Federal regulations and clarifications by the Federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, the AFDC eligibility criteria changed as of July 16, 1996. Use these changes when determining AFDC-relatedness for Title IV-E Placement Maintenance:
The resource limit for Title IV-E from AFDC-relatedness determination to the end of the child’s placement period is $10,000.
Apply the $30 and 1/3 work incentive deduction if the person with the earnings was receiving TANF when the child was removed from the home or received TANF in one of the four calendar months before removal.
Do not use the applicant earned income incentive eligibility test. The limit for the applicant test is the same as the IV-E eligibility limit: the standard of need. See Appendix A, Income Calculation Worksheet for Initial IV-E Eligibility (PA 1745.1).
OPS150701 Amended PA 1745.1 for Title IV-E Placement Maintenance Eligibility (Linked July 21, 2015)
Multiply weekly income by 4.0 to get the average monthly income.
Consider the child “deprived due to unemployment” if the family’s net earned income is less than the 100% standard of need amounts in effect July 16, 1996. (See Cash Assistance Handbook Chapter 168, Appendix B).
The CCYA will:
Give the necessary information to the CAO.
Ask the CAO to determine and certify the AFDC-related eligibility status of each child entering placement based on the circumstances in the child’s removal home.
Determine the removal home.
NOTE: A child’s eligibility for Title IV-E Placement Maintenance is established when the child enters care. Once eligibility is established, the child remains eligible for Title IV-E for the entire time in Foster Care. Eligibility ends when the child reaches 18 (19 if still in school) unless the child or the agency ends custody.
Determine if reimbursement may be claimed for each month of placement.
Review the child’s case every six months.
The CAO does not re-determine AFDC-related eligibility for Title IV-E after the first determination, during the custody episode. If the child returns to placement, a new Title IV-E determination is made.
If the CAO information on the child or the family is different from the CCYA information, the CAO should contact the CCYA. The CCYA decides which information is correct.
If the family does not cooperate, the CCYA may ask the CAO to check third party sources such as BENDEX, SDX and Department of Labor files on IEVS. Only information currently available on existing clients may be used.
The CAO must not enter an IEVS request on non-recipients. If such a request is made on the CY 61, the CAO may use information from a third party source and notify the CCYA of this on the CY 61. The CAO must file a copy of the documentation in the Foster Care case record.
PO17916850 Using the New PA 1745.1 March 15, 2016
The CAO will follow these guidelines:
Calculate income and resources to determine if the child meets the AFDC-relatedness criteria for initial Title IV-E eligibility while in the removal home. Use the Income Calculation Worksheet for Initial IV-E Eligibility (PA 1745.1) to compute the income.
Send a copy of the PA 1745.1 will be sent to the CCYA. This is used as income verification for Federal audits.
Do not calculate income and resources for a child who receives SSI. The Social Security Administration has already determined the SSI child “needy.” The SSI child must only have met the non-financial conditions of eligibility for AFDC while in the removal home.
If there is a person receiving SSI in a non-SSI child’s removal home, do not include that person’s income and resources when determining eligibility and benefit amount. The SSI recipient is not considered a member of the budget group.
Include income and resources of step-parents in the removal home.
The net income of the budget group must not exceed the AFDC “Standard of Need” for determining whether the child meets financial need criteria for AFDC–relatedness. (See Cash Assistance Handbook Chapter 168, Appendix B.)
Effective February 4, 1994, Federal policy has allowed receipt of SSI and Title IV-E Placement Maintenance at the same time. The CCYA will decide whether it is best for the child to continue getting SSI after Title IV-E eligibility has been established.
Each dollar of Title IV-E reimbursement payment reduces the SSI payment by a dollar. A child who is IV-E eligible and receives SSI benefits remains IV-E eligible. If the CCYA chooses SSI and Placement Maintenance, the medical category will remain SSI.
The CCYA will provide all needed information on the CY 61 so the CAO can determine AFDC-relatedness. The CCYA is not required to complete the household income and resource information if the CAO certified on the CY 60 that the child receives SSI or that the current case record gives enough income and resource information.
The CAO will complete the CY 61 and return it and the PA 1745.1, if needed, to the CCYA. When the CCYA determines the child’s Title IV-E Placement Maintenance eligibility, the CCYA will notify the CAO.
When a child has been determined Title IV-E eligible, placement maintenance, the CAO will continue MA for the child in category PC and change the Program Status Code to 31. The CAO will not require renewal of MA eligibility for Title IV-E Placement Maintenance as long as the child remains eligible for reimbursement.
If a child’s income makes him non- IV-E reimbursable for a long period of time, the CAO will review the child for MA eligibility. Use the child’s income and the income limit of the MA category he would qualify for if he were not Title IV-E eligible.
If the child is placed in an ineligible facility, MA under Title IV-E stops until the child returns to an eligible placement facility or until placement in the ineligibility facility ends. If placement continues in an eligible placement facility, determination of Title IV-E is not required. The CAO will open category PC with program status code 31.
The child is Title IV-E eligible during the entire custody episode, but IV-E reimbursement and automatic MA may change.
The CAO ends Placement Maintenance when the CCYA notifies the CAO that the child is no longer eligible for Placement Maintenance due to age or because the child is no longer in substitute care placement. See Section 850.27, Discharge from Placement, for appropriate procedures when closing the Foster Care record.
55 Pa. Code § 3140.112
Sec. 472 of Soc. Sec. Act 42 U.S.C. 672
Revised March 17, 2016 replacing July 21, 2015