Getting Started with Minnesota County Waivers Learning Objectives
Getting Started with Minnesota County Waivers
Learning Objectives • Develop an understanding of waiver services available in Minnesota • Develop an understanding of basic eligibility • Understand where to begin the process • Services as it relates to MICC programs
What are MN County Waivers and Services? Waiver and Alternative Care (AC) programs provide Home and Community-Based Services (HCBS) to meet the needs of people with disabilities and aging adults. Participants must reside in Minnesota and meet eligibility requirements specific to each waiver/AC program to qualify.
Eligibility for HCBS Waivers • Mn. CHOICES assessment needs to be completed by the county human services agency the participant resides in (home county if still in College Program) • Must be on Medical Assistance (MA) or Medical Assistance for Employed Persons with Disabilities (MA-EPD) • SMRT process through MN needs to be completed or will be it initiated with the MA/MA-EPD application. • According to Disability Hub MN, the one exception is the Developmental Disabilities (DD) Waiver. If you’re applying for the DD Waiver, you only need a documented diagnosis of developmental disability (determined during your Mn. CHOICES assessment). • There are no income or asset limits for MA-Waiver programs, but you must stay eligible for disability-based Medical Assistance (MA) or Medical Assistance for Employed Persons with Disabilities (MA-EPD) to keep your waiver eligibility. If you exceed the income or asset limits for MA-EPD, you’ll lose your MA-Waiver services.
Eligibility for HCBS Waivers • Assets (sometimes called resources) limits Assets are items you own. Assets that may count include cash, bank accounts, stocks, bonds, certain vehicles and property where you do not live. Assets that do not count include the home where you live, household goods, personal items such as clothing and jewelry, etc. . Disability Based MA: $3, 000 for individuals MA-EPD: asset limit is $20, 000 • MA and MA-EPD do not have an asset limit for individuals under 21 years old. • Income limits (see chart) Varies by which MA program enrolled in Most common is Disability-Based Medical Assistance: $1, 064 per month
HCBS Waivers- commonly used by MICC Participants Community Access for Disability Inclusion (CADI) Waiver: For people with disabilities who require the level of care provided in a nursing facility Developmental Disabilities (DD) Waiver: For people with developmental disabilities or related conditions who require the level of care provided in an intermediate care facility for persons with developmental disabilities (ICF/DD)
Developmental Disabilities (DD) Waiver To be eligible for the DD Waiver, a person must choose to live in the community and meet all of the following criteria: • Be eligible for Medical Assistance (MA) based on a disability or other eligibility status • Have a documented developmental disability before age 22 • Be assessed using Mn. CHOICES or a DD screening and be determined to need the level of care provided in an Intermediate Care Facility for persons with developmental disabilities (ICF/DD) • Require daily interventions, daily service needs and a 24 -hour plan of care that is specified in the support plan • Have an assessed need for habilitation, which must be included in the support plan • Habilitation: Designed to help people with developmental disabilities develop, maintain and improve the self-help, socialization and adaptive skills necessary to live successfully in his/her home and the community. • Have an assessed need for supports and services beyond those available through the MA state plan
Community Access for Disability Inclusion (CADI) Waiver To be eligible for the CADI Waiver, a person must choose to live in the community and meet all of the following criteria: • Be eligible for Medical Assistance (MA) based on a disability or other eligibility status • Be certified disabled by Social Security or the State Medical Review Team (SMRT) process • Be younger than 65 years old at time of opening to the waiver for the first time • Be assessed using Mn. CHOICES to need the level of care provided in a nursing facility • Have an assessed need for supports and services beyond those available through the MA state plan
Consumer-Directed Community Supports (CDCS) Consumer-directed community supports (CDCS) gives you more choice and responsibility for accessing services and desired supports Utilizing CDCS allows you Choose or design the services and supports that fit your assessed needs Decide when you should receive services and supports • Hire the people you want (including parents, spouses, family) to deliver those services and supports It also allows you to buy non-traditional supports, such as special therapies, assistive technology and home and vehicle modifications
Eligibility for CDCS is an option available to a participant who already receives services or are eligible for one of the following HCBS waivers: • Alternative Care (AC) program • Brain Injury (BI) Waiver • Community Alternative Care (CAC) Waiver • Community Access for Disability Inclusion (CADI) Waiver • Developmental Disabilities (DD) Waiver • Elderly Waiver (EW) A person must also have a Community Support Plan (CSP) that identifies: • The goods and services he/she chooses to purchase to meet his/her assessed needs • Safeguards that are required to reasonably maintain his/her health and safety • Persons emergency needs and how they will be met
Where do I start? Contact your local county human services agency and ask for a Mn. CHOICES assessment, which is designed to evaluate what long-term services and supports the person may need. The Mn. CHOICES assessment is a person-centered assessment and support planning process to help make decisions about long-term services and support needs. It helps determine public programs that might pay for your services or helps you learn about other options if you do not qualify for publicly funded programs. *Hennepin County: Call Hennepin County Front Door (612348 -4111)
What happens next? • Contacted by county • Who is involved? • • • Participant Guardian(s) Case Managers Support Plan Writers Financial Management Services (FMS) • previously Fiscal Support Entities (FSE)) • MICC Staff (as appropriate) • Required CDCS Training *Challenging and lengthy process
How do services work with MICC? • College Program • Community Program
Services and College Program • MICC College Program Cost Breakdown for Service Catalog outlines the rates and curriculum areas of the program Includes: • Cost breakdown per semester, credit, room and board • Categories listed including Independent Living Training, Health and Fitness, Social Skills, Math and Finances, Student Resources, Jobs and Employment • MICC Financial Services Coordinator • Catalog available by request, contact mbellinger@miccommunity. org
Services and Community Program • MICC Community Program Service Catalog outlines the rates and service areas of the program • Examples include • Service Coordination • • Learning Labs • Health and Wellness Support • Social and Community Engagement Coordination Activities of Daily Living • Services most frequently fall under the Treatment and Training category within the CDCS plan • Community Program approach to working with participants is to coach, mentor, and educate during service delivery • Some MICC participants choose to have a combination of MICC services and external services on their CDCS plan
Resources Minnesota local county human service agency locations Disability Hub MN Applying for MA-EPD Fiscal Support Entity Resource List (FME) MICC Resources: • HCBS Waiver Process flow chart • Support Plan Writers used by MICC families • FMS directory used by MICC families
References All information provided was adapted from MN Department of Human Services and Disability Hub MN. (2019, July 8). MA Waiver Programs: The Basics. Retrieved from https: //mn. db 101. org/mn/programs/health_coverage/waivers/program. htm. Minnesota Department of Human Services. (2016, October 10). Home and community-based service waivers. Retrieved from https: //mn. gov/dhs/people-weserve/people-with-disabilities/services/home-community/programs-and-services/hcbs -waivers. jsp.
Questions?
miccommunity. org
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