Missouri HB 2558: Modifies provisions for eligibility verification for MO HealthNet.

Bill Text

SECOND REGULAR SESSION
HOUSE BILL NO. 2558
100TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY
INTRODUCED BY REPRESENTATIVE QUADE.
5417H.01I DANA RADEMAN MILLER, Chief Clerk
AN ACT
To repeal sections 208.065 and 208.147, RSMo, and to enact in lieu thereof two new sections
relating to public assistance benefits.
Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the state of Missouri, as follows:
Section A. Sections 208.065 and 208.147, RSMo, are repealed and two new sections
2 enacted in lieu thereof, to be known as sections 208.065 and 208.147, to read as follows:
208.065. 1. No later than January 1, 2017, the department of social services shall
2 procure and enter into a competitively bid contract with a contractor to provide verification of
3 initial and ongoing eligibility data for assistance under the supplemental nutrition assistance
4 program (SNAP); temporary assistance for needy families (TANF) program; child care assistance
5 program; and MO HealthNet program. The contractor shall conduct state and federal data
6 matches using the name, date of birth, address, and Social Security number of each applicant and
7 recipient, and additional data provided by the applicant or recipient relevant to eligibility against
8 public records and other data sources to verify eligibility data.
9 2. The contractor shall evaluate the income, resources, and assets of each applicant and
10 recipient on an individual basis no less than quarterly. In addition to quarterly eligibility data
11 verification, the contractor shall identify on a monthly basis any program participants who have
12 died, moved out of state, or have been incarcerated longer than ninety days.
13 3. The contractor, upon completing an eligibility data verification of an applicant or
14 recipient, shall notify the department of the results; except that, the contractor shall not verify
15 the eligibility data of persons residing in long-term care facilities or persons receiving home- and
16 community-based services whose income and resources were at or below the applicable financial
17 eligibility standards at the time of their last review. Within twenty business days of such
EXPLANATION — Matter enclosed in bold-faced brackets [thus] in the above bill is not enacted and is intended
to be omitted from the law. Matter in bold-face type in the above bill is proposed language.

HB 2558 2
18 notification, the department shall make an eligibility determination. The department shall retain
19 final authority over eligibility determinations. The contractor shall keep a record of all eligibility
20 data verifications communicated to the department. Nothing in this subsection shall be construed
21 to affect any obligation or requirement under state or federal law or regulation that the
22 department verify the eligibility data of persons residing in long-term care facilities or persons
23 receiving home- and community-based services.
24 4. Within thirty days of the end of each calendar year, the department and contractor
25 shall file a joint report to the governor, the speaker of the house of representatives, and the
26 president pro tempore of the senate. The report shall include, but shall not be limited to, the
27 number of applicants and recipients determined ineligible for assistance programs based on the
28 eligibility data verification by the contractor and the stated reasons for the determination of
29 ineligibility by the department.
30 5. Any licensed health care provider with access to the contact information section
31 of the department's electronic eligibility determination and enrollment system or its
32 successor system shall have the ability to update the contact information of a recipient.
33 6. Any request from a recipient, health care provider, or any other person or
34 agency to update contact information shall be completed within seven days. If a recipient
35 is deemed ineligible due to information that was not updated under the provisions of this
36 section, the recipient shall be reinstated immediately and the division shall be responsible
37 for any charges for care incurred from the time of the erroneous ineligibility determination
38 until reinstatement of benefits.
39 7. The department shall apply for any waiver required to comply with provisions
40 of this section.
208.147. 1. The family support division shall conduct an annual income and eligibility
2 verification review of each recipient of medical assistance. Such review shall be completed not
3 later than twelve months after the recipient's last eligibility determination. The family support
4 division shall conduct state and federal data matches using data including, but not limited
5 to, the name, date of birth, address, and Social Security number of each applicant and
6 recipient, and additional data provided by the applicant or recipient relevant to eligibility
7 against public records and other data sources to verify eligibility data.
8 2. The annual eligibility review requirement may be satisfied by the complet