1.1                          A bill for an act 
  1.2             relating to human services; providing an increase in 
  1.3             the personal needs allowance in medical assistance in 
  1.4             certain circumstances; amending Minnesota Statutes 
  1.5             1994, section 256B.35, subdivision 1; and Minnesota 
  1.6             Statutes 1995 Supplement, section 256B.0575. 
  1.7   BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA: 
  1.8      Section 1.  Minnesota Statutes 1995 Supplement, section 
  1.9   256B.0575, is amended to read: 
  1.10     256B.0575 [AVAILABILITY OF INCOME FOR INSTITUTIONALIZED 
  1.11  PERSONS.] 
  1.12     When an institutionalized person is determined eligible for 
  1.13  medical assistance, the income that exceeds the deductions in 
  1.14  paragraphs (a) and (b) must be applied to the cost of 
  1.15  institutional care.  
  1.16     (a) The following amounts must be deducted from the 
  1.17  institutionalized person's income in the following order: 
  1.18     (1) the personal needs allowance under section 256B.35 or, 
  1.19  for a veteran who does not have a spouse or child, or a 
  1.20  surviving spouse of a veteran having no child, the amount of an 
  1.21  improved pension received from the veteran's administration not 
  1.22  exceeding $90 per month; 
  1.23     (2) the personal allowance for disabled individuals under 
  1.24  section 256B.36; 
  1.25     (3) if the institutionalized person has a legally appointed 
  1.26  guardian or conservator, five percent of the recipient's gross 
  2.1   monthly income up to $100 as reimbursement for guardianship or 
  2.2   conservatorship services; 
  2.3      (4) a monthly income allowance determined under section 
  2.4   256B.058, subdivision 2, but only to the extent income of the 
  2.5   institutionalized spouse is made available to the community 
  2.6   spouse; 
  2.7      (5) a monthly allowance for children under age 18 which, 
  2.8   together with the net income of the children, would provide 
  2.9   income equal to the medical assistance standard for families and 
  2.10  children according to section 256B.056, subdivision 4, for a 
  2.11  family size that includes only the minor children.  This 
  2.12  deduction applies only if the children do not live with the 
  2.13  community spouse and only to the extent that the deduction is 
  2.14  not included in the personal needs allowance under section 
  2.15  256B.35, subdivision 1, as child support garnished under a court 
  2.16  order; 
  2.17     (6) a monthly family allowance for other family members, 
  2.18  equal to one-third of the difference between 122 percent of the 
  2.19  federal poverty guidelines and the monthly income for that 
  2.20  family member; 
  2.21     (7) reparations payments made by the Federal Republic of 
  2.22  Germany and reparations payments made by the Netherlands for 
  2.23  victims of Nazi persecution between 1940 and 1945; and 
  2.24     (8) amounts for reasonable expenses incurred for necessary 
  2.25  medical or remedial care for the institutionalized spouse that 
  2.26  are not medical assistance covered expenses and that are not 
  2.27  subject to payment by a third party.  
  2.28     For purposes of clause (6), "other family member" means a 
  2.29  person who resides with the community spouse and who is a minor 
  2.30  or dependent child, dependent parent, or dependent sibling of 
  2.31  either spouse.  "Dependent" means a person who could be claimed 
  2.32  as a dependent for federal income tax purposes under the 
  2.33  Internal Revenue Code. 
  2.34     (b) Income shall be allocated to an institutionalized 
  2.35  person for a period of up to three calendar months, in an amount 
  2.36  equal to the medical assistance standard for a family size of 
  3.1   one if:  
  3.2      (1) a physician certifies that the person is expected to 
  3.3   reside in the long-term care facility for three calendar months 
  3.4   or less; 
  3.5      (2) if the person has expenses of maintaining a residence 
  3.6   in the community; and 
  3.7      (3) if one of the following circumstances apply:  
  3.8      (i) the person was not living together with a spouse or a 
  3.9   family member as defined in paragraph (a) when the person 
  3.10  entered a long-term care facility; or 
  3.11     (ii) the person and the person's spouse become 
  3.12  institutionalized on the same date, in which case the allocation 
  3.13  shall be applied to the income of one of the spouses.  
  3.14  For purposes of this paragraph, a person is determined to be 
  3.15  residing in a licensed nursing home, regional treatment center, 
  3.16  or medical institution if the person is expected to remain for a 
  3.17  period of one full calendar month or more. 
  3.18     Sec. 2.  Minnesota Statutes 1994, section 256B.35, 
  3.19  subdivision 1, is amended to read: 
  3.20     Subdivision 1.  [PERSONAL NEEDS ALLOWANCE.] (a) 
  3.21  Notwithstanding any law to the contrary, welfare allowances for 
  3.22  clothing and personal needs for individuals receiving medical 
  3.23  assistance while residing in any skilled nursing home, 
  3.24  intermediate care facility, or medical institution including 
  3.25  recipients of supplemental security income, in this state shall 
  3.26  not be less than $45 per month from all sources.  When benefit 
  3.27  amounts for social security or supplemental security income 
  3.28  recipients are increased pursuant to United States Code, title 
  3.29  42, sections 415(i) and 1382f, the commissioner shall, effective 
  3.30  in the month in which the increase takes effect, increase by the 
  3.31  same percentage to the nearest whole dollar the clothing and 
  3.32  personal needs allowance for individuals receiving medical 
  3.33  assistance while residing in any skilled nursing home, medical 
  3.34  institution, or intermediate care facility.  The commissioner 
  3.35  shall provide timely notice to local agencies, providers, and 
  3.36  recipients of increases under this provision. 
  4.1      (b) The personal needs allowance may be paid as part of the 
  4.2   Minnesota supplemental aid program, notwithstanding the 
  4.3   provisions of section 256D.37, subdivision 2, and payments to 
  4.4   recipients of Minnesota supplemental aid may be made once each 
  4.5   three months covering liabilities that accrued during the 
  4.6   preceding three months. 
  4.7      (c) The personal needs allowance shall be increased to 
  4.8   include income garnished for child support under a court order, 
  4.9   up to a maximum of $250 per month but only to the extent that 
  4.10  the amount garnished is not deducted as a monthly allowance for 
  4.11  children under section 256B.0575, paragraph (a), clause (5). 
  4.12     Sec. 3.  [EFFECTIVE DATE.] 
  4.13     Sections 1 and 2 are retroactive to May 1, 1995.