N.J. Admin. Code § 10:71-4.1
Current through Register Vol. 56, No. 21, November 4, 2024
Section 10:71-4.1 - Financial eligibility standards; resources(a) The resources criteria and eligibility standards of this section apply to all applicants and beneficiaries.(b) Resources defined: For the purpose of this program a resource shall be defined as any real or personal property which is owned by the applicant (or by those persons whose resources are deemed available to him or her, as described in 10:71-4.6) and which could be converted to cash to be used for his or her support and maintenance. Both liquid and nonliquid resources shall be considered in the determination of eligibility, unless such resources are specifically excluded under the provisions of 10:71-4.4(b).(c) Availability of resources: In order to be considered in the determination of eligibility, a resource must be "available." A resource shall be considered available to an individual when: 1. The person has the right, authority or power to liquidate real or personal property or his or her share of it;2. Resources have been deemed available to the applicant (see 10:71-4.6 regarding deeming of resources); or3. Resources arising from a third-party claim or action are considered available from the date of receipt by the applicant/beneficiaries, his or her legal representative or other individual acting on his or her legal behalf in accordance with the following definition and provisions. i. Definition of "availability of resources in third-party situations": In third-party situations in which applicants/beneficiaries have brought an action or made a claim against a third party who is or may be liable for payment of medical expenses related to the cause of the action or claim, funds are considered available or countable at the moment of receipt by the applicant/beneficiary, his or her legal representative, guardian, relative or any person acting on the applicant's/beneficiary's behalf. Such funds should be considered available or countable at the earliest date of receipt by any of the aforementioned entities.(1) In determining resource eligibility in accordance with 10:71-4.5(a), those funds actually available to the applicant/beneficiary or any person acting on his or her behalf as of the first day of the month subsequent to the month of receipt shall be considered a countable resource, unless otherwise excluded (see 10:71-4.4) .(2) If a bona fide lien or judgment exists against such funds, making all or some portion of the funds inaccessible to the applicant/beneficiary, CWAs shall deduct the encumbrances and consider the remaining amount as a countable resource.(3) If between the date of receipt of such moneys and the first day of the subsequent month the applicant/beneficiary pays outstanding medical expenses and/or other expenses, the CWA shall consider only the funds remaining after such payment as a countable resource.(d) Evaluation of resources: The value of a resource shall be defined as the price that the resource can reasonably be expected to sell for on the open market in the particular geographic area minus any encumbrances (that is, its equity value).1. Real property: i. Sole ownership: When the eligible individual is sole owner and has the right to dispose of the property, the total equity value (see (d)1iv below) shall be counted toward the resource maximum.ii. Joint ownership or ownership in common: Under joint ownership or ownership in common, the equity value of the property shall be divided by the number of owners and the eligible individual's share counted toward the resource maximum.iii. Ownership by the entirety: Ownership by the entirety (or tenancy by the entirety) refers to property owned by a husband and wife whereby each member has ownership interest in the whole property which is indivisible. When a married couple (either one or both are eligible) is living together, the total equity value of all nonexempt property shall be counted toward the resource maximum. The same policy shall apply to an eligible couple who have been separated less than six months. If the eligible couple has been separated for six months or more, one half of the value represents a resource to each individual. If one spouse is institutionalized and the other spouse resides in the community, the extent to which either spouse has ownership of the property shall be included pursuant to 10:71-4.8. (1) When an eligible individual and an ineligible spouse own nonexempt property by the entirety and the couple is separated for a full calendar month, the cooperation of both owners is necessary to ascertain resource value. If the ineligible owner expresses willingness to dispose of the property, then its value is divided by the number of owners. If there is no such willingness by the ineligible owner, then no value may be assigned to the property. (See also 10:71-4.4(b)6 regarding situations in which a co-owner refuses to liquidate.)iv. Equity value: The equity value of real property is the tax assessed value of the property multiplied by the reciprocal of the assessment ratio as recorded in the most recently issued State Table of Equalized Valuations, less encumbrance, if any. The Table is available from the State of New Jersey, Department of the Treasury, Trenton, New Jersey 08625.v. Substantial equity value: Individuals seeking benefits with respect to nursing facility services or other long-term care services who have an equity interest in their home that exceeds $ 750,000 (as indexed) shall not be eligible for benefits. (1) Effective January 1, 2011, the home equity limits shall be indexed to the Consumer Price Index - Urban (CPIU) annually and rounded to the nearest thousand. The annual adjustment shall be published as a notice of administrative change in the New Jersey Register. As of January 1, 2011 the excess home equity limit is $ 758,000.2. Savings and checking accounts: When a savings or checking account is held by the eligible individual with other parties, all funds in the account are resources to the individual, so long as he or she has unrestricted access to the funds (that is, an "or" account) regardless of their source. When the individual's access to the account is restricted (that is, an "and" account), the CWA shall consider a pro rata share of the account toward the appropriate resource maximum, unless the client and the other owner demonstrate that actual ownership of the funds is in a different proportion. If it can be demonstrated that the funds are totally inaccessible to the client, such funds shall not be counted toward the resource maximum. Any question concerning access to funds should be verified through the financial institution holding the account.3. Verification of value: The CWA shall verify the equity value of resources through appropriate and credible sources. Additionally, the CWA shall evaluate the applicant's past circumstances and present living standards in order to ascertain the existence of resources that may not have been reported. If the applicant's resource statements are questionable, or there is reason to believe the identification of resources is incomplete, the CWA shall verify the applicant's resource statements through one or more third parties. i. Responsibility of applicant: If the third-party contact is required in accordance with the provisions above, the applicant shall cooperate fully with the verification process. If necessary, the applicant shall provide written authorization allowing the CWA to secure the appropriate information.(e) Resource eligibility: Resource eligibility is determined as of the first moment of the first day of each month. If an individual or couple is resource ineligible as of the first moment of the first day of the month, subsequent changes within that month in the amount of countable resources will not affect the original determination of ineligibility. If resource eligibility is established as of the first moment of the first day of the month, resource eligibility is established for the entire month regardless of any increase in the amount of countable resources. 1. This policy applies equally to individuals and couples in the month of application. Regardless of the date of application, resource eligibility is determined as of the first moment of the first day of that month.2. If, prior to the first moment of the first day of the month, the applicant or beneficiary has drawn a check (or equivalent instrument) on a checking or similar account, the amount of such check shall reduce the value of the account. The value of such accounts shall not be reduced by any unpaid obligations for which funds have not already been committed by the drafting of a check. i. When checks have been drawn on an account, the CWA shall review the appropriate account registers or check stubs to ascertain the actual balance as of the first moment of the first day of the month. Full documentation of such circumstances is required.(f) No portion of a cash reward provided to any individual by the Division for providing information about fraud and/or abuse in any program administered in whole or in part by the Division shall be included in the computation of income for financial eligibility purposes. 1. In order for the cash reward to continue to be excluded, the funds shall be separately identifiable (that is, not commingled with other funds or assets), but held in a separate account. Any increase in the value of the excluded cash reward shall also be excluded.N.J. Admin. Code § 10:71-4.1
Amended by R.1986 d.97, effective 4/7/1986 (operative May 1, 1986).
See: 17 N.J.R. 2954(a), 18 N.J.R. 691(a).
(c)3 added.
Amended by R.1986 d.165, effective 5/5/1986 (operative June 2, 1986).
See: 17 N.J.R. 2524(a), 18 N.J.R. 985(b).
(e) added.
Amended by R.2000 d.415, effective 10/16/2000.
See: 32 N.J.R. 2565(a), 32 N.J.R. 3844(a).
Substituted references to beneficiaries for references to recipients and substituted references to CBOSSs for references to CWAs throughout.
Amended by R.2001 d.199, effective 6/18/2001.
See: 32 N.J.R. 2021(a), 33 N.J.R. 2195(a).
In (d)1i, substituted "(d)1iv" for "(d)iv" preceding "below"; in (d)1ii, substituted "shall" for "must"; in (d)1iii, added the last sentence.
Amended by R.2002 d.124, effective 4/15/2002.
See: 33 N.J.R. 4188(a), 34 N.J.R. 1546(a).
Added (f).
Amended by R.2012 d.025, effective 2/6/2012.
See: 43 N.J.R. 804(a), 44 N.J.R. 230(a).
In (b), substituted "him or her" for "him/her" and "his or her" for "his/her"; in (c)1, deleted a comma following "authority", and substituted a semi-colon for a colon at the end; in (c)3i(2) and (c)3i(3), substituted "CWA" for "CBOSS"; added (d)1v; in (d)2, inserted a comma following the second occurrence of "individual", and substituted "CWA" for "CBOSS"; rewrote (c)3; and in (e)2i, substituted "CWA" for "CBOSS".