STATE DEPARTMENT OF SOCIAL                                        06-22-10
REHABILITATION SERVICES                                                
Integrated Services Delivery
Docking State Office Building
Room 681 - West
Topeka, Kansas 66612

To:

Regional Directors
Economic and Employment Support Program Administrators
Economic and Employment Support Staff                                
KHPA Staff, including the HealthWave Clearinghouse
Social Service Administrators
Other Staff

Re:

Summary of Changes for Kansas Economic and Employment Support Manual (KEESM) Revision No. 44 effective July, 2010.

OVERVIEW OF CHANGES

A brief overview of the major changes is described below. Other clarifications and technical corrections are also included and described in the next section. Additional technical corrections not mentioned here are being incorporated in KEESM as needed.

Funeral Assistance – This revision suspends the Funeral Assistance Program for State Fiscal Year 2011. The Kansas Legislature did not appropriate money to fund the program, thus necessitating the shutdown of the Program.

Medical Assistance – This revision eliminates the 6 month resource review for medical cases that are within $300 of the resource limit. A decrease in the average nursing home private pay daily rate used to calculate transfer penalties has been included.

Clarification has been added as to what constitutes a return of transferred assets to the individual. The section concerning counting an individual’s reduced VA pension towards the patient liability has been rewritten for clarification.

DESCRIPTION, PURPOSE, AND DETAILS OF POLICY CHANGE

  1. Funeral Assistance

    1. Changes

      1. Funeral Assistance – Section 2320 through 2324 are being marked Reserved. The Funeral Assistance Program is being suspended for State Fiscal Year 2011 as no funds were appropriated for the program. A Policy Memo was issued on May 20, 2010, with instructions to cease taking applications as of May 31, 2010. All Funeral Assistance applications must be processed by June 15th and all payments authorized by June 25, 2010, the end of the current state fiscal year. A special notice, V398 has been prepared to notify persons requesting funeral assistance after May 31, 2010, that we no longer have a program to assist them with the burial.

    2. Clarifications

      None

  2. Medical Assistance

    1. Changes

      1. 6 Month Resource Review – The 6 month resource review requirement for medical cases within $300 of the applicable resource limit is being eliminated with the issuance of this memo. These cases should now be reviewed at the end of the regular 12 month review period. KEESM section 9373 will be updated with this revision.

      2. Transfer of Property – The average nursing home private pay daily rate in the state has decreased from $138.41 to $136.14. The new rate is effective with all penalty periods with a start date on or after July 1, 2010.

        KEESM section 5724.4(2) and Appendix item W-9 (Transfer of Property Worksheet) will be updated with this revision. In addition, the electronic Transfer of Property Worksheet will be updated and reissued. Previous versions will be obsolete and should be discarded.

    2. Clarifications

      1. Return of Transferred Assets – The section detailing the return of transferred assets has been rewritten to clarify that payments made which benefit the individual shall be considered a return even if the individual had no direct control over the assets. KEESM section 5721(10) will be updated with this revision.

      2. Reduced VA Pension – The section which explains the counting of a reduced VA pension towards the patient liability has been rewritten and a note added to help eliminate the confusion concerning this policy. KEESM section 8150(3) will be updated with this revision.

FORMS (Explanation provided if not mentioned previously in this summary.

Food Assistance

ES-3142, EBT Benefit Repayment Agreement,This form has been modified by removing the PCA codes as it was determined they were no longer needed.. In addition, food stamps has been changed to food assistance.

APPENDIX (Explanation provided if not mentioned previously in this summary.)

Medical Assistance

W-9, Transfer of Property Worksheet

MISCELLANEOUS FORMS (Explanation provided if not mentioned previously in this summary.)

EFFECTIVE DATE

All policies in this revision are effective July 1, 2010, and these policies apply to all applications and reviews received or processed on or after that date unless stated otherwise. For ongoing cases the changes and clarifications are applicable at the time of the next review/IR or case change involving the affected policy. Additional information is being included in the Implementation Memo.

EFFECT ON LOCAL STAFF

All Programs: The elimination of the 6 month resource review requirement should reduce the amount of staff time invested in maintaining these cases.

MATERIALS OBSOLETED BY THIS REVISION

COORDINATION EFFORTS

Within EES, the material in this letter and manual revision has been coordinated with staff in Economic and Employment Support, the EES Program Administrators, the Implementation Planning Team, the Training Advisory Team.  

Sincerely,
Bobbi Mariani, Director
Economic and Employment Support
BM:AM:

Page Last Updated: 7/1/10 1:24 PM