OregonMoneyManagementProgram
Session#7– Spend Downs–revised5/17/16
WelcometotheOregon MoneyManagementProgram, NewVolunteerTrainingSession
#7. Inthissession,wewillcover howto helpclientswhohavetoomuchmoney.
Having TooMuchMoney
Having too muchmoneymaynot initiallysound likea problem, however, as youlearnedin previoussessions,clientswhoreceive Medicaid or SSImustnothavemorethan$2,000 in liquidassets or theyare atriskoflosing thosebenefits. It is criticalthatvolunteersbeawareif theirclientsare receivingMedicaid orSSIandhelpmonitorandmaintaintotalassetstoprevent lossoftheseimportantbenefits.
Whenconsideringasset limits,SSAandState Medicaidworkers look at balances inallaccountsheld byclientsplus any cash onhand.Funds ina PIFaccount managedbyacarefacilityare also counted.
SSA andMedicaidworkerscountthebalances inbankaccountsonthe lastdayof themonth,notthestatementenddate.It isimportantbecausebankstatementenddatesdonotalwayscyclethelastdayof themonth.MostOregon MoneyManagementClientsonlyhave acheckingaccount,however, iftheclienthasanyotherbankaccountssuchasasavingsaccounts ortimedeposits,theyarecountedas well.
Insome cases,thecheckbookor ledgerbalance reflectsa balanceunderthelimit,butthebankstatementdoes not because checkswere writtenhavenotyetcleared thebank.Forthis reason,volunteersshouldwork to keepaccountbalanceswell underthe$2,000limit so thatonthelastdayofthemonth,theclient’sbankstatementwill always beunder$2,000.
Spend Down
Theprocessofhelping aclientspendexcess fundsistypicallycalled “spendingdown”bysocial serviceworkers. In otherwords, theclient needsto spenddown theirfundstoremaineligible to receive theirbenefits.
Sometimesclientsreceivelargeback paymentsoffederal benefits.Thishappensbecausefederalagencies usetheapplicationdateasa startdatefor benefits.Whenthebenefit is approvedtheclient receivesbenefitpaymentsfromthedatethattheyappliedtothecurrentmonth.Backpaymentscanbelarge amountsthatputclientsover the
$2,000assetlimit.Whenthishappens,SSIandMedicaidgiveclientsa specificamountoftimetospenddowntheirexcessfunds toremaineligibleforbenefits.Shouldyour clientreceive abackpaymentthatputsyour client at riskoflosing benefits,askyourProgramCoordinatorforhelpunderstanding theamountof time allowedtospenddown.
Spending moneymayseema fairlyeasytask. However, there areafewrules that youneed tobeaware of.First,clientsmaynot“gift” theirexcessmoneyawaytoreducetheirassets.Thatmeansthatclientscannotgivemoneyawayto friends or familyor evendonateexcess fundsto charity. Remember thatall of the client’smoneymustbeused by and for theclient.If a reviewoftheclient’sresourcesreveals thatthey“gifted” theirmoneyaway, theymaybeat riskoflosingtheirbenefitsor evenrefundingbenefitsthattheyhadreceivedandspent.
Bill-Payclients can spendtheirexcessfundsonanything thatwill benefitthemselves.Mostspenddownquestionsarisewhenvolunteersare workingwithPayeeclients.
EssentialNeeds
Whenworkingwith aPayee client,thevolunteer’sfirst considerationshouldbetospendexcess funds on essentialneeds.Essentialneedscanbe differentdepending onwheretheclientlives.Iftheylive in their homefood,shelter,clothing,and healthcare,areconsidered essential.Maybe home repairsareneeded or anewmicrowavepurchasedso thatfoodcanbesafelyprepared.Iftheclientlives in acarefacilitywhere shelter andfoodareprovided,theymaystillneednewclothing,or havehealthcareneedssuchasdentalwork, or glasses.
Ina priorsession,wediscussedthat a clientthat receives Medicaidor SSImightsetasideup to$1,500for final expensessuchas funeralservicesandnotbecounted asassets.This maybe agoodoptionwhenaclientneedstospenddown.Funds forfinalexpensescanbeplaced in a Payeesavings accountor usedtopurchasea pre-paidfuneralplan.Ifpossible, it’sbesttoinvolve the client’sfamilymembersinthesekindsofdecisions. To beconsidered exemptfromtheclient’s asset limit,funeralfundsmustbededicatedforfinal expensesandmaintainedseparatelyfromtheclientsfunds usedfornormalmonthlyexpenses.
Non-essentialNeeds
Oncetheclient’sessentials aretaken careof,purchasesthatimprove the client’squalityoflifecanbe considered.Ifpossible,involve theclient. AnewTVwith aremotecontrolor anewcomforterfor theirbedmight beenjoyedbysomeclientswhile otherwouldprefer asight-seeing trip or planetickets for a lovedone tocomefor a visit.
Ticketstoa basketballgame orthetheater canalsobe consideredimproving theclient’squalityoflife.
If aclient trulyhasnoneeds and youneed toreducecashassets,be sure toconsultwithyourProgramCoordinator.Insomecases,it maybeappropriate to returnexcesscash totheMedicaidprogramas a waytoreducetheclient’sexcess assets. However,this optionmustbeapproved byyourProgramCoordinator.
This concludessession #7of theOMMP volunteer training.For questionsabout theinformationcovered inthis session,pleasecontactyourProgramCoordinator orTeamLeader.Ifyou are readyto take thequiz, logintoClassMarkerusingtheusernameandpassword: