DSHS Customer
Application Assistance in
Healthplanfinder (HPF)
Effective October 1
• All DSHS Financial Service Specialist and WorkFirst
Program Specialist staff will assist potentially eligible
customers in applying for Apple Health Medical by
entering their applications into the Washington
Healthplanfinder (HPF)
• Prior to implementation, DSHS staff will receive
mandatory training in HPF application assistance.
SCOPE
OF DSHS
ASSISTANCE
• DSHS staff will determine eligibility for DSHSadministered public assistance programs prior to
assisting customers with their applications for Apple
Health.
• Staff will assist customers in HPF when
• requested by the client; or
• when prompted by a system flag which indicates potential
eligibility (and the customer is interested in applying).
• DSHS staff will continue to refer customers to the Health
Care Authority (HCA) or Health Benefit Exchange (HBE)
for any post-eligibility activity including
• plan selection,
• post-eligibility review,
• changes of circumstance, etc.
• DSHS staff will have ability to resolve only two error
codes:
- identity proofing errors
- discrepancies between the demographic HPF and
information in ACES (client eligibility system)
• When other types of error codes are displayed in the
system, the customer will be directed to contact
appropriate entity – either HCA or HBE, depending on
the specific code.
Questions?
STANDARDS FOR BASIC FOOD AND WASHCAP
Updated October 2015
For AUs that are not CE:
Eligible AU
Members
Maximum Gross
Monthly Income
Maximum Net
Monthly Income
165% Poverty
Standard
Standard
Deduction
Standard Utility
Allowance
(SUA)
Maximum
Allotment
1
$1,276
$ 981
$1,619
$155
$420
$194
2
1,726
1,328
2,191
155
$420
357
3
2,177
1,675
2,763
155
$420
511
4
2,628
2,021
3,335
168
$420
649
5
3,078
2,368
3,907
197
$420
771
6
3,529
2,715
4,479
226
$420
925
7
3,980
3,061
5,051
226
$420
1,022
8
4,430
3,408
5,623
226
$420
1,169
9
4,881
3,755
6,195
226
$420
1,315
10
5,332
4,102
6,767
226
$420
1,461
Each Additional
+ 451
+ 347
+572
+0
+0
+ 146
Able Bodied Adults
Without Dependents
(ABAWD) Policy
Changes
ABAWD Waiver Ends December 31st in
only 3 counties
• During the recession, our statewide waiver was approved
based on unemployment and labor data. With the
unemployment rate being lower, we just aren’t able to keep
the waiver in these select areas.
• ABAWD waiver will end for
• King,
• Snohomish, and
• Parts of Pierce counties
What are the ABAWD requirements?
• Effective January 1, 2016, ABAWDS in these 3 counties
will only be able to get 3 months of Basic Food benefits
unless they:
• Work at least 20 hours per week averaged monthly (80
hours per month). This includes work study hours; or
• Complete at least 16 hours per month of unpaid volunteer
work; or
• Participate in our Basic Food Employment and Training
(BFET) or Resources to Initiate Successful Employment
(RISE) programs
Have you heard about RISE?
• The RISE pilot project expands on Washington’s successful
BFET program. The goal of RISE is to improve employability for
Basic Food clients. DSHS and partner agencies will run the
three-year pilot in King, Pierce, Spokane, and Yakima
Counties beginning in November 2015.
• In addition to BFET services, people on RISE may get:
• Comprehensive case management;
• Life skills; and
• Work-based learning like on the job training
The RISE target population includes
people who:
•
•
•
•
•
Are Homeless;
Speak limited English;
Have been unemployed 12 months or longer;
Are veterans; or
Are non-custodial parents (NCP) owing back child support.
• Please refer non-exempt ABAWDS that meet the target
population in King and Pierce Counties to the BFET program,
and they may be able to participate in RISE.
ABAWD Exemptions
Some people on Basic Food are exempt from ABAWD work requirements. These
rules can be found in WAC 388-444-0035 and 388-444-0010, and will be updated in
late 2015. In general, you are exempt from the ABAWD requirements if you are:
• Under eighteen or over forty-nine years old;
• Determined to be physically or mentally unable to work for at least 3 months in
the future;
• Caring for a person who is incapacitated;
• Receiving food on an assistance unit with a child, even if the child is not receiving
Basic Food for reasons such as alien status;
• Pregnant;
• Applying for or receiving unemployment benefits;
• A student* in school at least half time;
• Participating in a chemical dependency treatment and rehabilitation program; or
• Eligible for one of the annual federal-approved exemption slots under the
fifteen percent exemption rule.
*A student enrolled in higher education must meet the requirements under WAC 388482-0005 in order to be eligible for Basic Food.
What is DSHS doing to help ABAWDs?
DSHS has been working for months on plans to help ABAWDs
keep their Basic Food benefits. This planning includes:
• Mailing postcards to ABAWDs offering BFET services;
• Improving DSHS software ABAWD exemptions can be coded
when appropriate;
• Maximizing the waived counties and zip codes;
• Making contacts and lists of volunteer sites where ABAWDs
could work; and
• Updating letters and communication so that ABAWDs
understand what they have to do.
What if my Basic Food closes because of
these ABAWD rules?
• The first time benefits will close because of these updated
ABAWD rules is March 31, 2016.
• Even if your Basic Food closes, you can still requalify if you
become exempt, or participate in an approved activity
• Otherwise, you won’t be able to qualify for Basic Food again
until January 1, 2018, when our 36 month period resets.
Questions?
Email
[email protected]