(a) Basic eligibility group requirements.

(1) If the agency does not provide Medicaid under §435.120 to aged, blind, and disabled individuals who are SSI beneficiaries, the agency must provide Medicaid to aged, blind, and disabled individuals who meet eligibility requirements that are specified in this section.

(2) Except to the extent provided in paragraph (a)(3) of this section, the agency may elect to apply more restrictive eligibility requirements to the aged, blind, and disabled that are more restrictive than those of the SSI program. The more restrictive requirements may be no more restrictive than those requirements contained in the State's Medicaid plan in effect on January 1, 1972. If any of the State's 1972 Medicaid plan requirements were more liberal than of the SSI program, the State must use the SSI requirement instead of the more liberal requirements, except to the extent the State elects to use more liberal criteria under §435.601.

(3) The agency must not apply a more restrictive requirement under the provisions of paragraph (a)(2) of this section if:

(i) The requirement conflicts with the requirements of section 1924 of the Act, which governs the eligibility and post-eligibility treatment of income and resources of institutionalized individuals with community spouses;

(ii) The requirement conflicts with a more liberal requirement which the agency has elected to use under §435.601; or

(iii) The more restrictive requirement conflicts with a more liberal requirement the State has elected to use under §435.234(c) in determining eligibility for State supplementary payments.

(b) Mandatory coverage. If the agency chooses to apply more restrictive requirements than SSI to aged, blind, or disabled individuals, it must provide Medicaid to:

(1) Individuals who meet the requirements of section 1619(b)(3) of the Act even though they may not continue to meet the requirements of this section; and

(2) Qualified Medicare beneficiaries described in section 1905(p) of the Act and qualified working disabled individuals described in section 1905(s) of the Act without consideration of the more restrictive eligibility requirements specified in this section.

(3) Individuals who:

(i) Qualify for benefits under section 1619(a) or are in eligibility status under section 1619(b)(1) of the Act as determined by SSA; and

(ii) Were eligible for Medicaid under the more restrictive criteria in the State's approved Medicaid plan in the reference month—the month immediately preceding the first month in which they became eligible under section 1619(a) or (b)(1) of the Act. “Were eligible for Medicaid” means that individuals were issued Medicaid cards by the State for the reference month. Under this provision, the reference month for determining Medicaid eligibility for all individuals under section 1619 of the Act is the month immediately preceding the first month of the most recent period of eligibility under section 1619 of the Act.

(c) Group composition. The agency may apply more restrictive requirements only to the aged, to the blind, to the disabled, or to any combination of these groups. For example, the agency may apply more restrictive requirements to the aged and disabled under this provision and provide Medicaid to all blind individuals who are SSI beneficiaries.

(d) Nonfinancial conditions. The agency may apply more restrictive requirements that are nonfinancial conditions of eligibility. For example, the agency may use a more restrictive definition of disability or may limit eligibility of the disabled to individuals age 18 and older, or both. If the agency limits eligibility of disabled individuals to individuals age 18 or older, it must provide Medicaid to individuals under age 18 who receive SSI benefits and who would be eligible to receive AFDC under the State's approved plan if they did not receive SSI. If the agency imposed an age limit for disabled individuals under its 1972 approved State plan but does not use that limit, it must apply the same nonfinancial requirement to individuals under age 18 that it applies to disabled individuals age 18 and older.

(e) Financial conditions.

(1) The agency may apply more restrictive requirements that are financial conditions of eligibility.

(2) Any income eligibility standards that the agency applies must:

(i) Equal the income standard (or Federal Benefit Rate (FBR)) that would be used under SSI based on an individual's living arrangement; or

(ii) Be a more restrictive standard which is no more restrictive than that under the approved State's January 1, 1972 Medicaid plan.

(3) If the categorically needy income standard established under paragraph (e)(2) of this section is less than the optional categorically needy standard established under §435.230, the agency must provide Medicaid to all aged, blind, and disabled individuals who have income equal to or below the higher standard.

(4) In a State that does not have a medically needy program that covers aged, blind, and disabled individuals, the agency must allow individuals to deduct from income incurred medical and remedial expenses (that is, spend down) to become eligible under this section. However, individuals with income above the categorically needy standards may only spend down to the standard selected by the State under paragraph (e)(2) of this section which applies to the individual's living arrangement.

(5) In a State that elects to provide medically needy coverage to aged, blind, and disabled individuals, the agency must allow individuals to deduct from income incurred medical and remedial care expenses (spend down) to become categorically needy when they are SSI beneficiaries (including individuals deemed to be SSI beneficiaries under §§435.135, 435.137, and 435.138), eligible spouses of SSI beneficiaries, State supplement beneficiaries, and individuals who are eligible for a supplement but who do not receive supplementary payments. Such persons may only spend down to the standard selected by the State under paragraph (e)(2) of this section. Individuals who are not SSI beneficiaries, eligible spouses of SSI beneficiaries, State supplement beneficiaries, or individuals who are eligible for a supplement must spend down to the State's medically needy income standards for aged, blind, and disabled individuals in order to become Medicaid eligible.

(f) Deductions from income.

(1) In addition to any income disregards specified in the approved State plan in accordance with §435.601(b), the agency must deduct from income:

(i) SSI payments;

(ii) State supplementary payments that meet the conditions specified in §§435.232 and 435.234; and

(iii) Expenses incurred by the individual or financially responsible relatives for necessary medical and remedial services that are recognized under State law and are not subject to payment by a third party, unless the third party is a public program of a State or political subdivision of a State. These expenses include Medicare and other health insurance premiums, deductions and coinsurance charges, and copayments or deductibles imposed under §447.52, §447.53, or §447.54 of this chapter. The agency may set reasonable limits on the amounts of incurred medical expenses that are deducted.

(2) For purposes of counting income with respect to individuals who are receiving benefits under section 1619(a) f the Act or are in section 1619(b)(1) of the Act status but who do not meet the requirements of paragraph (b)(3)(ii) of this section, the agency may disregard some or all of the amount of the individual's income that is in excess of the SSI Federal benefit rate under section 1611(b) of the Act.

[58 FR 4926, Jan. 19, 1993, as amended at 78 FR 42302, July 15, 2013]