13 CSR 40-13.015 - Eligibility for Blind Pension
PURPOSE: The purpose of this rule is to establish the eligibility requirements for blind pension payments and blind pension MO HealthNet benefits, pursuant to Chapter 209, RSMo.
(1) Scope: This rule only applies to blind
pension and does not apply to the Supplemental Aid to the Blind (SAB) program,
unless stated otherwise.
(2) In
order to qualify for blind pension benefits, the applicant must, at the time of
application and until notifying the agency otherwise, meet the vision
requirements in their better eye set forth in section
209.040,
RSMo, and this rule:
(A) Each applicant must
complete a vision exam, certified by an ophthalmologist, a physician skilled in
diseases of the eye, or an optometrist, that consists of all of the following
seven (7) components:
1. Visual
Acuity;
2. Extraocular Motility and
Alignment;
3. Pupils
Exam;
4. Tonometry;
5. Slit-Lamp Examination;
6. Fundoscopy (indirect or direct
ophthalmoscopy); and
7. Humphrey
24-2 Visual Field Exam (or equivalent)
(3) A person can apply for and receive a
blind pension separately from MO HealthNet coverage. Individuals who are
receiving a blind pension separately, and who want MO HealthNet coverage
pursuant to section
208.151,
RSMo, shall submit a new application for MO HealthNet.
(A) If a blind pension participant wants to
qualify for federally-funded Medicaid services, including, but not limited to,
services provided by the SAB program or the Home and Community-Based waiver
services (HCB) program, the household must also qualify under all federal and
state eligibility requirements relevant to those programs.
(B) A person who is receiving or applying for
MO HealthNet coverage and also wants to receive a blind pension shall submit a
separate application for blind pension.
(4) For the applicant and each household
member, the applicant shall provide the following information that the division
shall use in order to determine the applicant's eligibility for blind pension
benefits:
(A) Relationship to the
applicant;
(B) Physical
address;
(C) Mailing address, if
different from physical address;
(D) Date of birth;
(E) Social Security number (for applicant
only);
(F) Citizenship or
immigration status (for applicant only);
(G) Employment status, employer name and
location, hours employed;
(H) Any
and all sources of income to determine the reasonable support of the sighted
spouse;
(I) Itemization of any real
or personal property owned or held in trust by the applicant and/or any
household members and the fair market value thereof;
(J) Itemization of any liquid assets owned by
the applicant or a household member, or a trust created by a household member;
and
(K) Itemization of any
transfers of the type of assets listed in paragraphs (I) and (J) of this
subsection by a household member, by a trust created by a household member, or
by someone's action on the household member's behalf or behest, for an amount
less than the asset's fair market value.
(5) In order to qualify for a blind pension,
an applicant shall be eighteen (18) years of age or older and:
(A) Be a continuous resident of Missouri
since the applicant went blind; or
(B) Be a resident of Missouri for 12 months
immediately preceding the date of application; and
(C) Be of good moral character.
1. Individuals convicted of a felony within
the ten (10) years preceding the date of application are not of good moral
character for purposes of this rule.
2. For purposes of this subsection, a
suspended imposition of sentence (SIS) is not a conviction, and a suspended
execution of sentence (SES) is a conviction; and
3. Any blind pension recipient who
intentionally or knowingly submits, or causes to be submitted, false
information to the division shall not be deemed a person of good moral
character and shall not be eligible for a blind pension pursuant to section
209.030,
RSMo; and
(D) The
applicant's qualifying visual impairment has lasted or is expected to last at
least twelve (12) months.
(6) A person is not eligible for blind
pension if that person's household owns property or has an interest in property
as defined in 13 CSR 40-13.010, the value of which is over thirty thousand
dollars ($30,000).
(A) In determining
eligibility for blind pension, the division shall consider as property:
1. Any kind of asset that is owned by a
household member or held on behalf of the household member;
2. Any kind of asset that is owned by a trust
or any other entity, but which a household member or someone acting on behalf
of a household member, has the legal power to use for the general benefit of
the household; or
3. Any kind of
asset that is owned by a self-settled trust, as defined in, determined by, and
subject to
42
U.S.C. section
1396p(d).
(B) The division shall treat real
property as:
1. For real property deemed
commercial property or residential property located in Missouri, the fair
market value shall be the current market value of the property, as determined
by the assessor in the county in which the property is located, before applying
the level of assessment pursuant to section
137.115,
RSMo.
2. For real property deemed
agricultural, the pensioner or applicant shall provide, upon request, an
estimate of the property's current market value from a knowledgeable source.
The division may reject the assessment of a particular knowledgeable source if
there is reason to believe that the source has a conflict of interest regarding
the property or a close relationship with the applicant, and the division may
request to see any applicable credentials or other information regarding the
selected source at the discretion of the division.
A. Knowledgeable sources include, but are not
limited to the following:
(I) Licensed real
estate brokers;
(II) The local
office of the Farmer's Home Administration (for rural land);
(III) The local office of the Agricultural
Stabilization and Conservation Service (for rural land);
(IV) Banks, savings and loan associations,
mortgage companies, and similar lending institutions;
(V) The Assessor;
(VI) The County Agricultural Extension
Service or
(VII) An appraisal from
a qualified appraiser of agricultural property.
B. If the division determines that the
agricultural property has no market value, or the household believes that the
assessed market value is inaccurate, the division may require the household to
provide one (1) or more of the items identified in section (6)(B)(2) of this
rule.
3. For the
division to determine the fair market value of real property located outside
the state of Missouri, the household shall provide one (1) or more of the
following:
A. An appraisal of the property
that is less than twelve (12) months old, that shows the fair market value, and
is completed by an appraiser who is licensed to do appraisals in the
jurisdiction in which the property is located;
B. A bill of sale on the property from the
last twelve (12) months that shows the amount for which the property was
purchased;
C. A written statement
attesting to the value from a real estate professional licensed in the
jurisdiction in which the property is located; or
D. Convincing evidence that the household is
barred by law from selling the property, in which case the property will be
deemed as having no fair market value.
4. If the household does not provide the
information from at least one (1) category identified in this subsection, after
being given at least ten (10) days to provide it, the division may deny
eligibility to the household or determine the value of the property based on
the information that is available to the division.
5. If the applicant or a household member
owns a portion of real property jointly or in common with people who are not
household members, the value of the household member's share shall be the
property's fair market value, multiplied by the percentage of ownership held by
the household member.
(C) In determining eligibility for blind
pension, the division shall not consider as property the primary residence of
the participant and the first one hundred thousand dollars ($100,000) held in
an Achieving a Better Life Experience (ABLE) account.
(7) A person is not eligible for blind
pension payments if:
(A) The person has a
spouse who: is a resident of the state, and can provide reasonable support to
the applicant as defined in 13 CSR 40-13.010;
(B) The person publicly asks or begs for
money by any means anywhere in the state;
(C) The person is maintained in a private or
public institution as outlined in
13 CSR
40-2.080, unless the person is a patient in a public
medical institution; or
(D) The
person has a driver's license and does not relinquish the license to the
Missouri Department of Revenue or to the issuing authority in the state or
jurisdiction from which the license was issued within sixty (60) days of
approval for blind pension. Each applicant has a one- (1-) time sixty- (60-)
day grace period to surrender their license and will not be given another
sixty- (60-) day period if they must reapply due to any issue, regardless of
reason, with an earlier application.
(8) Individuals will be disqualified from
recieving blind pension benefits for a period of two (2) years for their first
sanction, four (4) years for their second sanction, and permanently
disqualified for their third (3) sanction if they:
(A) Obtain or renew a driver license from any
state while receiving blind pension; or
(B) Operate a motor vehicle (as defined in 13
CSR 40-13.010 ) while receiving blind pension.
(9) Any person shall permanently forfeit all
of his or her rights to future blind pension benefits, if the division
determines that the person:
(A) Willfully and
fraudulently provided information that is false in order to qualify for blind
pension; or
(B) Transferred
ownership or an interest in property in order to become wholly or in part
qualified for a blind pension.
Notes
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