WAC 182-500-0100 Medical assistance definitions -- S.

WAC 182-500-0100 Medical assistance definitions -- S.

Effective November 25, 2023

"Self-attestation" means a person's written, verbal, or electronic declaration of the person's income, resources, or circumstances made under penalty of perjury, confirming a statement to be true. (See also "attested income" or "attested resources.")

"Spenddown" is a term used in the medically needy (MN) program and means the process by which a person uses incurred medical expenses to offset income and/or resources to meet the financial standards established by the agency. See WAC 182-519-0110.

"Spouse" means a person who is legally married to another person. Washington state recognizes other states' determinations of legal and common-law marriages between two persons.

1. "Community spouse" means a person who:
   1. Does not reside in a medical institution; and
   2. Is legally married to a client who resides in a medical institution or receives services from a home and community-based waiver program. A person is considered married if not divorced, even when physically or legally separated from the person's spouse.
2. "Eligible spouse" means an aged, blind or disabled husband or wife of an SSI-eligible person, who lives with the SSI-eligible person, and is also eligible for SSI.
3. "Essential spouse" means a husband or wife whose needs were taken into account in determining old age assistance (OAA), aid to the blind (AB), or disability assistance (DA) for a client in December 1973, who continues to live in the home and remains married to the client.
4. "Ineligible spouse" means the husband or wife of an SSI-eligible person, who lives with the SSI-eligible person, and who has not applied or is not eligible to receive SSI.
5. "Institutionalized spouse" means a legally married person who has attained institutional status as described in chapter 182-513 WAC, and receives services in a medical institution or from a home or community-based waiver program described in chapter 182-515 WAC. A person is considered married if not divorced, even when physically or legally separated from the person's spouse.
6. "Nonapplying spouse" means an SSI-related person's husband or wife, who has not applied for medical assistance.

"SSI-related" means an aged, blind or disabled person not receiving an SSI cash grant.

"State supplemental payment (SSP)" is a state-funded cash benefit for certain individuals who are either recipients of the Title XVI supplemental security income (SSI) program or who are clients of the division of developmental disabilities. The SSP allotment for Washington state is a fixed amount of $28,900,00 and must be shared between all individuals who fall into one of the groups listed below. The amount of the SSP may vary each year depending on the number of individuals who qualify. The following groups are eligible for an SSP:

1. Mandatory SSP group—SSP made to a mandatory income level client (MIL) who was grandfathered into the SSI program. To be eligible in this group, an individual must have been receiving cash assistance in December 1973 under the department of social and health services former old age assistance program or aid to the blind and disability assistance. Individuals in this group receive an SSP to bring their income to the level they received prior to the implementation of the SSI program in 1973.
2. Optional SSP group—SSP made to any of the following:
   1. An individual who receives SSI and has an ineligible spouse.
   2. An individual who receives SSI based on meeting the age criteria of 65 or older.
   3. An individual who receives SSI based on blindness.
   4. An individual who has been determined eligible for SSP by the division of developmental disabilities.
   5. An individual who is eligible for SSI as a foster child as described in WAC 388-474-0012.

"Supplemental security income (SSI) program (Title XVI)" is the federal grant program for aged, blind, and disabled persons, established by section 301 of the Social Security amendments of 1972, and subsequent amendments, and administered by the Social Security Administration (SSA).