Senate committee reviews DHS rule on 'independence accounts', Department of Health licensure language and adopts ISP

The Senate Public Health, Welfare and Labor Committee reviewed a Department of Human Services rule that implements Act 923 of 2021 and allows workers with disabilities to create and fund ‘‘independence accounts’’ whose assets would be disregarded for long-term services and supports eligibility if the account holder later needs long-term care.

Mary Franklin, director of the Division of County Operations at the Department of Human Services, told the committee that the independence-account rule would permit working individuals with disabilities to accumulate assets in a designated account that would not count against the $2,000 resource limit for long-term care eligibility. Franklin said earned income is disregarded while individuals are in the workers-with-disabilities category and the independence account would be excluded when determining LTSS eligibility for nursing-facility care or other waiver programs.

Committee members asked detailed questions about income and asset treatment, transitions between Medicaid categories, and where families can find program information. Franklin said the workers-with-disabilities policy appears in the DHS online policy manual and offered to prepare informational materials for families.

The committee also heard a brief presentation from the Department of Health, where Matt Gilmore and Nathaniel Rowe asked the committee to adopt language implementing Act 137 of 2023 to allow automatic licensure consideration for relevant uniformed-service members and their families; they reported a public comment period that produced no comments.

Finally, the chair introduced an ISP and, without objection, the committee adopted the ISP. The committee thanked the witnesses and adjourned.

No formal roll-call votes on statutes or appropriations occurred during these items; the DHS rule was "reviewed" and the DOH rule language was presented for committee review.