State Assistance Programs for SSI Recipients, January 2009

Arizona

State Supplementation

Mandatory Minimum Supplementation

Administration: Division of Aging and Adult Services.

Optional State Supplementation

Administration: Division of Aging and Adult Services.

Effective date: May 9, 1974.

Statutory basis for payment: Arizona Revised Statutes 46:252.

Funding

Administration: State funds.

Assistance: State funds.

Passalong method: Maintaining payment levels.

Place of application: The agency is no longer taking applications.

Scope of coverage: Optional state supplement provided to all SSI recipients who require assistance with housekeeping. Children under age 18 are not eligible for optional supplementation.

Resource limitations: Federal SSI regulations apply.

Income exclusions: Federal SSI regulations apply.

Recoveries, liens, and assignments: None.

Financial responsibility of relatives: None.

Interim assistance: State participates.

Payment calculation method: The state supplementation is added to the federal payment. Countable income is deducted first from the federal payment. Any income that remains to be counted after the federal payment has been reduced to zero is then deducted from the state supplementary payment.

Payment levels: See Table 1.

Table 1. Optional state supplementation payment levels, January 2009 (in dollars)
Living arrangement Combined federal and state State supplementation
Individual Couple Individual Couple
Requires housekeeping services 744.00 1,081.00 70.00 70.00
SOURCES: Social Security Administration, Office of Income Security Programs; state information.
DEFINITION:
Requires housekeeping services.
A determination that the person is functionally impaired in sufficient degree as to require help with housekeeping, laundry, essential shopping, errands, and meal preparation.

Number of recipients: See Table 2.

Table 2. Number of persons receiving optional state supplementation, January 2009
Living arrangement Total Aged Blind Disabled
Requires housekeeping services 266 -- -- --
SOURCE: State information.
NOTE: -- = not available.

Total expenditures: The state reported expenditures of $215,180 for calendar year 2008 in state-administered payments to SSI recipients.

State Assistance for Special Needs

State does not provide assistance for special needs.

Medicaid

Medical assistance is provided through a Title XIX authorized demonstration program—the Arizona Health Care Cost Containment System (AHCCCS)—which is more limited in scope than Medicaid.

Eligibility

Criteria: SSI program guidelines (Title XVI).

Determined by: Social Security Administration.

Medically Needy Program

Arizona Department of Health Services provides funds for the medically needy.

Unpaid Medical Expenses

The Social Security Administration does not obtain this information.