IMA POLICY MANUAL
PART IV: NON-FINANCIAL ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS
REFUGEE-RELATED CASH AND MEDICAL ASSISTANCE 7.5
Eligible Immigrants 7.5.1
Immigrants ineligible for TANF, Medicaid, and SSI who fall into one of the following four categories can apply for Refugee Cash Assistance and/or Refugee Medical Assistance:
- those who were paroled as a refugee or asylee under section 212(d)(5) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA);
- those admitted as a conditional entrant under section 203(a)(7) of the INA;
- those admitted as a refugee under section 207 of the INA;
- those granted asylum under section 208 of the INA ; and
- those admitted for permanent residence, provided the individual previously held one of the statuses identified above.
Eligibility for Refugee Cash Assistance and Refugee Medical Assistance are limited to the first eight months the immigrant is in the United States, except in the case of an asylee who is eligible for the eight month period beginning on the date s/he is granted asylee status, with the month in which the status is granted counteing as the first month. For non-asylee cases, the month of entry is considered the first month in the United States.
| Ms. Xhoa entered the United States on a tourist visa on January 18, 1999. She applied for asylee status after entering the United States and was granted asylum August 14, 1999. Ms. Xhoa is eligible for Refugee Cash and Refugee Medical Assistance for the period August 14, 1999 - March 30, 2000. |
Refugee Cash Assistance 7.5.2
Refugee Cash Assistance provides cash assistance benefits to eligible immigrants who meet the financial eligibility requirements and are ineligible for TANF due to the non-financial eligibility requirements of TANF. The RCA benefit levels and methodologies for determining financial eligibility are identical to those in the TANF program. The TANF non-financial eligibility requirements do not apply, however, to RCA. Thus, single individuals and married couples without children as well as two-parent families ineligible for TANF under the 'unemployed parent' requirements are eligible for RCA.
Before an RCA application can be approved, the applicant must demonstrate that s/he has registered for employment services funded by the District of Columbia Office of Refugee Resettlement (DCORR). The refugee must show an employment registration form from a specified service provider.
RCA recipients must report changes in income, resources, and household composition that affect eligibility and benefits under the same rules as TANF customers.
Refugee Medical Assistance (RMA) 7.5.3
The Refugee Medical Assistance (RMA) program provides health insurance comparable to Medicaid to eligible immigrants who do not qualify for Medicaid due to non-financial eligibility requirements. Thus, single, non-disabled individuals and couples without children who would otherwise be ineligible for Medicaid can qualify for RMA. The RMA program uses the Medically Needy Income Level and budgeting methodologies.
Immigrants eligible for RCA are categorically eligible for RMA.
Once an immigrant has been found eligible for RMA, s/he is not required to recertify his/her eligibility nor is s/he required to report any changes in income or resources. That is, once eligible for RMA, the immigrant remains eligible through the eight month period beginning on the date of entry, or, in the case of an asylee, on the date asylee status was granted.
| Mr. Rhoe entered the country on April 3, 1999. He was found eligible for RMA on May 15. He is eligible for RMA through November 30, 1999, regardless of whether his income increases above the Medically Needy Income Level before November 30. |
TANF and Medicaid Eligibility Must Be Considered First 7.5.4
Immigrants in the categories listed above who are eligible for TANF or Medicaid under the rules of those programs are ineligible for Refugee Cash and Refugee Medical Assistance.
|
Ms. Suarez and her two children arrive in the United States as refugees on March 14, 1999. The family has no income and comes to an IMA service center to apply for assistance. Because refugees are eligible for TANF and Medicaid and Ms. Suarez and her children meet the non-financial eligibility requirements for TANF and Medicaid, Ms. Suarez and her children should be considered for standard TANF and Medicaid eligibility.
|
|
Example 2 |
|
Mr. Poks enters the United States as a refugee. He has no other family in the United States and applies for assistance. As a non-disabled single individual with no children, Mr. Poks is ineligible for TANF and Medicaid. Thus, he should be considered under the RCA and RMA programs.
|
