SENATE PUBLIC AFFAIRS COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE FOR

SENATE BILL 65

51st legislature - STATE OF NEW MEXICO - first session, 2013

AN ACT

RELATING TO PUBLIC ASSISTANCE; REQUIRING THE HUMAN SERVICES DEPARTMENT TO PROVIDE PRE-RELEASE MEDICAID ELIGIBILITY ASSESSMENTS AND APPLICATIONS TO INCARCERATED INDIVIDUALS.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF NEW MEXICO:

     SECTION 1. PRE-RELEASE MEDICAID ELIGIBILITY ASSESSMENT--POST-RELEASE ENROLLMENT.--

          A. The human services department shall coordinate with the corrections department, the children, youth and families department and prison and delinquency facility administrators to:

                (1) ensure that any incarcerated individual who wishes to receive an assessment of the individual's post-release medicaid eligibility receives an assessment before the incarcerated individual is released from custody. This process shall be initiated immediately when the release date becomes known, or if the period of incarceration is known to be sixty days or less, then immediately upon incarceration. In no case shall the assessment process occur less than ten days prior to the incarcerated individual's release;

                (2) determine whether the incarcerated individual receiving an assessment pursuant to this section is enrolled in medicaid and, if so, assist that individual in notifying the human services department to ensure that the individual receives correspondence from the department while incarcerated;

                (3) ensure that every incarcerated individual is informed of the individual's right to apply for medicaid and, upon the individual's request, is provided an application for medicaid;

                (4) provide assistance throughout the application process for medicaid for incarcerated individuals who request assistance and assist individuals who were participants in medicaid with assistance in completing any periodic verification of their eligibility for those programs. This assistance shall include the distribution of application forms and assistance with securing medical and other information required to support applications and assistance with completing and submitting medicaid applications; and

                (5) ensure that incarcerated individuals who are eligible for medicaid are able to access medicaid benefits immediately upon release from a corrections institution.

          B. The provisions of Subsection A of this section shall not apply if the period of incarceration is for less than thirty days.

          C. The human services department shall suspend the medicaid enrollment of any individual who is a medicaid recipient upon incarceration if that individual's incarceration is expected to last for less than one year. The department shall not terminate the enrollment of an incarcerated individual whose enrollment has been suspended pursuant to this subsection until a year from the date of the individual's entry into incarceration.

          D. As used in this section:

                (1) "incarcerated individual" means an individual; the legal guardian or conservator of an individual; or, for an individual who is an unemancipated minor, the parent of the individual, who is confined in:

                     (a) a state correctional facility;

                     (b) a privately operated correctional facility;

                     (c) a county jail;

                     (d) a municipal jail;

                     (e) a privately operated jail;

                     (f) a detention facility that is operated under the authority of the children, youth and families department and that holds the individual pending court hearing; or

                     (g) a facility that is operated under the authority of the children, youth and families department and that provides for the care and rehabilitation of an individual who is under eighteen years of age and who has committed an act that would be designated as a crime under the law if committed by an individual who is eighteen years of age or older;

                (2) "medicaid" means the joint federal-state health coverage program pursuant to Title 19 or Title 21 of the federal Social Security Act and rules promulgated pursuant to the Social Security Act; and

                (3) "unemancipated minor" means an individual who is under eighteen years of age and who:

                     (a) is not on active duty in the armed forces; and

                     (b) has not been declared by court order to be emancipated.

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