N.J. Admin. Code § 10:69-3.9 - AFDC-related Medicaid citizenship/eligibility requirements

(a) In order to be eligible for the Medicaid program, an individual must be a citizen of the United States, or an alien lawfully admitted for permanent residence, or an alien approved for temporary residence who can be classified as an eligible alien in accordance with this chapter.

1. The term "citizen of the United States" includes persons born in Puerto Rico, Guam, the Virgin Islands, Swains Island, American Samoa, and the Northern Mariana Islands and children born to American citizens outside the U.S. and its outlying possessions pursuant to Section 301 of the Immigration and Nationality Act ( 8 U.S.C. § 1401) .

(b) The following aliens if present in the United States prior to August 22, 1996, and if otherwise meeting the eligibility criteria, are entitled to full Medicaid benefits:

1. An alien lawfully admitted for permanent residence;

2. A refugee admitted pursuant to section 207 of the Immigration and Nationality Act;

3. An asylee admitted pursuant to section 208 of the Immigration and Nationality Act;

4. An alien whose deportation has been withheld pursuant to section 243 of the Immigration and Nationality Act;

5. An alien who has been granted parole for at least one year by the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) pursuant to section 212(d)(5) of the Immigration and Nationality Act;

6. An alien who has been granted conditional entry pursuant to section 203(a)(7) of the Immigration law in effect prior to April 1, 1980;

7. An alien who is granted status as a Cuban or Haitian entrant as defined by section 501(e) of the Refugee Education Assistance Act of 1980;

8. An American Indian born in Canada to whom the provisions of section 289 of the Immigration and Nationality Act apply;

9. A member of an Indian tribe as defined in section 4(e) of the Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act;

10. An alien who is admitted to the United States as an Amerasian immigrant pursuant to section 584 of the Foreign Operations, Export Financing, and Related Programs Appropriations Act of 1988;

11. An alien who is honorably discharged or who is on active duty in the United States Armed Forces and his or her spouse and the unmarried dependent children of the alien or spouse; and

12. Certain legal aliens who are victims of domestic violence and when there is a substantial connection between the battery or cruelty suffered by an alien and his or her need for Medicaid benefits, subject to certain conditions described below:

i. The alien has been battered or subjected to extreme cruelty in the United States by a spouse or a parent;

ii. The alien has been battered or subjected to extreme cruelty in the United States by a member of the spouse's or parent's family residing in the same household of the alien and the spouse or parent acquiesced to such battery or cruelty;

iii. The alien's child has been battered or subjected to extreme cruelty in the United States by the spouse or the parent of the alien (without the active participation of the alien in the battery or cruelty); or

iv. The alien's child has been battered or subjected to extreme cruelty in the United States by a member of the spouse's or parent's family residing in the same household as the alien and the spouse or parent acquiesced to and the alien did not actively take part in such battery or cruelty.

v. In addition to the conditions described in (b)12i through iv above, if the individual responsible for the battery or cruelty continues to reside in the same household as the individual who was subjected to such battery or cruelty, then the alien shall be ineligible for full Medicaid benefits.

vi. The CWA shall apply the definitions "battery" and "extreme cruelty" and the standards for determining whether a substantial connection exists between the battery or cruelty and the need for Medicaid as issued by the Attorney General of the United States under his or her sole and unreviewable discretion.

(c) The following aliens entering the United States on or after August 22, 1996, and if otherwise meeting the eligibility criteria, are entitled to Medicaid benefits:

1. An alien lawfully admitted for permanent residence but only after having been present in the United States for five years;

2. A refugee admitted pursuant to section 207 of the Immigration and Nationality Act;

3. An asylee admitted pursuant to section 208 of the Immigration and Nationality Act;

4. An alien whose deportation has been withheld pursuant to section 243(h) of the Immigration and Nationality Act;

5. An alien who has been granted parole for at least one year by the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) pursuant to section 212(d)(5) of the Immigration and Nationality Act but only after the alien has been present in the United States for five years;

6. An alien who has been granted conditional entry pursuant to section 203(a)(7) of the Immigration law in effect prior to April 1, 1980, but only after the alien has been present in the United States for five years;

7. An alien who is granted status as a Cuban or Haitian entrant pursuant to section 501(e) of the Refugee Education Assistance Act of 1980;

8. An American Indian born in Canada to whom the provisions of section 289 of the Immigration and Nationality Act apply;

9. A member of an Indian tribe as defined in section 4(e) of the Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act;

10. An alien who is admitted to the United States as an Amerasian immigrant pursuant to section 584 of the Foreign Operations, Export Financing, and Related Programs Appropriations Act of 1988;

11. An alien who is honorably discharged or who is on active duty with the United States Armed Forces and his or her spouse and the unmarried dependent children of the alien or spouse; and

12. Certain aliens who are victims of domestic violence as specified in (b)12 above, but only after the alien has been present in the United States for five years.

(d) Any alien who is not an eligible alien as specified in (c) and (d) above, is ineligible for Medicaid benefits. Any such alien is, if a resident of New Jersey and if he or she meets all other Medicaid eligibility requirements, entitled to Medicaid coverage for the treatment of an emergency medical condition only.

1. An emergency medical condition is one of sudden onset that manifests itself by acute symptoms of sufficient severity (including severe pain) such that the absence of immediate medical attention could reasonably be expected to result in:

i. Placing the patient's health in serious jeopardy;

ii. Serious impairment to bodily functions; or

iii. Serious dysfunction of any bodily organ or part.

2. An emergency medical condition includes all labor and delivery for a pregnant woman. It does not include routine prenatal or post-partum care.

3. Services related to an organ transplant procedure are not covered under services available for treatment of an emergency medical condition.

(e) Persons claiming to be citizens and eligible aliens shall provide the CWA with documentation of citizenship or alien status.

(f) As a condition of eligibility, all applicants for AFDC-related Medicaid (except for those applying solely for services related to the treatment of an emergency medical condition) shall provide satisfactory documentation of United States citizenship. When the applicant or other person for whom the application is being made is an alien, the applicant's alien status shall be verified through evidence provided by the applicant with the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS).

1. The following are acceptable documentation of United States citizenship:

i. A birth certificate;

ii. A religious record of birth recorded in the United States or its territories within three months of birth. The document must show either the date of birth or the individual's age at the time the record was created;

iii. A United States passport (not including limited passports which are issued for periods of less than five years);

iv. Report of Birth Abroad of a Citizen of the U.S. (Form FS-240);

v. U.S. Citizen I.D. Card (USCIS Form-197 or Naturalization Certificate (USCIS Form N-550 or N-570);

vi. Certificate of Citizenship (USCIS Form N-560 or N-561);

vii. Northern Mariana Identification Card (issued by the USCIS to a collectively naturalized citizen of the United States who was born in the United States before November 3, 1986);

viii. American Indian Card with a classification code "KIC" (issued by the USCIS to identify U.S. citizen members of the Texas Band of Kickapoos); or

ix. A contemporaneous hospital record of birth in one of the 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico (on or after January 13, 1941), Guam (on or after April 10, 1899), the U.S. Virgin Islands (on or after January 17, 1917), American Samoa, Swains Island, or the Northern Mariana Islands, unless the person was born to foreign diplomats residing in any of these jurisdictions.

x. Other documentation allowed in regulation by the Secretary of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services in compliance with 42 U.S.C. §§ 1396b(i)(22) and (x).

2. The following sets forth acceptable documentation for eligible aliens:

i. If an applicant presents an expired USCIS document or is unable to present any document demonstrating his or her immigration status, the CWA shall refer the applicant to the local USCIS district office to obtain evidence of status. If, however, the applicant provides an alien registration number, but no documentation, the CWA shall file USCIS Form G-845 along with the alien registration number with the local USCIS district office to verify status;

ii. Lawful Permanent Resident-USCIS Form I-551, or for recent arrivals, a temporary I-551 stamp in a foreign passport or on Form I-94;

iii. Refugee-USCIS Form I-94 annotated with stamp showing entry as refugee under section 207 of the Immigration and Nationalization Act and date entry into the United States; USCIS Form I-688B annotated "274a. 12(a)(3)," I-766 annotated "A3," or I-571. Refugees usually adjust to Lawful Permanent Resident status after 12 months in the United States, but for purposes of determining Medicaid eligibility they are considered refugees. Refugees whose status has been adjusted will have USCIS Form I-551 annotated "RE-6," "RE-7," "RE-8" or "RE-9";

iv. Asylees-USCIS From I-94 annotated with a stamp showing grant of asylum under section 208 of the Immigration and Nationality Act, a grant letter from the Asylum Office of the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, Forms-688B annotated "274a. 12(a)(5)" or I-766 annotated "A5";

v. Deportation Withheld-Order of an Immigration Judge showing deportation withheld under section 243(h) of the Immigration and Nationality Act and the date of the grant, or USCIS Form I-688B annotated "274a. 12(a)(10)" or I-766 annotated "A10";

vi. Parole for at Least a Year-USCIS Form I-94 annotated with stamp showing grant of parole under section 212(d)(5) of the Immigration and Nationality Act and a date showing granting of parole for at least a year;

vii. Conditional Entry under Law in Effect before April 1, 1980-USCIS Form I-94 with stamp showing admission under section 203(a)(7) of the Immigration and Nationality Act, refugee-conditional entry, or USCIS Forms I-688B annotated "274a. 12(a)(3)" or I-766 annotated "A3";

viii. Cuban Haitian Entrant-USCIS Form I-94 stamped "Cuban/Haitian Entrant under section 212(d)(5) of the INA";

ix. An American Indian born in Canada-USCIS Form I-551 with code S13 or an unexpired temporary I-551 stamps (with code S13) in a Canadian passport or on Form I-94;

x. A member of certain Federally recognized Indian tribes--a membership card or other tribal document showing membership in tribe is acceptable documentation; or

xi. Amerasian Immigration-USCIS Form I-551 with the code AM1, AM2, or AM3 or passport stamped with an unexpired temporary I-551 showing a code AN6, AM7 or AM8;

3. For aliens subject to the five-year waiting period before eligibility for Medicaid can be established, the date of entry into the United States shall be determined as follows:

i. On USCIS Form I-94, the date of admission should be found on the refugee stamp. If missing, the CWA should contact the USCIS local district office by filing Form G-845, attaching a copy of the document.

ii. If the alien presents USCIS Form I-688B (Employment Authorization Document), I-766, or I-571 (Refugee Travel Document), the CWA shall ask the alien to present Form I-94. If that form is not available, the CWA shall contact the USCIS via the submission of Form G-845, attaching a copy of the documentation presented.

iii. If the alien presents a grant letter or court order, the date of entry shall be derived from the date of the letter or court order. If missing, the CWA shall contact the USCIS by submitting a Form G-845, attaching a copy of the document presented.

4. For aliens who present themselves as on active duty or honorably discharged from the United States Armed Forces, the following serve as documentation:

i. For discharge status, an original, or notarized copy, of the veteran's discharge papers issued by the branch of service in which the applicant was a member.

ii. For active duty military status, an original, or notarized copy, of the applicant's current orders showing the individual is on full-time duty with the U.S. Army, Navy, Air Force, Marine Corps, or Coast Guard (full time National Guard duty does not qualify), or a military identification card (DD Form 2 (active)).

(g) An applicant who declares that he or she is a United States citizen, a national, or an otherwise eligible non-citizen, and who meets all other eligibility requirements, will be approved immediately for benefits and will be given "reasonable opportunity" to submit required documentation of citizenship or qualified alien immigration status.

1. Reasonable opportunity is defined as six months from the time that the applicant declares citizenship or qualified alien status and is informed of the need to provide documentation as long as the applicant is making a good faith effort to submit the documentation. Applicants will be properly noticed during this six-month period in accordance with the following schedule:

i. If, after approximately three months, the applicant has not submitted the required documentation, the eligibility agency shall provide written notice to the client setting forth the specific documentation that is still needed for this applicant to comply with the requirement and advising of the date of the upcoming date of the six-month deadline.

ii. If the applicant(s) have not submitted the required documentation towards the end of the fifth month of the reasonable opportunity period then a timely termination notice shall be sent to the applicant informing them of their termination date, to be effective at the end of the six-month period.

iii. The notices must clearly identify which household members have not complied and for which the adverse action is applicable. The termination notice shall inform the applicant that he or she may re-apply when he or she has secured the required documentation.

Notes

N.J. Admin. Code § 10:69-3.9

Amended by 49 N.J.R. 3729(a), effective 12/4/2017