N.M. Admin. Code § 8.102.420.12 - ASSESS CAPACITY FOR WORK
A.
General: A medical or mental health condition that precludes a participant's
capacity to fulfill the standard work participation rate or capacity to work
shall be determined by evaluating the extent of the impairment and other
work-related factors. A participant is eligible for a limited work
participation status if there is a determination of impairment or condition by
the IRU or NMW service provider, as appropriate.
B. Capacity to perform NMW program
participation standards: If the participant is determined by IRU or the NMW
service provider to have an impairment, the other work-related factors shall be
considered. Although a participant may be determined to have some type of
impairment, the existence of impairment does not necessarily result in a
finding that the participant is incapable of fulfilling the standard work
participation hours. A determination that a participant is a caretaker does not
necessarily result in a finding that the need to care for an incapacitated or
ill household family member is so great as to limit or exclude participation.
Many participants with impairments are able to work and thus are not considered
to have a medical condition requiring the granting of a limited work
participation status according to the standards set forth in the NMW program.
(1) Sedentary work: Sedentary work involves
lifting no more than ten pounds at a time and occasionally lifting or carrying
articles like docket files, ledgers and small tools. Although a sedentary job
is defined as one that involves sitting, a certain amount of walking and
standing is often necessary in carrying out job duties. Jobs are sedentary if
walking and standing are required occasionally and sedentary standards are
met.
(2) Light work: Light work
involves lifting no more than twenty pounds at a time, with frequent lifting or
carrying of objects weighing up to ten pounds. Even though the weight lifted
may be very little, a job is placed in this category if it requires a good deal
of walking or standing, or if it involves sitting most of the time with some
pushing and pulling of arm or leg controls. To be considered capable of
performing a full or wide range of light work, an individual must have the
ability to do substantially all of these activities
(3) Medium work: Medium work involves lifting
no more than 50 pounds at a time, with frequent lifting or carrying of objects
weighing up to 25 pounds.
(4) Heavy
work: Heavy work involves lifting no more than 100 pounds at a time, with
frequent lifting or carrying of objects weighing up to 50 pounds.
(5) Very heavy work: Very heavy work involves
lifting objects weighing more than 100 pounds at a time, with frequent lifting
or carrying of objects weighing 50 pounds or more.
C. Psychological impairment: If psychological
impairment is being assessed, a participant's mental ability to function at one
of the above-mentioned levels shall be evaluated in the following areas:
(1) Judgment: A participant's ability to
exercise appropriate decisionmaking processes in a work situation consistent
with the participant's abilities.
(2) Stress reaction: Participant's ability to
handle stress consistent with the level of employment.
(3) Cognitive function: Participant's
awareness, memory, intellectual capacity and other cognitive functions.
D. Capacity for gainful
employment: A participant's verified employment status shall be taken into
consideration in determining impairment based on the type, nature, and duration
of employment. Impairment may still be determined where the participant is
employed minimally or for rehabilitative purposes.
(1) Minimal employment: An individual who is
minimally employed may still be considered impaired if the individual cannot
reasonably be expected to be self-supporting by at least the standard of need
for the size of the benefit group.
(2) Rehabilitative employment: Work made
available to an individual through the interest or compassion of others, or to
rehabilitate an individual (as in a sheltered workshop), but which would not
ordinarily exist on the open labor market, shall not be considered employment
in an impairment determination.
E. Other work-related factors: Impairments
together with other work-related factors may be considered to establish the
participant's capacity to perform basic work program participation standards
and engage in gainful employment. While these factors may present an impediment
to obtaining employment, they are problems which can be overcome through work
program participation. Where such impediments exist, the participant shall be
expected to participate in activities which will overcome these barriers. Other
work-related factors include but are not limited to the following:
(1) Language barriers: A participant's
ability to speak, read, and write English.
(2) Educational level:
(a) Illiteracy: Inability to read or write
English. Illiterate individuals are considered suitable for the general labor
work force.
(b) Marginal: Eight
years of education or less. Marginally-educated individuals are considered
suitable for the semiskilled work force.
(c) Limited: Lack of a high school diploma or
GED, but more than eight years of education. Individuals with limited education
are considered suitable for the semi-skilled to skilled work force.
(d) High school, GED and above: Indicates an
individual's ability to compete in all levels of the job market.
(e) Training program: Completion of training
in a particular field of employment may offset limited education in some
instances.
(3) Job
experience: Experience in a job field can overcome a lack of education,
training or both. Jobs held in the last ten years shall be considered. Work
experience shall be evaluated based on the type of work previously performed,
the length of employment, and the potential for transferring the experience to
other types of employment. Inability to continue working in one's prior field
of work does not constitute a disability. Job experience is classified in the
following categories.
(a) General labor: Does
not require the ability to read or write.
(b) Semi-skilled labor: Requires a minimal
ability to read, write and do simple calculations.
(c) Skilled labor: Ability to do work in
which the ability to read, write and do calculations of a complex nature is
needed. Specialized training in the area is also considered.
(4) Appearance: An individual's
appearance is generally not the sole reason for an impairment determination. On
rare occasions, impairment is disfiguring and may interfere with
employment.
(5) Age: Age may affect
participants with impairments. The older an individual is, generally, the
harder it is for the person to overcome or recover from impairment. A
participant's age may be considered when determining the extent of impairment
and the support needed to assist a participant.
F. WPA following IRU determination of limited
work participation status: After the IRU or NMW service provider, as
appropriate, makes a determination to either grant or deny a request for a
limited work participation status, the participant must act in accordance with
the paragraphs below to ensure they are in compliance.
(1) Limited work participation status granted
and adoption of the WPA: Upon approval for the limited work participation
status, the participant shall continue to continue to participate in the
assigned core or non-core activities or contingencies identified on the WPA
submitted to IRU for determination. The WPA shall be considered finalized and
the participant shall follow the WPA until the next evaluation date determined
by the IRU or NMW service provider.
(2) Limited work participation status granted
and modification of the WPA: If the participant is approved for a limited work
participation status, but the IRU did not accept the WPA, the participant and
the NMW service provider shall meet no later than 15 days following date of the
limited work participation status approval to modify the WPA in accordance with
the determination of the IRU. The modification will take into consideration the
participant's impairment(s) and provide a limited work participation rate and
suggested core and non-core work activities.
(3) Limited work participation status denial:
If the IRU or NMW service provider, as appropriate, denies the participant's
request for limited work participation status, the participant is required to
develop a WPA with the NMW service provider no later than 15 days following the
date of denial by the IRU or the NMW service provider. Failure to develop a WPA
may be considered non-compliance in accordance with 8.102.460 NMAC.
Notes
State regulations are updated quarterly; we currently have two versions available. Below is a comparison between our most recent version and the prior quarterly release. More comparison features will be added as we have more versions to compare.
No prior version found.