(a) The statement required by Sections 14006.2 and 14006.3 shall be in the following form:

“NOTICE REGARDING STANDARDS FOR MEDI-CAL ELIGIBILITY

If you or your spouse is in or is entering a nursing facility, read this important message!

You or your spouse do not have to use all your resources, such as savings, before Medi-Cal might help pay for all or some of the costs of a nursing facility.

You should be aware of the following to take advantage of these provisions of the law:

UNMARRIED RESIDENT

An unmarried resident is financially eligible for Medi-Cal benefits if they have less than (insert amount of individual’s resource allowance) in available resources. A home is an exempt resource and is not considered against the resource limit, as long as the resident states on the Medi-Cal application that they intend to return home. Clothes, household furnishings, irrevocable burial plans, burial plots, and an automobile are examples of other exempt resources.

If an unmarried resident is financially eligible for Medi-Cal reimbursement, they are allowed to keep from their monthly income a personal allowance of (insert amount of personal needs allowance) plus the amount of health insurance premiums paid monthly. The remainder of the monthly income is paid to the nursing facility as a monthly deductible called the “Medi-Cal long-term care patient liability.”

MARRIED RESIDENT

If one spouse lives in a nursing facility, and the other spouse does not live in a nursing facility, the Medi-Cal program will pay some or all of the nursing facility costs as long as the couple together does not have more than (insert amount of Community Spouse Resource Allowance plus individual’s resource allowance) in available assets. The couple’s home will not be counted against this (insert amount of Community Spouse Resource Allowance plus individual’s resource allowance), as long as one spouse or a dependent relative, or both, lives in the home, or the spouse in the nursing facility states on the Medi-Cal application that they intend to return to the couple’s home to live.

If a spouse is eligible for Medi-Cal payment of nursing facility costs, the spouse living at home is allowed to keep a monthly income of at least their individual monthly income or (insert amount of Minimum Monthly Maintenance Needs Allowance), whichever is greater. Of the couple’s remaining monthly income, the spouse in the nursing facility is allowed to keep a personal allowance of (insert amount of personal needs allowance) plus the amount of health insurance premiums paid monthly. The remaining money, if any, generally must be paid to the nursing facility as the Medi-Cal long-term care patient liability. The Medi-Cal program will pay remaining nursing facility costs.

Under certain circumstances, an at-home spouse can obtain an order from an administrative law judge that will allow the at-home spouse to retain additional resources or income. Such an order can allow the couple to retain more than (insert amount of Community Spouse Resource Allowance plus individual’s resource allowance) in available resources, if the income that could be generated by the retained resources would not cause the total monthly income available to the at-home spouse to exceed (insert amount of Monthly Maintenance Needs Allowance). Such an order also can allow the at-home spouse to retain more than (insert amount of Monthly Maintenance Needs Allowance) in monthly income, if the extra income is necessary “due to exceptional circumstances resulting in significant financial duress.”

An at-home spouse also may obtain a court order to increase the amount of income and resources that they are allowed to retain, or to transfer property from the spouse in the nursing facility to the at-home spouse. You should contact a knowledgeable attorney for further information regarding court orders.

The paragraphs above do not apply if both spouses live in a nursing facility and neither previously has been granted Medi-Cal eligibility. In this situation, the spouses may be able to hasten Medi-Cal eligibility by entering into an agreement that divides their community property. The advice of a knowledgeable attorney should be obtained prior to the signing of this type of agreement.

Note: For married couples, the resource limit1 and income limit2 generally increase a slight amount on January 1 of every year.

TRANSFER OF HOME FOR BOTH A MARRIED AND AN UNMARRIED RESIDENT

A transfer of a property interest in a resident’s home will not cause ineligibility for Medi-Cal reimbursement if either of the following conditions is met:

(a) At the time of transfer, the recipient of the property interest states in writing that the resident would have been allowed to return to the home at the time of the transfer, if the resident’s medical condition allowed them to leave the nursing facility. This provision shall only apply if the home has been considered an exempt resource because of the resident’s intent to return home.

(b) The home is transferred to one of the following individuals:

(1) The resident’s spouse.

(2) The resident’s minor or disabled child.

(3) A sibling of the resident who has an equity interest in the home, and who resided in the resident’s home for at least one year immediately before the resident began living in institutions.

(4) A child of the resident who resided in the resident’s home at least two years before the resident began living in institutions, and who provided care to the resident that permitted the resident to remain at home longer.

This is only a brief description of the Medi-Cal eligibility rules, for more detailed information, you should call your county welfare department. You will probably want to consult with the local branch of the state long-term care ombudsman, an attorney, or a legal services program for seniors in your area.

I have read the above notice and have received a copy.

Dated: ______ Signature: _________”

(b) The statement required by subdivision (a) shall be printed in at least 10-point type, shall be clearly separate from any other document or writing, and shall be signed by the person to be admitted and that person’s spouse, and legal representative, if any.

(c) Any nursing facility that willfully fails to comply with this section shall be subject to a class “B” citation, as defined by § 1424 of the Health and Safety Code.

(d) The department may revise this statement as necessary to maintain its consistency with state and federal law.

(e) This section shall become inoperative on the later of either January 1, 2024, or the date on which the determination of the Director of Health Care Services is communicated in writing to the Department of Finance pursuant to paragraph (2) of subdivision (b) of Section 14005.62, and subject to implementation of Section 14005.62 pursuant to subdivision (d) of that section, and shall remain inoperative for time periods in which the department has obtained the necessary federal approvals to implement paragraph (2) of subdivision (b) of Section 14005.62 for the applicable population.

(Amended by Stats. 2023, Ch. 42, Sec. 94. (AB 118) Effective July 10, 2023. Conditionally inoperative on or after January 1, 2024, by its own provisions. See later operative version added by Sec. 95 of Stats. 2023, Ch. 42.)