Refugees entering the United States are eligible to apply for Medicaid for eight months after their date of entry. Refugee financial assistance automatically provides Medicaid eligibility. The income standard, after allowable deductions, is based on a percentage of the financial assistance grant level, as determined by the Utah State Legislature.   Refugees who have a medical emergency and do not qualify for Medicaid may apply for the Emergency Medicaid Program. Medicaid offers language services for those who do not speak or read English.

Income Eligibility Standards in Monthly Amounts      (as of April 2005)            

Household Size  *Monthly Income         Household Size     *Monthly Income

1     . . . . . . . . . . .    $ 382                             6     . . . . . . . . $   857
2     . . . . . . . . . . . .  $ 468                             7     . . . . . . . . $   897
3    . . . . . . . . . . . .   $ 583                             8     . . . . . . . . $   938
4     . . . . . . . . . . . .  $ 682                             9     . . . . . . . . $   982 
5     . . . . . . . . . . . .  $ 777                           10     . . . . . . . . $ 1,023 

*Deductions

Deduct $90.00 from the countable earned income of each working family member, child care expenses, health and accident premiums, and Medical expenses. The $30 plus 1/3 of working income disregard may be allowed only if a client has received this deduction under a type of family cash assistance in one of the last four months.

*SpendDown

Medicaid applicants whose income exceeds the monthly income standard may be considered for the Medically Needy program, sometimes referred to as the Spenddown Program.  This program allows a person who is otherwise eligible either to pay "excess" monthly income to the state or to accept responsibility for a portion of their monthly medical bills. 

Asset Limits (see definition of "assets")

1 person   - $2,000.00
2 Persons - $3,000.00
For each additional person, add $25.00.  Assets too high?  See NOTE at bottom of page.

Retroactive Coverage

 Medicaid eligibility for any of the three months prior to the month of application.  Most Medicaid programs allow an applicant to request coverage for medical services for up to three months prior to the month in which the person filed a Medicaid application.  A person who received medical, dental or mental health services and subsequently qualifies for Medicaid may return to each provider with a Medicaid Identification Card for the month in which service was provided. A provider who has already rendered services may subsequently choose to accept Medicaid as payment in full or refuse to seek Medicaid payment because the patient had not been determined eligible for Medicaid at the time of service.  If the provider accepts Medicaid, Medicaid may pay for the service.  If the provider refuses Medicaid, the patient is responsible for the charges.

NOTE: Federally Qualified Health Centers are clinics that offer low-cost medical care.  It does not matter whether the person qualifies for Medicaid or has health insurance.  The cost of care is based on income.  There is a list of health centers in the brochure "Exploring Medicaid".  The brochure comes in two versions depending on where a person lives. One version of Exploring Medicaid is for people living in the Wasatch Front (Salt Lake, Utah,  Davis, Weber, and Morgan Counties).  The other version of Exploring Medicaid is for people who live in other areas of the state. In either version, look for telephone numbers for Federally Qualified Health Centers in the Resource section of the brochure.

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