Medical Assistance

2.1.2.3 County Residency

Medical Assistance (MA) has rules about county residence. County residency policy determines the:

County of service
County of financial responsibility

County of Service

The county of service is responsible for administering the case, including, but not limited to:

Processing paper applications
Processing change in circumstances
Processing renewals
Gathering proofs and documentation
Issuing manual notices
Creating case notes

County of Financial Responsibility

The county of financial responsibility is responsible for paying the county share of MA services. The county of financial responsibility is the county where the person lives on the day the county receives a written request for assistance, except in the following circumstances:

When an enrollee moves to a different county, the new county becomes the county of financial responsibility after two full calendar months following the month of the move.
When an applicant moves to a new county during the application processing period the county in which the client resided at the time the application was submitted is financially responsible, whether or not the county that received the application has acted on the application. The new county becomes the county of financial responsibility after two full calendar months following the month of the move.
- Example: John applied for MA in County A on October 4th. On October 20th, he submits all required information to County A and reports that he moved to County B on October 15. County A finishes processing the application and determines John is eligible for MA. County B becomes the county of financial responsibility beginning January 1. November and December are the two full calendar months after the month John moved.
When a person lives in an excluded time facility or receives excluded time services, the county of financial responsibility is the county in which the person lived immediately before the excluded time started.
When a person leaves an excluded time facility or no longer receives excluded time services, and lives in a county other than the one in which the person lived immediately before the excluded time started, the new county becomes the county of financial responsibility after two full calendar months following the month the excluded time ends.

Excluded Time

Excluded time facilities and situations include:

Hospitals
Long-Term Care Facilities (LTCF)
Shelters (other than emergency shelters)
Halfway houses
Foster homes for children receiving Title IV-E and Non-Title IV-E Foster Care
Adult foster care
Board and lodging facilities
Maternity homes
Battered women's shelters
Correctional facilities
Regional treatment centers (RTC)
Placement in a facility based on an emergency hold
Placements in day training and habilitation programs
Assisted living services
Placements with an indeterminate commitment, including independent living

A person may receive excluded time services while living at home or in a group living situation. Excluded time services include:

Participation in a rehabilitation facility which meets the definition of a long-term sheltered workshop
Receiving services from a Semi-Independent Living Services (SILS) Program
Receiving integrated community supports or day support services
Participation in day training and habilitation programs

Safe at Home

When a person is a Safe at Home (SAH) program participant, they use a PO Box address assigned to them. SAH provides a mail forwarding service. The county of financial responsibility and county of residence are the county in which the person lives. More information about SAH Address Confidentiality Program is available from the Minnesota Secretary of State.

Legal Citations

Minnesota Statutes, section 5B, subdivision 1 to 13

Minnesota Statutes, section 256G.02, subdivision 4

Minnesota Statutes, section 256G.02, subdivision 6

Minnesota Statutes, section 256G.07, subdivision 1

Minnesota Statutes, section 256J.75, subdivision 2