I will be the first to say these systems are extremely hard to navigate. It is as concrete as the picture above. I applied for Medicaid at the same time I applied for the Waiver. This was advice given to me and now I am passing it on. There are a lot of different Medicaid plans in this state from waivers to managed care plans. I was placing my brother in an ICF (which falls under nursing home category) so it maybe different when it comes to applying for a child. I needed medicaid to pay for his group home. He still pays room and board (think apartment) and then medicaid is billed from the facility to help off set the cost of staff not to mention layers of management. Once you are approved for Medwaiver even if you are on the waitlist, you get access to ACHA (medicaid). Then there is a clause that if you are eligible for social security then you qualify for Medicaid. I have to give credit to parents that have figured all of this out.
How to apply?
http://www.myflorida.com/accessflorida/
Click on apply for benefits. You will need your child’s or siblings information- social security number, address, phone, bank statements, qualifying disability, and a host of other documentation. In my case, guardianship paperwork. If they are a dependent, then Medicaid will look at your income. I do not claim my brother as a dependent. I will be honest that I do not know the process if an adult child is claimed as a dependent.
You have to have some patience. They never seemed to get my faxes and everything always seemed like a chore to the person on the other end. I did finally get everything straightened out and the facility helped. I know I have to notify them with any change of income. Anytime I get a letter from social security, I then have to upload it to that portal as well. If you don’t, you can lose eligibility.
I am hoping some of the families I work with with share their story and fight to get their child benefits and I can share in future posts. I wish I had the magic ticket and direct instructions but unfortunately when it comes to government programs, there is not one.
