§ 47-706. Medical assistance; federal financial participation; legislative intent; Department of Health and Human Services; Department of Correctional Services; duties.

(1) It is the intent of the Legislature to ensure that human services agencies, correctional facilities, and detention facilities recognize that: (a) Federal law generally does not authorize federal financial participation for medicaid when a person is an inmate of a public institution as defined in federal law but that federal financial participation is available after an inmate is released from incarceration; and (b) The fact that an applicant is currently an inmate does not, in and of itself, preclude the Department of Health and Human Services from processing an application submitted to it by, or on behalf of, the inmate. (2)(a) Medical assistance under the medical assistance program shall be suspended, rather than canceled or terminated, for a person who is an inmate of a public institution if: (i) The Department of Health and Human Services is notified of the person's entry into the public institution; (ii) On the date of entry, the person was enrolled in the medical assistance program; and (iii) The person is eligible for the medical assistance program except for institutional status. (b) A suspension under subdivision (2)(a) of this section shall end on the date the person is no longer an inmate of a public institution. (c) Upon release from incarceration, such person shall continue to be eligible for receipt of medical assistance until such time as the person is otherwise determined to no longer be eligible for the medical assistance program. (3)(a) The Department of Correctional Services shall notify the Department of Health and Human Services: (i) Within twenty days after receiving information that a person receiving medical assistance under the medical assistance program is or will be an inmate of a public institution; and (ii) Within forty-five days prior to the release of a person who qualified for suspension under subdivision (2)(a) of this section. (b) Local correctional facilities, juvenile detention facilities, and other temporary detention centers shall notify the Department of Health and Human Services within ten days after receiving information that a person receiving medical assistance under the medical assistance program is or will be an inmate of a public institution. (4)(a) This subsection applies beginning July 1, 2023. (b) For purposes of this section: (i) Covered facility means: (A) A facility as defined in section 83-170; and (B) A county jail or adult correctional facility that is operated by a county, which county has a population of more than one hundred thousand inhabitants as determined by the most recent federal decennial census or the most recent revised certified count by the United States Bureau of the Census; and (ii) Inmate means a person who is an inmate of a covered facility for at least twenty-one consecutive days. (c) For individuals who are inmates of a covered facility and have at least sixty days' prior notice of their anticipated release date: (i) The Department of Health and Human Services shall provide onsite, telephonic, or live video medical assistance program enrollment assistance to each inmate at least sixty days before the inmate's release from a covered facility. The department shall submit each inmate's medical assistance program application at least forty-five days prior to the inmate's release from a covered facility unless the inmate elects not to apply for the medical assistance program in writing or the inmate is currently enrolled in the medical assistance program with suspended coverage under subsection (2) of this section; and (ii) The Department of Health and Human Services shall process each inmate's medical assistance program application prior to the inmate's release from a covered facility such that medical assistance program coverage becomes effective for an eligible individual no later than the day of release from a covered facility. (d) For individuals who are inmates of a covered facility and have less than sixty days' prior notice of their anticipated release date: (i) The Department of Health and Human Services shall provide onsite, telephonic, or live video medical assistance program enrollment assistance to each inmate as soon as practicable prior to the inmate's release from a covered facility. The department shall submit each inmate's medical assistance program application as soon as practicable prior to the inmate's release from a covered facility unless the inmate elects not to apply for the medical assistance program in writing or the inmate is currently enrolled in the medical assistance program with suspended coverage under subsection (2) of this section; and (ii) The Department of Health and Human Services shall process each inmate's medical assistance program application prior to the inmate's release from a covered facility such that medical assistance program coverage becomes effective for an eligible individual no later than the day of release from a covered facility or as soon as practicable thereafter. (e) The Department of Health and Human Services may contract with certified third-party enrollment assistance providers to provide the enrollment assistance and application submission required by this subsection. (f) The Department of Health and Human Services shall take all necessary actions to maximize federal financial participation pursuant to this subsection. (5) Nothing in this section shall create a state-funded benefit or program. (6) For purposes of this section, medical assistance program means the medical assistance program under the Medical Assistance Act and the State Children's Health Insurance Program. (7) This section shall be implemented only if, and to the extent, allowed by federal law. This section shall be implemented only to the extent that any necessary federal approval of state plan amendments or other federal approvals are obtained. The Department of Health and Human Services shall seek such approval if required. (8) Local correctional facilities, the Nebraska Commission on Law Enforcement and Criminal Justice, and the Office of Probation Administration shall cooperate with the Department of Health and Human Services and the Department of Correctional Services for purposes of facilitating information sharing to achieve the purposes of this section. (9)(a) The Department of Correctional Services shall adopt and promulgate rules and regulations, in consultation with the Department of Health and Human Services and local correctional facilities, to carry out this section. (b) The Department of Health and Human Services shall adopt and promulgate rules and regulations, in consultation with the Department of Correctional Services and local correctional facilities, to carry out this section. History: Laws 2015, LB605, § 108; Laws 2022, LB921, § 2.