16.4 Accounts

16.4.1.1 EBD Medicaid Applicant/Member EBD Co-owner

16.4.1.2 EBD Medicaid Applicant/Member Non EBD Co-owner

16.4.1.3 Exception to Joint- Accounts policy

16.4.1 Joint Accounts

Account means a deposit of funds with a financial institution (bank, savings and loan, credit union, insurance company, brokerage firm, etc.).

Apply the following policy to accounts where the account holders have equal access to the funds.

16.4.1.1 EBD Medicaid Applicant/Member EBD Co-owner

When an EBD Medicaid applicant / member shares a joint account with a co-owner who is another EBD applicant/member, deem an “equal share” to each account holder.

“Equal share” means an amount in proportion to the number of EBD-related applicant/member account holders. If there are three holders, an equal share means each is deemed 1/3 of the account balance.

EBD Medicaid applicant/members also include any of the Medicare Beneficiary programs QMB , SLMB , SLMB+ , and QDWI .

SeniorCare applicant/members are not considered an EBD-related applicant/member when deeming joint accounts.

16.4.1.2 EBD Medicaid Applicant/Member Non EBD Co-owner

When an EBD Medicaid applicant/member shares an account with an individual or individuals who are not EBD Medicaid applicant(s)/member(s) count the full amount of the account as a countable asset for the EBD Medicaid applicant/member.

16.4.1.3 Exception to Joint Accounts policy

Do not apply Joint Accounts policies (see Section 16.4.1 Joint Accounts) to the following kinds of joint accounts:

1. Accounts established for business, charitable or civic purposes.
2. Trust or restricted accounts. A trust or restricted account is one in which the person named as holder of the account has no access or limited access to the funds in it.
3. Special purpose accounts. A special purpose account has at least one holder acting as the power-of-attorney, guardian or conservator for at least one of the other holders of the account.
4. Convenience accounts. The following policy applies only to joint accounts of persons who are not married to one another:

When a person's name appears on a joint account, assume he or she is part owner of the assets in the account. Inform the member that he or she has a right to present evidence showing he or she did not deposit any assets into the account.

To show that he or she does not own or co-own any assets in the account, he or she must present all of the following:

1. A signed statement explaining:
1. Who owns the funds in the joint account.
2. The reason for establishing it.
3. Who made the deposits to the account.
1. A signed corroborating statement from the co-holder of the account.
2. A copy of the change in the account which removes his or her name or restricts his or her access.

If the co-holder is incompetent or a minor , obtain a statement from a knowledgeable third party. Then, decide whether to accept the person's statement. If you decide he or she is not a co-holder, apply the decision retroactively as well as prospectively. When no third party is available, document the reason.

16.4.2 Jointly Held Real Property

Apportion an equal share of any real property or any income derived from real property to each owner. To apportion, the equity or income must be available.

TThis page last updated in Release Number: 15-01

Release Date: 06/10/2015

Effective Date: 06/10/2015