In January 2005, Hawai`i was awarded a Medicaid Infrastructure Grant (MIG) by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) to increase competitive employment outcomes for people with disabilities. The project, called Hire Abilities Hawaii, represents an innovative collaboration among the Department of Human Services (DHS), University of Hawai`i College of Education Center for Disabilities Studies (CDS), the Department of Education (DOE), the Department of Health (DOH), the Department of Labor (DOL) and its statewide Workforce Development Council.
CMS Announces Medicare Premiums and Deductibles for 2010
Late last week, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) announced that most Medicare beneficiaries will not see an increase in the Part B monthly premium in 2010 as a result of the “hold harmless” provision in the current law. This provision protects beneficiaries whose premiums are deducted from their Social Security checks from paying an additional premium amount that is greater than the amount of the Social Security cost-of-living adjustment (COLA). Since there will not be a COLA for Social Security benefits in 2010, about 73 percent of beneficiaries will not be required to pay any premium increase.
The remaining 27 percent of beneficiaries, however, will see an increase in their Part B premium in 2010 from $96.40 to $110.50. The amount of this increase is unusually high in order to make up for lost revenue from those individuals who are protected under the “hold harmless” provision. The individuals who will be required to pay this higher premium are: new enrollees (3 percent), individuals subject to the income-related additional premium amount (5 percent), and individuals who do not have their Part B premiums withheld from social security benefit payments (19 percent), including those who qualify for both Medicare and Medicaid and have their Part B premiums paid on their behalf by Medicaid (17 percent).
Under the Medicare law, the standard Part B premium is set to cover approximately one-fourth of the average cost of Part B services incurred by beneficiaries aged 65 and over. The remaining Part B costs are financed by Federal general revenues. The monthly premium paid by beneficiaries enrolled in Medicare Part B covers a portion of the cost of physicians’ services, outpatient hospital services, certain home health services, durable medical equipment, and other items.
If a beneficiary’s “modified adjusted gross income” is greater than legislated threshold amounts for Medicare ($85,000 in 2010 for a beneficiary filing an individual income tax return or married and filing a separate return, and $170,000 for a beneficiary filing a joint tax return), the beneficiary is required to pay additional income-related Part B premium amounts. These adjustment amounts, which were phased-in over three years beginning in 2007, were also announced by CMS.
Additionally, CMS announced that the 2010 Part B deductible will be $155 and the Part A inpatient hospital deductible will be $1,100, which represents an increase of $32 from $1,068 in 2009. The Part A premium in 2010 will be $461 per month (an $18 increase from 2009) for seniors who are not entitled to Medicare because they do not have 40 quarters of Medicare-covered employment but who elect to buy Part A coverage.
For further information, please visit
http://www.socialsecurity.gov/pressoffice/factsheets/colafacts2010.htm or download the fact sheet here
Free State-wide Tax Preparation Sites
Thanks to certified volunteers working at tax assistance sites across the State, you can have your federal and state tax returns prepared for free. For the 2009 season, please click here to download a list of locations where free tax preparation is available.
Benefit Planning Certificate Training
February 17-20, 2009
The Benefit Planning Certificate Training is an innovative collaboration between the MIG project, AMHD, DVR and Cornell University. We are looking to train a group of peer specialists through this 3-days training at Oahu and a series of weekly webinars (hosted by Cornell University and University of Hawaii). Upon completion of the training, we will place up to 10 qualified peer specialists at various locations for one on one benefit planning/work incentive consultation with other clients.
The training will begin on February 18, 2009 through February 20, 2009. The weekly webinars will take place every Thursday from February 26, 2009 through April 30, 2009. The application for this Benefit Planning Certificate Training can be downloaded here. For more information, please view the flyer.
In addition, we are also having a 1-day Benefit Planning Training for agency staff on February 17, 2009. Please download the application here and send it in to us by February 6, 2009. For more information, please view the flyer.
Should you have any question, please feel free to contact us the MIG office at mihalke@hawaii.edu or chinlee@hawaii.edu or 808-956-9142. Please also help to get the words out.
Employment Network Orientation and Recruitment Sessions
February 23-27, 2009
The New Ticket to Work Program regulations went into effect on July 21, 2008. Now is the time to discover how the Social Security Administration (SSA) has listened to, learned from, and responded to your ideas about improving the Ticket to Work Program. SSA has made a number of exciting changes that make the Ticket to Work Program easier to use and more profitable. SSA, Hire Abilities Hawai‘i (Medicaid Infrastructure Grant), Hawai‘i Vocational Rehabilitation Division and CESSI invite your organization to attend one of the sessions in Hawai‘i to:
- Learn about how it’s become easier for Ticket Holders to reach milestones and Employment Networks to receive payments.
- Find out about the exciting changes to the New Ticket to Work Program.
- Explore new opportunities for partnership between Employment Networks, State VR agencies, Hire Abilities Hawai‘i and the workforce development entities.
The Employment Network Orientation and Recruitment Sessions is a collaboration between the MIG project, Hawaii Vocational Rehabilitation Division and Social Security Administration. We are hoping that more organizations will learn about the new Ticket to Work Program and explore the opportunity of becoming Employment Networks to provide employment support to ticket holders.
Please download the flyer and the registration form for the Employment Network events. Please also help to distribute to other agencies/organizations (for example, other waiver providers, school, state agencies, etc.) you think may be interested for this event. Please also help to distribute it to your branch at other locations. Should you have any question, please feel free to contact us at chinlee@hawaii.edu or 808-956-9142.
Economic Stimulus Payments
Social Security beneficiaries may be eligible for a cash payment of $300 to $600 if they file a tax return for 2007. Read our Economic Stimulus Payment page for instructions and information about where to find free tax help on each island.
To be eligible, you must have at least $3,000 in qualifying income, which can include social security benefits or earned income.
Would a Medicaid Buy-In be Helpful to You?
People with disabilities are often forced to choose between health care and work. This proposed Medicaid Buy-In program would allow workers to keep their Medicaid coverage as their income rises by paying a premium.
Learn more about this proposed work incentive: