MaineCare and CHIP applicants must declare their United States citizenship or qualifying noncitizen status and have their status verified to receive MaineCare benefits. An individual who is not a citizen of the United States may be eligible for full MaineCare benefits, or they may be eligible for emergency services only.
A reasonable opportunity period is not provided if an individual does not declare U.S. citizenship or a qualifying noncitizen status.
The reasonable opportunity period is defined as follows:
The Department may extend the reasonable opportunity period if the individual is making a good faith effort to obtain any necessary documentation, or if the Department needs more time to complete the verification process.
If the applicant does not provide documentation necessary to verify citizenship or qualifying noncitizen status of the applicant and household members within 90 days, benefits for unverified household members will end. A reasonable opportunity period will be provided on subsequent applications submitted by or on behalf of the applicant or household members.
If an individual within a household is not eligible due to inability to prove citizenship, identity or noncitizen status, the individual will still be counted as part of the household and that person's income and assets will be included in determining eligibility for the rest of the household.
The following documents may be accepted as proof of both citizenship and identity because each contains a photograph of the individual named in the document, and the citizenship and identity of the individual have been established by either the U.S. or a state government. Primary verifications satisfy both citizenship and identity requirements:
If primary verification from the list in Paragraph II of this section is unavailable, the person should provide satisfactory documentary verification from Paragraph VI of this section to establish identity, and satisfactory verification of citizenship from the list below:
The Department of State issues a DS-1350 to U.S. citizens in the U.S. who were born outside the U.S. and acquired U.S. citizenship at birth, based on the information shown on the FS- 240. When the birth was recorded as a Consular Report of Birth (FS-240), certified copies of the Certification of Report of Birth Abroad (DS-1350) can be issued by the Department of State in Washington, D.C. The DS-1350 contains the same information as that on the current version of Consular Report of Birth FS-240. The DS-1350 is not issued outside the U.S.
The Department of State consular office prepares and issues this. A Consular Report of Birth can be prepared only at an American consular office overseas while the child is under the age of 18. Children born outside the U.S. to U.S. military personnel usually have one of these.
Before November 1, 1990, Department of State consulates also issued Form FS-545 along with the prior version of the FS-240. In 1990, U.S. consulates ceased to issue Form FS-545. Treat an FS-545 the same as the DS-1350.
This form was issued as Form I-197 until the 1980s by INS. INS issued the I-179 from 1960 until 1973. It revised the form and renumbered it as Form I-197. INS issued the I-197 from 1973 until April 7, 1983. INS issued Form I-179 and I-197 to naturalized U.S. citizens living near the Canadian or Mexican border who needed it for frequent border crossings. Although neither form is currently issued, either form that was previously issued is still valid.
The former Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS) issued the I-873 to a collectively naturalized citizen of the U.S. who was born in the NMI before November 4, 1986. The card is no longer issued, but those previously issued are still valid.
DHS issues this card to identify a member of the Texas Band of Kickapoos living near the U.S./Mexican border. A classification code of "KIC" and a statement on the back denote U.S. citizenship.
In situations where an adoption is not finalized and the state in which the child was born will not release a birth certificate prior to final adoption, a statement from a state-approved adoption agency that shows the child's name and U.S. place of birth is acceptable. The adoption agency must state in the certification that the source of the place of birth information is an original birth certificate.
The document must show employment by the U.S. government before June 1, 1976. Individuals employed by the U.S. Civil Service prior to June 1, 1976 had to be U.S. citizens.
The document must show a U.S. place of birth (for example a DD-214 or similar official document showing a U.S. place of birth.)
If verification from the lists in Paragraphs II and III of this section is unavailable and the person claims a U.S. place of birth, the person should provide satisfactory verification from Paragraph VI of this section to establish identity, and satisfactory verification of citizenship from the list below:
If verification from the lists in Paragraphs II, III, and IV of this section is unavailable and the person claims a U.S. place of birth, the person should provide verification from Paragraph VI of this section to establish identity, and satisfactory documentary evidence of citizenship from the list below:
Census records from 1900 through 1950 contain certain citizenship information. To secure this information, complete a Form BC-600, Application for Search of Census Records for Proof of Age. Add in the remarks portion "U.S. citizenship data requested". Also add that the purpose is for Medicaid and CHIP eligibility.
An immunization record alone is not considered a medical record for purposes of establishing U.S. citizenship.
The following documents, even if expired, may be accepted as proof of identity and must be submitted when the person uses, as proof of citizenship, the documents listed in Paragraphs II through V of this section. (A separate document proving identity need not be submitted when the person submits primary evidence of citizenship and identity as outlined in Paragraph II of this section):
A voter's registration card does not meet this requirement, as the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) does not view this as a reliable form of identification.
If the individual submitted fourth level verification of citizenship, Section 3.2(VI)(I) does not apply.
An individual with a disability in a residential care or institutional facility may have their identity attested to by the facility director or administrator when the individual does not have or cannot get any document on the preceding lists. The affidavit is signed under the penalty of perjury but need not be notarized.
Children under age 16 may have their identity documented using one of the following if none of the documents in Paragraph VI are available:
Identity affidavits may be used for children under age 18 in limited circumstances, when the child is from an area where a school ID with picture is not provided or a driver's license with a picture is not available.
Electronic data matching is the primary method of verifying citizenship and identity. If citizenship cannot be verified electronically, the applicant must provide documentary evidence of their citizenship as listed in Paragraph II through VII of this section.
An individual who is not a citizen or national of the United States must present alien registration documentation, other proof of immigration registration from the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), or other documents indicating the individual's qualifying noncitizen status. If the individual declares a satisfactory noncitizen status and documentation is not presented at application, the individual will be given a reasonable opportunity to provide the documentation. See Part 2, Section 3.1(III). Following the reasonable opportunity period, Temporary MaineCare coverage, as described in Section 12.3 of this part, will not be provided if the applicant cannot provide satisfactory documentation of noncitizen status.
The Systematic Alien Verification for Entitlements Program (SAVE) is the USCIS operative system for verification of noncitizen status for individuals applying for MaineCare. The noncitizen status of applicants who declare a qualifying noncitizen status must be verified through SAVE. If electronic verification indicates that additional documentation is required to verify attested noncitizen status, the Department will request further information from the individual. If an applicant disputes the USCIS response, they may submit additional documentation. The Department will submit additional documentation received by the Department to SAVE to reattempt electronic verification of attested status.
The Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity and Reconciliation Act of 1996 (PRWORA), P.L. 104-193, describes noncitizens as either qualified or non-qualified aliens. PRWORA further defines aliens who are eligible to receive either full benefit Medicaid or emergency services only, and qualified aliens who are subject to the five-year bar from Medicaid eligibility.
An individual must provide documentation from the United States Citizen and Immigration Services (USCIS) to prove their noncitizen status.
If an individual admits to being an undocumented noncitizen, this information will not be shared with USCIS. All information is held confidential in accordance with Part 1, Section 2.
Below is a listing of noncitizen groups who may be eligible for full benefits. See Section 3.4(II) of this part for a listing of noncitizen statuses that are only eligible for Emergency Services.
A noncitizen who does not declare a qualified noncitizen status from Paragraph I of this section, or has no USCIS documents regarding their noncitizen status, or who is an ineligible noncitizen as defined in Subparagraph B below, or who is a qualified alien subject to the five-year waiting period for full Medicaid can get Medicaid or CHIP Emergency Services only. Individuals must still meet financial requirements and be in a coverable group. These individuals must meet all basic eligibility requirements (including Maine residency) except for citizenship or noncitizen status and providing a Social Security number. If these individuals intend to remain in Maine at the time of application, they will be considered Maine residents.
MaineCare Emergency Services coverage is only available for the noncitizen groups listed below:
Except for (x) below, these noncitizens should have one of the following types of INS documents: Form I-94, Arrival-Departure Record; Form I-185, Canadian Border Crossing Card; Form I-186, Mexican Border Crossing Card; Form SW-434, Mexican Border Visitor's Permit; Form I-95A, Crewman's Landing Permit; or Form I-184, Crewman's Landing Permit and Identification Card.
10-144 C.M.R. ch. 332, § 2-3