Wisconsin 2023-2024 Regular Session

Wisconsin Assembly Bill AB148 Compare Versions

Only one version of the bill is available at this time.

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3	3	2023 - 2024 LEGISLATURE
4	4	2023 ASSEMBLY BILL 148
5	5	April 7, 2023 - Introduced by Representatives PENTERMAN, MACCO, ALLEN, BEHNKE,
6	6	BODDEN, BORN, BRANDTJEN, DITTRICH, EDMING, GREEN, GUNDRUM, KNODL,
7	7	MAGNAFICI, MOSES, NEDWESKI, PETERSEN, PLUMER, RETTINGER, ROZAR, SNYDER,
8	8	SORTWELL, STEFFEN, TITTL and WICHGERS, cosponsored by Senators STAFSHOLT,
9	9	CABRAL-GUEVARA, FELZKOWSKI, NASS and STROEBEL. Referred to Committee on
10	10	Health, Aging and Long-Term Care.
11	11	*AUTHORS SUBJECT TO CHANGE*
12	12	AN ACT to renumber and amend 49.823; and to create 49.45 (2) (a) 3m., 49.471
13	13	(4d) and (4j) and 49.823 (2) of the statutes; relating to: disenrollment of
14	14	ineligible individuals from and redeterminations of eligibility for the
15	15	BadgerCare Plus program and database confirmation for public assistance
16	16	program eligibility.
17	17	Analysis by the Legislative Reference Bureau
18	18	This bill makes various changes to eligibility determinations for public
19	19	assistance programs and, specifically, the BadgerCare Plus program. Currently, the
20	20	Department of Health Services administers the Medical Assistance program, a joint
21	21	federal and state program that provides health services to individuals who have
22	22	limited financial resources. Some services are provided through programs that
23	23	operate under a waiver of federal Medicaid laws, including the BadgerCare Plus
24	24	program. Under current law, certain children, pregnant women, parents and
25	25	caretaker relatives, former foster care youth, and adults aged 19 to 64 who are not
26	26	receiving Medicare and who do not have dependent children are eligible for benefits
27	27	under the BadgerCare Plus program if they meet certain financial criteria.
28	28	The bill prohibits DHS from automatically renewing the eligibility of a
29	29	recipient under the BadgerCare Plus program. DHS must determine an individual's
30	30	eligibility every six months under the bill. DHS is also prohibited from using
31	31	prepopulated forms or otherwise supplying information, except for name and
32	32	address, to a recipient under the BadgerCare Plus program that has been supplied
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39	39	ASSEMBLY BILL 148
40	40	to DHS. Additionally, any recipient under the BadgerCare Plus program that fails
41	41	to timely report to DHS or its designee any change that may affect eligibility is
42	42	ineligible for benefits for six months from the date DHS discovers the failure to report
43	43	the change. Under current law, knowingly concealing or failing to disclose any event
44	44	that an individual knows affects the initial or continued right to a Medical Assistance
45	45	benefit is subject to a forfeiture of not less than $100 nor more than $15,000 for each
46	46	concealment or failure.
47	47	The bill requires DHS to enter data sharing agreements with any agency that
48	48	maintains a database of financial or personal information about residents of this
49	49	state. DHS must confirm the information of an applicant for a public assistance
50	50	program against the information contained in those databases. The bill also requires
51	51	DHS to share data for this purpose of confirming eligibility for public assistance
52	52	programs. Current law requires DHS and the Department of Children and Families
53	53	to compare each department's respective databases against the databases of death
54	54	records to identify deceased participants.
55	55	The bill requires DHS to promptly remove from eligibility for the BadgerCare
56	56	Plus program any individual who enrolled in the program and who has been
57	57	determined to be ineligible for the program. Under the federal Families First
58	58	Coronavirus Act, during a federally declared public health emergency, a state may
59	59	receive an enhanced amount of federal financial participation in its Medical
60	60	Assistance program if the state complies with certain criteria, including refraining
61	61	from disenrolling individuals from the program. Under the federal Consolidated
62	62	Appropriation Act, 2023, enhanced federal financial participation ends for all states
63	63	after December 31, 2023. Under the bill, if the disenrollment or any other part of the
64	64	bill would cause the state not to qualify for enhanced federal financial participation
65	65	under federal law, that portion of the bill that does not comply with federal law may
66	66	not be implemented until January 1, 2024. During the period in which any portion
67	67	of the bill is not implemented due to a conflict with federal law, DHS must audit
68	68	BadgerCare Plus eligibility and report quarterly to the legislature the number of
69	69	individuals who are ineligible for benefits under the BadgerCare Plus program but
70	70	who are receiving benefits.
71	71	If DHS determines that it is necessary to obtain permission from the federal
72	72	Department of Health and Human Services to implement any portion of this bill, the
73	73	bill requires DHS to request any state plan amendment, waiver of federal law, or
74	74	other federal approval to implement that portion of the bill.
75	75	For further information see the state fiscal estimate, which will be printed as
76	76	an appendix to this bill.
77	77	The people of the state of Wisconsin, represented in senate and assembly, do
78	78	enact as follows:
79	79	SECTION 1. 49.45 (2) (a) 3m. of the statutes is created to read:1 - 3 -2023 - 2024 Legislature
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82	82	SECTION 1
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84	84	49.45 (2) (a) 3m. Remove promptly from eligibility for the Medical Assistance
85	85	program under sub. (23) or s. 49.471 any individual who has been determined to be
86	86	ineligible.
87	87	SECTION 2. 49.471 (4d) and (4j) of the statutes are created to read:
88	88	49.471 (4d) REDETERMINATION OF ELIGIBILITY. The department may not
89	89	automatically renew the eligibility of a recipient of Medical Assistance benefits
90	90	under this section or s. 49.45 (23). The department shall redetermine eligibility for
91	91	the Medical Assistance program under this section or s. 49.45 (23) for each individual
92	92	every 6 months. In collecting information from a recipient of Medical Assistance
93	93	benefits or an applicant, the department may not use any form that is prepopulated
94	94	with, or otherwise provide to the recipient or applicant, information that has been
95	95	supplied to the department except for the recipient's or applicant's name and
96	96	address.
97	97	(4j) FAILURE TO REPORT. Any recipient of Medical Assistance benefits under this
98	98	section or s. 49.45 (23) who fails to timely report to the department or an entity
99	99	designated by the department any change that may affect the recipient's eligibility
100	100	for benefits shall be ineligible for benefits under this section or s. 49.45 (23) for 6
101	101	months following the date that the department discovers the failure to report the
102	102	change.
103	103	SECTION 3. 49.823 of the statutes is renumbered 49.823 (1) and amended to
104	104	read:
105	105	49.823 (1) The department of health services and the department of children
106	106	and families shall, at least once every 3 months, perform a comparison of each
107	107	department's respective public benefit database information against nationally
108	108	recognized databases that contain information on death records, including the
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135	135	SECTION 3 ASSEMBLY BILL 148
136	136	federal social security administration's Death Master File, to identify participants
137	137	in public benefit programs that are deceased. If a department determines during a
138	138	review under this section subsection that a participant is deceased, the department
139	139	shall designate that individual as ineligible for benefits in any applicable database.
140	140	The requirements under this section subsection do not apply to the department of
141	141	children and families with regard to child care subsidies under s. 49.155.
142	142	SECTION 4. 49.823 (2) of the statutes is created to read:
143	143	49.823 (2) The department of health services shall enter a data sharing
144	144	agreement with the department of children and families, the department of
145	145	workforce development, and any other agency that maintains a database of financial
146	146	or personal information about residents of this state. The department of health
147	147	services, through the data sharing agreement, shall confirm the information
148	148	submitted by the applicant for a public assistance program with the information
149	149	contained in other databases held by other agencies. The department of health
150	150	services shall share data with other agencies for the purposes of confirming
151	151	eligibility for public assistance programs.
152	152	SECTION 5.0Nonstatutory provisions.
153	153	(1) EFFECTIVE DATE OF DISENROLLMENT; REPORT ON INELIGIBILITY. If
154	154	implementation of s. 49.45 (2) (a) 3m. or any other part of this act does not comply
155	155	with section 6008 (b) or (f) of the federal Families First Coronavirus Response Act,
156	156	P.L. 116-127, as amended by the federal Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021, P.L.
157	157	116-260, and the federal Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2023, P.L. 117-328, to
158	158	receive an enhanced federal medical assistance percentage, the department of
159	159	health services shall implement any part of the act that does not comply beginning
160	160	January 1, 2024. During any period in which any provision of this act is not
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188	188	SECTION 5
189	189	ASSEMBLY BILL 148
190	190	implemented, the department of health services shall perform an audit of Medical
191	191	Assistance eligibility and report quarterly to the legislature under s. 13.172 (2) the
192	192	number of individuals who are ineligible for Medical Assistance under s. 49.45 (23)
193	193	or 49.471 but who are still receiving benefits pursuant to s. 49.45 (23) or 49.471.
194	194	(2) FEDERAL APPROVAL. If the department of health services determines that it
195	195	is necessary to obtain permission from the federal department of health and human
196	196	services to implement any portion of this act, the department shall request any state
197	197	plan amendment, waiver of federal law, or other federal approval to implement that
198	198	portion of the act. If federal approval is necessary under this subsection but not
199	199	obtained, the department of health services is not required to implement the portion
200	200	of the act for which approval is not obtained.
201	201	(END)
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