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The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) is a law that makes available a free appropriate public education to eligible children with disabilities throughout the nation and ensures special education and related services to those children.

Additionally, the IDEA authorizes: Formula grants to states to support special education and related services and early intervention services. Discretionary grants to state educational agencies, institutions of higher education, and other nonprofit organizations to support research, demonstrations, technical assistance and dissemination, technology development, personnel preparation and development, and parent-training and -information centers.

In the law, Congress states: Disability is a natural part of the human experience and in no way diminishes the right of individuals to participate in or contribute to society. Improving educational results for children with disabilities is an essential element of our national policy of ensuring equality of opportunity, full participation, independent living, and economic self-sufficiency for individuals with disabilities.

The Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) program provides states and territories with flexibility in operating programs designed to help low-income families with children achieve economic self-sufficiency.  States use TANF to fund monthly cash assistance payments to low-income families with children, as well as a wide range of services.

Contact information for state TANF programs.

The Office of Family Assistance collects and analyzes data on TANF caseloads, expenditures, work participation rates, recipient characteristics, and more.

Eligibility To get coverage, you must:  Be a Minnesota resident Be a U.S. citizen or a qualifying noncitizen Provide a Social Security number for each person requesting MA, unless an exception is met Meet the income limit and asset limit, if any Meet any other program rules. What is the income limit? The income limit and calculations depend on your age and who lives with you. If you are pregnant, blind or have a disability, you also may have a different income limit. Some people who do not meet the income limit still may qualify using a spenddown (PDF). A spenddown is like an insurance deductible. This means you are responsible for some medical bills before MA pays. What is the asset limit? Assets are items people own like cars, checking and savings accounts, your home and financial investments. Generally, there is no asset limit for MA for parents, children under 21 and adults without children in the home. Parents and caretaker relatives eligible for MA with a spenddown have an asset limit (PDF). Seniors and people age 21 and older who are blind or have a disability have an asset limit (PDF). Assets that do not count toward the limit include the home where you live, household goods, personal items like clothing and jewelry, and certain assets owned by an American Indian. What if I have other insurance? You still may qualify for MA. You must tell us if you have other health insurance or could get coverage through an employer or military service. Sometimes we can pay the cost of the other insurance so you can keep that coverage.

Benefits What is covered and how much does it cost? MA pays for a variety of services like doctor visits, prescriptions and hospital stays. Some services and prescriptions may require prior approval.  For some members, there is no cost. Others may have to pay a portion of the cost of a service. This may include copays, deductibles or spenddowns.  A summary of covered services and costs is online.  A printable summary of covered services and costs (PDF) is also available.  You will get more details on covered services after your application is approved.  When does coverage start? MA may pay for medical bills going back three months from the month we get your application.

Medical Assistance (MA) is Minnesota’s Medicaid program for people with low income. 

A personal care assistant is an individual trained to help persons with basic daily routines. A PCA may be able to help you if you have a physical, emotional or mental disability, a chronic illness or an injury.

Eligibility To be eligible for the personal care assistance program, a person must meet all these criteria: Be eligible to receive Medical Assistance or MinnesotaCare Expanded (pregnant women and children) Require services that are medically necessary Be able to make decisions about your own care or have someone who can make decisions for you

Services Personal care assistance services must be medically necessary. A person must need help to complete activities of daily living, have health-related tasks or need observation and redirection of behavior to use these four categories of services: Activities of daily living (includes eating, toileting, grooming, dressing, bathing, transferring, mobility and positioning) Complex health-related functions (includes, under state law, functions that can be delegated or assigned by a licensed health care professional to be performed by a personal care assistant) Instrumental activities of daily living (includes meal planning and preparation, managing finances, shopping for essential items, performing essential household chores, communication by telephone and other media and getting around and participating in the community) Observation and redirection of behavior (includes monitoring of behavior)

block grant allows states to allocate resources for a broad array of services that promote the four purposes of the TANF statute:

uidelines provide local public health agencies guidance regarding eligible services, eligible populations, determination and documentation of eligibility, matching requirements, allowable program and administrative costs, reporting requirements and intervention examples.

Eligible Program Services