P.O. Box 47127
Indianapolis, IN 46247
(317) 859-9483
Toll-Free 1-866-979-8770
Facsimile (317) 851-8481
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A True National Pooled Special Needs Trust
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Interest-Bearing, FDIC-Insured Trust Sub-Accounts
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24-Hour, Seven Day A Week Immediate Online Access to Account Balances and Spending Histories (View Only)
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Electronic Transfers of Funds (ETF) for Funding, Depositing, and Making Purchases from Trust Sub-Accounts
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The Fastest Disbursement Turnaround Time in the Nation
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No Mandatory Retainer Upon the Death of the Beneficiary
A Message From The President
Greetings from The National Foundation for Special Needs Integrity! We are committed to serving the needs of parties to mass tort settlements who receive governmental assistance benefits, like Medicaid and SSI.
The attorneys and settlement firm that have teamed up to secure your settlement have referred you to us because you are a recipient of at least one "means-tested benefit," such as Medicaid, Supplemental Security Income (SSI), Food Stamps, HUD/Section 8 Housing Assistance, or other governmental assistance programs. As you know, these governmental agencies limit how much money you can make or how much money you can have at any given time.
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SSI And Third-Party Payment of Shelter Expenses
A person receives In-Kind Support and Maintenance (ISM) whenever someone else (including a trust) pays for food or shelter for an SSI recipient. When a Special Needs Trust (or any other third party, for that matter), pays a shelter expense for a person who receives SSI benefits, SSI will take a dollar-for-dollar reduction from the following month’s SSI check. This reduction in benefits is ultimately mitigated by a regulatory reduction cap called the Presumed Maximum Value, which equals one-third of the Maximum Federal Benefit Rate, plus $20. Essentially, SSI ‘presumes’ that the value of support and maintenance does not exceed a maximum amount. This maximum amount is calculated by dividing the Federal Benefit Rate by 1/3 and adding $20.
For example, the Federal Benefit Rate (FBR) for 2008 is $637. Therefore, the Presumed Maximum Value (PMV) for 2008 is 1/3 X $637 + $20 = $232.33. This means that the most a person’s SSI check can be reduced for the receipt of In-Kind Support and Maintenance (ISM) is $232.33. A person who receives the full FBR and is deemed to have received ISM at the PMV will receive their SSI check for the following month, but it will be reduced by $232.33, leaving $404.67
SSI defines “Shelter” as follows
- Mortgage Payments
- Rent Payments
- Homeowner’s insurance (but only if required by a mortgage holder)
- Gas Bills
- Electric Bills
- Heating Fuel
- Water Bills
- Sewer Bills
- Garbage Collection
- Property Taxes
This list is found at P.O.M.S. SI §00835.320. The P.O.M.S. can be found online on the Social Security Administration’s website at www.ssa.gov.
So, from a practical standpoint, it works like this
If a person who receives SSI has a special needs trust, he or she can ask for the trust to pay for rent for one month. Suppose that person receives the full FBR of $637. She calls us and requests to use her trust to pay $200 toward her rent for the month of April. We can do this, but, her SSI check for the month of May will be reduced by the full $200. She will receive only $437 in April.
However, suppose she requests that we pay her full rent for the month of April, which is $800. If we pay $800, then SSI will take a dollar-for-dollar reduction from May’s SSI check, but only up to the Presumed Maximum Value, which is $232.33. Therefore, May’s SSI check will be $404.67—a reduction of $232.33. However, April’s rent would have been paid in full by the trust, putting our Beneficiary ahead by $567.67 for her April and May budget period.
So, we can sometimes make shelter payments for someone who receives SSI. However, it does not always make sense to do so. Keep in mind, also, that individual states have their own rules affecting In-Kind Support and Maintenance. Some states are lenient, and some states strictly prohibit using the PMV rule to benefit an SSI recipient in any given month. Whether or not you are able to use your special needs trust to pay for a food or shelter expense will depend on the laws of the state in which you live. Please give us a call if you have any questions relating to the payment of food or shelter expenses from your trust sub-account.
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