Currently, the Department of Health Services (DHS) administers the Medical
Assistance (MA) program, which is a joint federal and state program that provides
health services to individuals who have limited resources. Some services are
provided through programs that operate under a waiver of federal Medicaid laws,
including services provided through the BadgerCare Plus (BC+). Under current law,
BC+ provides health and medical services to eligible recipients and has a standard
plan with a larger set of benefits and a Benchmark plan with fewer benefits. The
2013-2015 biennial budget act, 2013 Wisconsin Act 20 (Act 20), made changes to BC+
and MA, and some of those changes were not to go into effect until January 1, 2014.
Another act, 2013 Wisconsin Act 116 (Act 116), delayed some of these changes until
April 1, 2014. This bill again changes the date at which some of the changes take
effect to February 1, 2014.

Under current law, unless DHS has a policy that conflicts with current state law
eligibility requirements, certain individuals are eligible for benefits under the BC+
standard plan. Beginning on April 1, 2014, Act 20 and Act 116 reduce the income

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eligibility level for the BC+ standard plan for parents and caretaker relatives from
not more than 200 percent of the federal poverty line (FPL) to not more than 100
percent of the FPL before a 5 percent income disregard is applied. Act 20 and Act 116
also define, beginning on April 1, 2014, for purposes of eligibility of a parent or
caretaker relative, a "dependent child." Under current law, certain individuals who
are not eligible for the BC+ standard plan are eligible for benefits under the BC+
Benchmark plan. Under Acts 20 and 116, parents and caretaker relatives are
covered only under the standard plan beginning on April 1, 2014. The bill changes
the effective date of the income eligibility requirements for parents and caretaker
relatives, the definition of dependent child, and the elimination of the eligibility of
parents and caretaker relatives for the Benchmark plan from April 1, 2014, to
February 1, 2014. Under the bill, however, individuals whose family income does not
exceed 200 percent of the FPL, who apply and are eligible for benefits as a parent or
caretaker relative under the BC+ standard or Benchmark plan before February 1,
2014, and who would otherwise be eligible for benefits as a parent or caretaker
relative except for the income limit continue to be eligible for the benefits that they
were eligible for before February 1, 2014, until April 1, 2014.

Under current law, family income is the total gross earned and unearned
income received by all members of a family. Beginning on April 1, 2014, under Acts
20 and 116, for purposes of determining eligibility for BC+, family income has the
meaning given for household income under a federal regulation, which uses an
income calculation based on modified adjusted gross income. Acts 20 and 116 also
require DHS, beginning on January 1, 2014, to apply the definition of household in
federal regulations to determinations of income. Acts 20 and 116 also make other
changes to the calculation of income and family size for BC+ on April 1, 2014. The
bill changes the effective date of the use of modified adjusted gross income
calculations for eligibility determination from April 1, 2014, to February 1, 2014.

Under the bill, an individual who applies for MA on or after February 1, 2014,
is subject to the income eligibility changes for parents and caretaker relatives and
the modified adjusted gross income calculations at the time of application. For an
individual who applies for MA before February 1, 2014, the bill does not apply the
income eligibility changes for parents and caretaker relatives or a calculation
method for self-employment income to that individual's eligibility redetermination
until April 1, 2014. For an individual who applies for MA before February 1, 2014,
the modified adjusted gross income calculations do not apply until a redetermination
of eligibility for MA on April 1, 2014, or the actual date of the redetermination,
whichever is later. If, however, a parent or caretaker relative who is receiving
continued eligibility under the bill for benefits after February 1, 2014, has an
increase in family income such that the individual's family income exceeds 200
percent of the FPL on or after February 1, 2014, DHS must determine the
individual's eligibility for MA and the modified adjusted gross income calculations
apply.

Under current law, certain individuals in addition to certain parents and
caretaker relatives are eligible for benefits under the BC+ Benchmark plan,
including pregnant women whose family income exceeds 200 percent but does not

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exceed 300 percent of the FPL and children under one year of age of those women;
certain other pregnant women; and children whose family income exceeds 200
percent but does not exceed 300 percent of the FPL. Acts 20 and 116, beginning on
April 1, 2014, provide benefits under the standard plan to the pregnant women and
children who are currently eligible for the BC+ Benchmark plan. The bill changes
the effective date of these changes from April 1, 2014, to February 1, 2014.