Immunizations

All children under the age of six must receive all of the immunizations (shots) recommended by the Department of Community Health (DCH). Your family's Family Independence Program (FIP) grant will be reduced by $25 per month if this requirement is not met. However, if your religious beliefs do not permit you to have your child immunized, your FIP grant might not be reduced. Please speak with your Department of Human Services (DHS) specialist.

Child Support From an Absent Parent

If you request assistance for a child under the age of 18 years of age, you might be required to help the DHS establish paternity (establish a legal father for the child and/or obtain support from a legal parent who is not living in the home). If you are getting FIP, support payments will be kept by the state to pay back a part of the cash assistance you receive.

You might also receive a participation payment of up to $50 per month if support is paid to the state on your behalf. This will not affect your FIP grant, but might result in a reduction in your Food Assistance Program (FAP) benefits.

Reporting Responsibilities

It is your responsibility to report changes in your situation that might affect your eligibility or your benefit amount within 10 days of the change.
Note: If you receive Food Assistance benefits and have earned income your reporting requirements may be different. Your DHS Specialist will let you know.

Report all of the following changes:

Earned Income (e.g., wages, self-employment earnings, rental income, etc.)

• Starting, stopping, or changing jobs
• Change in how much you earn per hour
• Change in work hours of 5 or more hours per week that is expected to continue for more than one month

Unearned Income (e.g., Child Support, Social Security benefits, Veterans benefits, etc.)

• Change of $50.00 or more a month
  Exception: If receiving Medicaid only (except for Healthy Kids), report changes of $25.00 or more a month
• Starting or stopping a source of unearned income

Other Reporting Requirements Include (but are not limited to) Changes In:

• Persons in the home
• Marital status(you or anyone in your hame gets married, separated or divorced)
• Address
• Shelter costs (rent, house payments, telephone, utilities, etc.)
• Cars
• Asssets
• Amount of child support payments you make or receive
• Health or hospital coverage and premiums
• Child day care needs or child care providers

Redetermination of Eligibility

After your case is opened, your eligibility will be redetermined from time to time. This means you will fill out a new assistance application, provide new verification of some information and come in for an interview (some programs do not require an interview). Each program has its own requirements. Your DHS specialist will tell you what is needed from you and when it is due.

Welfare Fraud

The DHS tries to provide the correct amount of assistance to everyone who is eligible. You could be prosecuted for fraud if you intentionally fail to report information or report incorrect or incomplete information that results in you or someone else getting assistance to which you/they are not entitled to receive.

Repayment of Benefits

If you receive more benefits than you are entitled to, you will be required to pay back the extra benefits. Whether it was an error on your part or an error on the part of the DHS, you must repay any benefits to which you are not entitled. Your DHS specialist will help you schedule repayments.

Hearings, Conference Rights and Appeals

If you believe that a decision the DHS has made about your case is wrong, you have the right to ask for an administrative hearing. You should first discuss the problem with your DHS specialist, so he or she can explain the situation. Most hearing requests must be in writing and signed by you. However, you do not have to ask for a Food Assistance Program hearing in writing, it can be done in person or by phone. All case decisions cannot be appealed. If you request a hearing about a non-hearable or, non-appealable issue your request will be denied. Ask your DHS specialist for more information about the hearing rules and appeals process.