New Mexico Administrative Code
Title 8 - SOCIAL SERVICES
Chapter 281 - MEDICAID ELIGIBILITY - INSTITUTIONAL CARE (CATEGORIES 081, 083 AND 084)
Part 500 - INCOME AND RESOURCE STANDARDS
Section 8.281.500.17 - INCOME

Universal Citation: 8 NM Admin Code 8.281.500.17

Current through Register Vol. 35, No. 6, March 26, 2024

An applicant's or recipient's gross countable monthly income must be less than the maximum allowable monthly income standard. If an applicant's or recipient's monthly gross countable income is below $50, the application can still be processed; however, the applicant or the recipient must be referred to the social security administration to apply for SSI. Income may be in the form of cash, checks, and money orders, or in-kind, including personal property or food. If income is not received in the form of cash, the cash value of the item is determined and counted as income. The ISD worker verifies all income and obtains appropriate documentation. Income is counted in the month received. Income is considered available throughout the month regardless of the date received.

A. Types of income: Countable income is the sum of unearned income or earned income, less disregards or exclusions, plus deemed income.

B. Earned income: Earned income consists of the total gross income received by an applicant or recipient for services performed as an employee or as a result of self-employment.

(1) Royalties earned in connection with the publication of an applicant's or recipient's work and any honorarium or fee received for services rendered are considered earned income.

(2) The self-employed applicant or recipient must provide an estimate of their current income based on the tax return filed for the previous year or current records maintained in the regular course of business. The estimate of net earnings for the entire previous taxable year is prorated equally among all months of the current year, even if the business is seasonal.
(a) Consideration is given to the applicant's or recipient's explanation as to why they believe the estimated net earnings for the current year vary substantially from the information shown on their tax return for past years.

(b) A satisfactory explanation is that the business suffered heavy loss or damage from fire, flood, burglary, serious illness or disability of the owner, or other such catastrophic events. Documentation must include copies of newspaper accounts or medical reports and must be filed in the case record to substantiate the need for a reduced estimate of current self-employment income.

C. Unearned income: Unearned income consists of all other income (minus exclusions and disregards) that is not earned in the course of employment or self-employment.

D. Deemed income: Deemed income is income considered available to a minor applicant or recipient from their parents.

E. Community property income methodology: If an applicant or recipient is married, community property income methodology shall be used in the eligibility determination, regardless of the living arrangements, if the one spouse has less income than the other spouse or if using the community property methodology would benefit both spouses. Under this methodology, one-half of the community property income is attributed to each spouse. Income is considered separate if it is earned in and is paid from a non-community property state. Proof of separate income is the burden of the applicant or recipient, spouse, or authorized representative.

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