MS HB5

Patients receiving Social Security Disability Benefits or Supplemental Security Income who are admitted to a state institution expecting to stay six months or less cannot be required to pay those benefits to the institution for care and maintenance.

Patients who remain in a state institution for more than six months, or who are admitted expecting to stay longer than six months, may be required to pay all or part of disability benefits to the institution for care costs.

Institutions must allow patients to retain disability benefits needed to cover regular expenses outside the institution, such as home ownership costs, and may only require payment of remaining benefits.

State institutions must maintain documentation demonstrating that disability benefits paid by patients were actually spent on that patient's care and maintenance.

The act takes effect July 1, 2011.