Pregnant 20 year old

[Halbleib1]

I would like to point out that receiving WIC is not the same as food stamps/welfare. The money comes from Federal grants and from the USDA, so it is not a state-run program. The income eligibility level for WIC is much higher than that of welfare programs.

As someone who has been on both WIC and food stamps for a very short period of time, I can tell you that it is demoralizing to realize that you cannot take care of your responsibilities and must count on other taxpayers to do it. And it SHOULD be. I never felt "entitled" to it....and I made sure I was off all programs AS SOON AS POSSIBLE. That meant I worked full-time and went to school full-time.

Why is everyone assuming that this couple can only work part time while attending school?

Actually WIC and food stamps are both funded by the federal government. The state does pick up adminstrative costs however. Also cash assistance is funded by both the state and federal governments. All of these programs are public assistance which is what welfare is. What is welfare:Government benefits distributed to impoverished persons to enable them to maintain a minimum standard of well-being. All of the mentioned programs do just that. Does not matter if it is state or federal funding paying for it. It is still public assistance and it is still being paid for by taxpayers. I am not saying there is anything wrong with this just pointing out the facts.

Medicaid is also funded by both the state and federal governments and is a welfare program. If you or your dependent child age 5 and under receive medicaid you automatically receive WIC no matter what your income is. Food stamps and cash assistance have a lower income requirement than medicaid and WIC. WIC also counts the unborn child when counting number of people in the household which allows for you to make more money and still qualify. Medicaid income requirements depend on what percentage of the federal poverty level is used. Example: In general you can not make more than 100% of the federal poverty level however if you are disabled or are pregnant it is a higher percentage that they use. Also if you are a child 5 and under they use a different percentage. Etc.

I see nothing wrong with asking for help if you need it so long as you do not take advantage of the system. Many people right now are relying on these programs not because they want to but because of unforseen circumstances. Thank goodness these programs are there for those that really do need them esp. during these hard times.

 

[Halbleib1]

Wow, those are pretty high income limits! I would never have known that a person with one child making over $40,000/year or a family of 3 making $50,000 could qualify for Medicaid. I've been teaching for 12 years and still make less than $40,000

The person is off on their numbers. For example: Here in PA a family of three with one on the way can not make more than 3400.00 a month gross for the mom to be to qualify for medicaid. If the mom still qualifys at the time the baby is born the baby automatically will be covered for the first year with no income limits. The child in that same family with a disability that is 5 years old or younger can not have a household income of more than 2400.00 a month gross to qualify. The dad in that same family does not qualify at all. Gross income of this family to start is only 2300.00 a month. I do not think medicaid requirements would be that far off from state to state being that they use the federal poverty level guidelines to determine who is and who is not elgible. Depending what your specific circumstances are decides the percentage used. They use a different percentage for those with disabilities, pregnant women, etc. They also use a different percentage for those that do not have dependent children or for those that are single.

They do not use a simple chart that you can just look at and say ok we have this many people and we make this much do we qualify. Other things come into play.

 

[Halbleib1]

It means that it is not up to the discretion of the state. It is a program created and funded by the USDA. . .United States Department of Agriculture. Hmmm. . so why would the Department of Agriculture be interested in the nutrition of women and children? It was created by a Senator from Minnesota. . .the 6th largest dairy producing state in the country. What do people get on WIC? Mostly milk and cheese. You do the math.

Actually as of last Oct. the WIC program has been redone. You now receive milk and eggs as well as fruits and vegs.,whole grain bread or whole grain rice or tortillias along with beans, cereal, peanut butter and juice. You only get cheese if you choose to get less milk. Since Michelle Obama has been campaining for healthier eating they have changed the WIC program to reflect that.

Also in PA for quite a few years now they have been giving farmer market vouchers that can only be used to buy fruits and vegs. grown in PA. These vouchers are good from June-November.

So no the dairy industry is not the only industry benefiting. WIC is not just a dairy program at least not any more.

 

[hambirg]

PS Uncle Sam is the tax payer. The Government still has to buy the food. and it is more than just dairy on the program. And don't even start on subsidies for different food products, you act like only dairy gets them. Since when does cereal or juice come from cows? those are on WIC. Either way it is still tax dollars being spent.

I don't disagree with any of the above. Well, that Uncle Sam is the taxpayer. . .Uncle Sam is the tax collector and distributor. Anywhoo. . .Uncle Sam doesn't have to buy the food. They do because there are very powerful lobbies that convince them that they need a piece of the community pie. I think people's gripes are misguided. It wasn't women and children lining up on the steps of Congress demanding free milk. . .it was a powerful industry trying to secure a government contract. Whether or not women and children actually use the service. . .that lobby is getting their Fed dollars one way or another. Kinda like the cash for clunkers program that was suppose to bolster the auto industry. People weren't writing their congress men demanding that they get a good deal on a new car. But you can bet the auto industry lobby was hard at work. And in the end, it didn't matter who was able to actually utilize the program. . .we bailed out the industry anyway. Are you starting to get my point? Blaming a young mom for using WIC to help her feed her child is like blaming a soldier who used one of those $640 toilets. And that's ludicrous! They are simply the middle men. Medicare and Medicaid. . .same thing. Who is really getting the money? Mostly insurance and drug companies. Industries use federal contracts to keep their prices artificially high. . .simple supply and demand. If a lot of people can't buy their services then demand goes down. . .prices go down. BUT if they can get the Feds to pick up the tab. . .now they get in on the money grab. If you want to be angry with somebody, get angry at those fat cats on the Hill and their cronies. They simply use the lil guy to justify their thievery.

 

[Halbleib1]

I don't disagree with any of the above. Well, that Uncle Sam is the taxpayer. . .Uncle Sam is the tax collector and distributor. Anywhoo. . .Uncle Sam doesn't have to buy the food. They do because there are very powerful lobbies that convince them that they need a piece of the community pie. I think people's gripes are misguided. It wasn't women and children lining up on the steps of Congress demanding free milk. . .it was a powerful industry trying to secure a government contract. Whether or not women and children actually use the service. . .that lobby is getting their Fed dollars one way or another. Kinda like the cash for clunkers program that was suppose to bolster the auto industry. People weren't writing their congress men demanding that they get a good deal on a new car. But you can bet the auto industry lobby was hard at work. And in the end, it didn't matter who was able to actually utilize the program. . .we bailed out the industry anyway. Are you starting to get my point? Blaming a young mom for using WIC to help her feed her child is like blaming a soldier who used one of those $640 toilets. And that's ludicrous! They are simply the middle men. Medicare and Medicaid. . .same thing. Who is really getting the money? Mostly insurance and drug companies. Industries use federal contracts to keep their prices artificially high. . .simple supply and demand. If a lot of people can't buy their services then demand goes down. . .prices go down. BUT if they can get the Feds to pick up the tab. . .now they get in on the money grab. If you want to be angry with somebody, get angry at those fat cats on the Hill and their cronies. They simply use the lil guy to justify their thievery.

Regardless of how these programs got there start they are helping a lot of people that truly do need them. Yes some people take advantage I agree but many more are not. You will always have people taking advantage but that does not mean that the overall program is bad.

We should not turn our backs on people that truly need the help because of some bad apples.

If you have kids and they eat school lunch wheather they pay for it OOP or get free or reduced meals they are helping to subsidize the food industry. Much of the food in our schools is purchased using vouchers provided by the govt. I recently read an interesting article about the D.C. school system and how unhealthy the food in their schools was because of the schools buying from companies that offered better insentives to the schools to choose them over another company.

 

[hambirg]

Actually as of last Oct. the WIC program has been redone. You now receive milk and eggs as well as fruits and vegs.,whole grain bread or whole grain rice or tortillias along with beans, cereal, peanut butter and juice. You only get cheese if you choose to get less milk. Since Michelle Obama has been campaining for healthier eating they have changed the WIC program to reflect that.

Also in PA for quite a few years now they have been giving farmer market vouchers that can only be used to buy fruits and vegs. grown in PA. These vouchers are good from June-November.

So no the dairy industry is not the only industry benefiting. WIC is not just a dairy program at least not any more.

I'm aware that you get other things, but I believe the majority is still milk. I was mostly addressing how it came into being. Like I said in my previous post. . .these programs don't just pop up because people are demanding them. There is always politics involved. I'm not saying WIC is a bad program. I think WIC is a very good program. I just have a hard time understanding people that get outraged at the user. . .blah blah blah .

That's great that they offer the local farmer's markets now. I don't know if they do that here.

 

[hambirg]

Regardless of how these programs got there start they are helping a lot of people that truly do need them. Yes some people take advantage I agree but many more are not. You will always have people taking advantage but that does not mean that the overall program is bad.

We should not turn our backs on people that truly need the help because of some bad apples.

If you have kids and they eat school lunch wheather they pay for it OOP or get free or reduced meals they are helping to subsidize the food industry. Much of the food in our schools is purchased using vouchers provided by the govt. I recently read an interesting article about the D.C. school system and how unhealthy the food in their schools was because of the schools buying from companies that offered better insentives to the schools to choose them over another company.

I think you're misunderstanding my intent. I agree with you completely! I'm just trying to explain to the people that seem to think that people that use these programs are terrible slackers and sucking up all their tax money that their anger is horribly misguided. In the end, that money is being passed through the user onto private businesses. They just happen to benefit some, but the real monetary benefit is to the private contractor in the end.

I agree with you that they are needed! I also think they are cost effective in the long run. But, kind of like your school lunch program example above. If people want to complain about it, they shouldn't be mad at the kid that gets free lunch (or the parents for that matter). They aren't getting the money! Go ahead and get mad at the companies that provide it! It's a lot of politics and business deals. The private company that has the contract however, shouldn't be allowed to take public funds to feed those kids crap.

 

[Halbleib1]

I'm aware that you get other things, but I believe the majority is still milk. I was mostly addressing how it came into being. Like I said in my previous post. . .these programs don't just pop up because people are demanding them. There is always politics involved. I'm not saying WIC is a bad program. I think WIC is a very good program. I just have a hard time understanding people that get outraged at the user. . .blah blah blah .

That's great that they offer the local farmer's markets now. I don't know if they do that here.

That is true. Anything involving government is always mixed up in politics. As I said in previous posts I see nothing wrong with asking for help if you need it. Also with WIC at least it is going to help needy children. Mothers only receive it from pregnancy through postpartum or breastfeeding. Many of these children would not get the nutrition that they need if it were not for this program. I agree with you about people getting all bent out of shape esp. about a program that is helping children that can not help themselves. As a society we need to have more compassion for people. That seems to have left along time ago though.

 

[Halbleib1]

I think you're misunderstanding my intent. I agree with you completely! I'm just trying to explain to the people that seem to think that people that use these programs are terrible slackers and sucking up all their tax money that their anger is horribly misguided. In the end, that money is being passed through the user onto private businesses. They just happen to benefit some, but the real monetary benefit is to the private contractor in the end.

I see what you are saying and I agree. Also these programs could help out a lot more people if so much money was not wasted in various ways.

Those that tend to complain most are those that feel they should be entitled to it as well even though they make well above the income levels and have a much better life than most people on these programs. Instead of being grateful that they are doing well and do not need these programs because of it they are bitter and resentful.

 

[funnygarcia]

The person is off on their numbers. For example: Here in PA a family of three with one on the way can not make more than 3400.00 a month gross for the mom to be to qualify for medicaid.

I do not think medicaid requirements would be that far off from state to state being that they use the federal poverty level guidelines to determine who is and who is not elgible. .

Each state has different guidelines.
MN is known to be generous with benefits to help families.

The OP wanted info on MN, this is the income parameters for families in MN.
http://www.dhs.state.mn.us/main/idc...od=LatestReleased&dDocName=id_052537#P25_1862

My numbers were not "off" for pregnant women, counted as 2 people, income cap is $3,340. Add in another person to the household and the cap is $4,198

As the child grows, the income limits change:
birth to age 2
2-18
19-20

Which amounts to:
275% of poverty for preg women.
280% for infants to 2 years
150% for ages 2-18
100% ages 19-20
100% Parents
75% for adults without children

https://edocs.dhs.state.mn.us/lfserver/Public/DHS-4346-ENG



with different categories for parents of children, single adults without children (General asst medical aid.. which is horrible cut in services this year) disabled, medicare, and elderly.

They look at assets, household size, sources of income, housing and utility costs, child care costs, child support costs.

There is a formula unique to the situation to determine if a household falls within the guidelines. A disabled person (the first 50% of earned income is not counted in the medicare savings program) has more allowances in income than say a family of 3 (rent/ utilities and child care costs are counted as subtraction of income).

As a spouse to someone who relies on medical assistance for health care costs (renal failure).. I KNOW how it works and keep track of changes. The handbooks for various programs are online for anyone to read.

 

[buzz5985]

Wow, those are pretty high income limits! I would never have known that a person with one child making over $40,000/year or a family of 3 making $50,000 could qualify for Medicaid. I've been teaching for 12 years and still make less than $40,000

Silly you for working for a living!!!!

Why do you think there was no mention of marriage?? You can get more free stuff form the taxpapyers of this country being a single mom. There is a whole new class in this country - the nonworking class. And I am getting sick and tired of working 60 hours a week to pay for them.

I don't want to pay for people who have never worked a day in their lives. Really don't care what their situation is. Let their families pay for them.

 

[smidgy]

at the ages of 20 and 21, this is no longer a "teen age pregnancy" situation. these are 2 adults, who got pregnant before they planned it (happens to the best of us!)
yes, they may be in college and have "other" plans. but these 2 adultsneed to step up to their responsibilities.

as to health care, I believe our whole system needs to be revamped. (of course, it never needs to be revamped until it affects you, personally.)

In Illinois, we have a system called ALL Kids. kids get free health care. In Massachusetts, they have a great health care system.

I would call your state's public Aide, and see what they offer, so the CHILD can get good health care. programs like WIC can provide help. after that, however, it is up to the parents to do what they have to do to raise this new family.

if that means one of them puts off college for a while, or they both take part time classes,once you have decided to have a family , your brother needs to find a job with benefits (yeah, I know, good luck with that!) to support his new family.
adults have unwanted pregnancies all the time. sometimes it means putting off your "dreams" be it college or whatever, and get to the business of raising that family.

My answer would have been a little different , if they were teens. but they are both adults.(in college, or not). Many families are in similar situaitons, not quite the same. Many families are living without health insurance. It's not just the 20 somethings with an unexpected newborn. MANY people (many in their 50s) are without health insurance.
I don't know the laws in your state, but I would guess there are things they could apply for for health carefor the baby. (I would hope so, anyway).
beyond that, like paying the 2 adults money so they can keep going to college, etc. (and I know you didn't ask for that), well, that's on them. I am all for health care for the baby. but not for free money so they can keep going to school, etc. (and I know that's not what you were asking). for that, they have to plod along, like everyone else .

 

[smidgy]

. What happens once the baby is born?? How do we make sure the baby has health insurance?
turns out my son was not "conceived" before I was eligible for my hubby's health care. we had to pay, OOP for everything. (back in 1979) that's the way it works.
I am a stay at home mom, so I plan on watching the baby for her so she can continue going to college.

!

that is very nice of you. just be careful what you promise!

 

[Halbleib1]

Each state has different guidelines.
MN is known to be generous with benefits to help families.

The OP wanted info on MN, this is the income parameters for families in MN.
http://www.dhs.state.mn.us/main/idc...od=LatestReleased&dDocName=id_052537#P25_1862

My numbers were not "off" for pregnant women, counted as 2 people, income cap is $3,340. Add in another person to the household and the cap is $4,198

As the child grows, the income limits change:
birth to age 2
2-18
19-20

Which amounts to:
275% of poverty for preg women.
280% for infants to 2 years
150% for ages 2-18
100% ages 19-20
100% Parents
75% for adults without children

https://edocs.dhs.state.mn.us/lfserver/Public/DHS-4346-ENG



with different categories for parents of children, single adults without children (General asst medical aid.. which is horrible cut in services this year) disabled, medicare, and elderly.

They look at assets, household size, sources of income, housing and utility costs, child care costs, child support costs.

There is a formula unique to the situation to determine if a household falls within the guidelines. A disabled person (the first 50% of earned income is not counted in the medicare savings program) has more allowances in income than say a family of 3 (rent/ utilities and child care costs are counted as subtraction of income).

As a spouse to someone who relies on medical assistance for health care costs (renal failure).. I KNOW how it works and keep track of changes. The handbooks for various programs are online for anyone to read.

After looking at the info. above it makes more sense now why it is so high. In PA they do not count assets for families. They do count the assets listed for those without children though. Such as retirement savings, your home, car, money in the bank etc. Where as from the info. above your state counts assets even for families. PA at one time did count those things toward your income for families but they no longer do that now. At one time it use to be that if you owned more than one car you would have to get rid of one in order to qualify. Or if you only had one car it couldn't be worth more than a certain amount to qualify. They no longer do this now. At least not for families.

 

[smidgy]

in Illinois, if you apply for Public Aide for health benefits, you have to list your personal property (car, home) which they can put a lien on.

 

[Halbleib1]

in Illinois, if you apply for Public Aide for health benefits, you have to list your personal property (car, home) which they can put a lien on.

If you go into a nursing home here in PA and you have no means to pay for it they will take all of your assets first and than you will go onto medical assistance to cover the rest of the cost.

Also if they find out that you lied/commited fraud while receiving benefits they can come after you for any money you already received. As far as I know this is the only way they put a lien on.

This is what the state of Illinois says about liens: http://www.illinoislegalaid.org/index.cfm?fuseaction=home.dsp_content&contentid=319#lien

Lien and Estate Claim Provisions
89 Ill. Admin Code 102; DHS Policy Manual 23-09-00

Overview
The Department of Healthcare and Family Services may have a lien on real estate owned by a recipient and a claim against their estate for medical assistance.

Estate Claims
HFS’ claim against the estate of a deceased recipient encompasses:

A. AABD cash benefits received by the recipient;
B. all medical assistance paid out at any time for a recipient institutionalized for at least 120 days and whose real property is under an HFS lien;
C. prior to 10/1/93, all AABD medical assistance paid out for a recipient while 65 years of age or older;
D. after 10/1/93, all AABD medical assistance paid out for a recipient while 55 years of age or older;
E. the spouse of any of the above clients.

HFS will not enforce the claim from real property if a spouse, a child under 21, or a disabled child over 21 continue to reside in the property. In addition, recovery will not be made from an estate if such recovery would cause an heir or beneficiary undue hardship. DHS Policy Manual 23-09-02-e.

Real Property Liens
HFS may place a lien against real property for medical assistance paid out at any time for a recipient who has been institutionalized for at least 120 days, and for all AABD cash benefits. HFS will not place a lien on real property if a spouse, a child under 21, or a disabled child over 21 continues to reside in the property.

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Back to Health Care Law Table of Contents

 

[funnygarcia]

MN doesn't count assets for pregnant women and for children, but you still have to list them on the application.

No co-pays for preg women and children, some minimal co-pays for adults ($25 glasses, $5 prescrips, non-urgent care at a hospital - this is a new fee, I think it's $10?.. not much but I think it's awesome to curb using pricey hospital ER for a simple case of strep. We have more than enough urgent care centers and after hour clinics in urban areas).

House and one car does not count as an asset for families and disabled.

Not sure about assets for the elderly needing long term care, I believe they put a lien against the home.

 

[hffmnheidi]

I understand the food stamp situation. It isn't a pleasant situation for anyone getting those benefits. It's hard to ask for them and you do get looks when you use your Link Card(Illinois).

Because I was in the hospital with no insurance and had medical bills well over a million dollars, the hospital applied for me for benefits and according to my social worker-if you are not pregnant/no children-you have to be on food stamps to get the medical benefits and must show the need.

Otherwise, I would have been in bankruptcy court because there was no way I could pay the bills and I couldn't get insurance because of the pre-existing condition that ended up being part of a misdiagnosis. Now, there was no warning of my condition and nothing I could have done would have prevented it from happening.

Now, should I refuse the food stamps and get no assistance? I was unable to work for the entire ten month span because my doctor wouldn't release me and my employer wouldn't let me come back until I was completely healed.

Even working a full-time daycare teacher, I don't even meet the state's minimum amount of income(about 1200 for a single person). I am the working poor, living paycheck to paycheck, paying my bills and just scraping by.

And, yeah before anyone jumps on me, I've been on quite a few Disney vacations and those were paid for by my parents since we went as a family.

Times are tough for everyone and everyone has to do what they feel they are comfortable with and can live with.

 

[Colleen27]

I think people's gripes are misguided. It wasn't women and children lining up on the steps of Congress demanding free milk. . .it was a powerful industry trying to secure a government contract.

Yeah, but that goes hand in hand with the modern American perspective on corporations - we're basically taught that they're supposed to be dishonest and greedy and have no ethical responsibilities except to make the biggest profits they can be any means available. So when a corporation or industry sticks its hand out (or into Uncle Sam's pocket) that is admirable behaviour that functions to maximize profits. When individuals do so, they're obviously lazy failures who wants someone else to pay for their lack of decisionmaking skills.

 

[MrsPete]

Why is everyone assuming that this couple can only work part time while attending school?

That is a good question. These boards give me the idea that many -- if not most -- college students don't work these days.

In this case, it'd be pretty hard for the child's mother to work full-time. Nursing students typically do clinicals, which take up a great deal of time. However, if she's near the end of her degree, she probably already has a CNA license and working part-time would not only give her a paycheck, it'd give her valuable exposure that could give her a leg-up on a good job after graduation.

Yes I did suggest food stamps and WIC because even with sacrafice comes a breaking point. I belive that a child should be able to eat, drink milk, stay healthy. I suggested it because when you go and apply for medcaid you can apply for Food Stamps. When it was just me and my first child and I made 7.50 got nothing and life was tough. We all make sacrifices for our kids but I don't belive that food should be one of them.

Perhaps you didn't read the whole post to which you replied. The other poster claimed that posters on this thread were suggesting that the couple look for government help with medical bills and nothing else. I picked up a couple threads from the first page showing that this was not true. I did not comment on the quality of the program or the need for the program -- just that posters had, indeed, jumped straight for the "see what you can get from various agencies" option.

The mothers and children on WIC aren't getting any money. They are getting food.

They're getting food, which would otherwise cost money. Other than the fact that this program is less likely to be abused (i.e., using money for Disney trips rather than food), it ammounts to the same thing.

I think you're misunderstanding my intent. I agree with you completely! I'm just trying to explain to the people that seem to think that people that use these programs are terrible slackers and sucking up all their tax money that their anger is horribly misguided.

Actually, I think you're misunderstanding the point that some of us are making: We haven't heard anything that the couple is doing themselves to provide for their child. If I were to hear that they'd both worked full-time over the summer and had saved for the baby because they know that the mother will need recovery time, that they were making this or that plan to pay for the child's needs . . . I'd be more understanding. What I'm hearing from multiple posters is, "You can get this from this program, that from that program." And, in all fairness, perhaps they have done those responsible things, but we haven't heard about them, have we?

My concern is that so many posters seem content to go straight to government help BEFORE doing what they can themselves. Like most Americans, I don't have a problem with a helping hand -- but I do have a problem with a flat-out hand-out.

Yeah, but that goes hand in hand with the modern American perspective on corporations - we're basically taught that they're supposed to be dishonest and greedy and have no ethical responsibilities except to make the biggest profits they can be any means available. So when a corporation or industry sticks its hand out (or into Uncle Sam's pocket) that is admirable behaviour that functions to maximize profits. When individuals do so, they're obviously lazy failures who wants someone else to pay for their lack of decisionmaking skills.

Why do you assume that we're fine with companies who've accepted bail-outs? I don't see them as "admirable" at all, and the biggest crooks in the whole country are the ones who sit in Congress.