child care - Digital Library Collections

....._--"T..;H;;..;;;.E STATE OF AMERICA'S CHILDREN YEARBOOK 1998
Cutoffs offood stamps and Medicaid continue
to accompany the loss ofcash aid in other states as
the 1996 federal law is implemented. Why the big
drolHlff? In part, families accustomed to getting
cash aid, food stamps, and Medicaid as a package
may not understand that they are still eligible. For
some, going to the welfare office every three
months to certify continuing eligibility is a difficult
hoop to jump through. Parents who are working
may be unable to get to welfare offices open only
during regular business hours; others may fmd
transportation expensive or unavailable. During
the debate surrounding passage ofthe 1996 welfare
law, proponents argued that although cash aid
would be limited, families would be able to count
on food stamps and Medicaid as their safety net.
For significant numbers of families, the net is in
tatters.
Immigrants. The 1996 federal welfare law denied
Supplemental Security Income and food
stamps to most legal immigrants until they become
citizens, and gave states the option of continuing
Medicaid and TANF for immigrants here legally at
the time the law passed. Immigrants who entered
the country later (after August 1996) were barred
from receiving TANF or Medicaid for five years.
States could opt to provide these benefits after five
years, but they were also free to deny them permanently
(even to those immigrants who had entered
the country before the law was enacted).
By calling attention to the plight ofelderly and
disabled immigrants who had no hope of making
up their lost SSI or food stamp income, advocates
succeeded in reversing some of the cuts in 1997.
Immigrants in the country legally as of August
1996 can now receive SSI if they were receiving it
then or if they subsequently develop a disability.
They remain ineligible for food stamps. Advocates
pushing for legislation to change this have been
encouraged by a partial restoration proposed in the
President's FY 1999 budget. All states except Alabama
have opted to continue TANF for legal immigrants.
Twelve states (California, Florida, Illinois,
Massachusetts, Maryland, Minnesota, Nebraska,
New Jersey, New York, Rhode Island, Texas, and
Washington) are also providing aid in some form to
at least some of the legal immigrants denied food
stamps under federal law.
Children with disabilities. The 1996 federal law
made it more difficult for poor children with disabilities
to qualify for Supplemental Security Income.
About 288,000 case reviews were required
to determine whether children receiving SSI under
the older standards would still qualify. As states
have conducted these reviews under rules established
by the Social Security Administration, they
have denied assistance to large numbers of children.
As of December 1997 about 263,000 cases
(more than 90 percent) had been reviewed, resulting
in the cutoff of benefits for more than
half-about 135,000 children. The denial rate has
varied widely among states, with nine states terminating
assistance in 70 percent or more of the
reviewed cases.
New applicants for SSI have even greater problems.
Although the eligibility criteria emphasize
matching a child's condition to those on an official
medical list, the new law expressly allows the Social
Security Administration to assess whether the
limitations of a child's functioning are equivalent
to conditions on the official list. The Clinton Administration
was interpreting this provision so restrictively
that between August 1996, when the law
passed, and October 1997, only 32.2 percent ofthe
children applying were approved. This was below
the 42.8 approval rate in 1989, when an even more
stringent eligibility standard was in effect. One indication
of the overzealous restriction ofbenefits is
that as of fall 1997, children in the first phase of
appealing their denials succeeded 58 percent ofthe
time. Prior to the new law, only about 10 percent of
denials were reversed in the flfSt stage ofappeal.
In a victory for children with disabilities,
Social Security Administration Commissioner
Kenneth Apfel agreed to review the agency's implementation
ofthe new law. He concluded in December
1997 that procedures were flawed, especially in
mental retardation cases. The agency announced
that it would review all of those denials, plus other
cases with a high likelihood of error, including
12 CHILDREN'S DEFENSE FUND