§ 33.08 Personal needs allowance for residents of state psychiatric

centers and state operated alcoholism facilities.

(a) For the purposes of this section:

1. "countable resources" shall mean cash or other liquid assets or any
real or personal property that an individual or couple owns and could
convert to cash to be used for his or their support and maintenance,
which is not excluded under federal law or regulations to determine the
need of an individual for supplemental security income benefits.

2. "countable income" shall mean all of a person's income, in cash or
in kind, both earned and unearned, which is not excluded by federal law
or regulations in determining the need of an individual for supplemental
security income benefits, including the income of the individual's
eligible spouse, and, if the individual is a child, certain income of
such individual's parent or parents, provided however, such provisions
of federal law or regulations which provide a twenty dollar income
exclusion in each month shall not apply to this paragraph.

3. "earned income" shall mean wages and earnings from employment of
the person, including wages or earnings from participation in a
sheltered workshop program.

4. "unearned income" shall mean all income of a person other than
earned income.

(b) Any inpatient of a hospital operated by the office of mental
health or a state operated alcoholism facility shall be entitled to
receive a monthly state payment for personal needs for each full
calendar month commencing on or after the effective date of this
section, in which the patient is in such hospital or alcoholism
facility, if such patient also:

1. does not receive supplemental security income benefits pursuant to
title sixteen of the federal social security act;

2. does not have countable resources in an amount equal to or greater
than the amount of resources an individual may have and remain eligible
for supplemental security income benefits pursuant to title sixteen of
the federal social security act;

3. has countable income in a month of less than thirty-five dollars;
and

4. has applied for or agrees to apply for any federal, state, and
local benefits for which such patient may be entitled, provided that
someone other than the patient may apply or agree to apply for such
benefits on behalf of the patient.

(c) The amount of such monthly state payment for personal needs shall
be equal to the maximum amount of countable income allowed under
paragraph three of subdivision (b) of this section reduced by such
patient's actual countable income.

(d) The director of a hospital shall have the power to take and retain
any state payment for personal needs provided pursuant to this section
in accordance with the provisions of section 33.07 of this article.

(e) The commissioner of mental health is authorized to obtain
reimbursement for a personal needs allowance payment made pursuant to
this section for any month for which a patient subsequently receives a
retroactive payment or benefit, from any source. Such reimbursement
shall not exceed the amount of the personal needs allowance payment made
to the patient for such month.

(f) The commissioner of mental health is authorized, on behalf of the
state, to enter into an agreement with the secretary of the federal
department of health and human services for the purpose of obtaining
reimbursement for personal needs allowance payments made pursuant to
this section for any month in which a patient is subsequently determined
to be eligible to receive supplemental security income payments for such
month.

(g) For the purposes of this section, a person who has been admitted
to central New York psychiatric center from a state correctional
facility or county jail pursuant to section four hundred two of the
correction law shall not be considered a patient in a hospital operated
by the office of mental health. Notwithstanding any other provision of
this section, a person who has been admitted to central New York
psychiatric center from a county jail pursuant to section four hundred
two of the correction law shall be entitled to receive a monthly state
payment for personal needs in an amount equal to, and calculated in the
same manner as, an incentive allowance which is provided to an
incarcerated individual of a state correctional institution pursuant to
section two hundred of the correction law.

(h) Any patient who is qualified to receive a monthly state payment
for personal needs pursuant to this section shall be required to provide
the commissioner of mental health with information relating to the
amount of income and assets of such patient. If the commissioner
discovers that assets or income of the patient were not disclosed
because of fraud or negligence, he may collect the difference between
the amount of such payments and the amount to which the patient would
otherwise have been eligible.

(i) The commissioner is authorized to promulgate regulations to
provide for the time and manner of such payments for personal needs of
such patients.