Income Maintenance (Financial) Services Unit

(Income Maintenance Supervisor – Eileen Foss)

Contact us at:   218-927-7200 or toll free at 1-800-328-3744
E-mail:   income.maintenance@co.aitkin.mn.us
MN Dept. of Human Services:   www.dhs.state.mn.us
Food Support:   www.fns.usda.gov
Business Hours:  8:00 am - 4:30 pm

Income Maintenance Unit:   Public assistance programs are designed to offer a minimum level of family subsistence, adequate nutrition through the food support program, and medical care for all eligible residents of Aitkin County.  Programs are also available to assist clients in their transition from public assistance to gainful, competitive employment.

Applications may be obtained by calling or stopping in the Health & Human Services Agency during normal business hours.  Should you need help filling out your application, Office Support personnel will assist you.

Programs and Services available are:

• Minnesota Family Investment Program (MFIP):  Helps families move to work and focuses on helping families. MFIP provides cash and food assistance.  Most families can get cash assistance for only 60 months.

•  Emergency Assistance (EA):  An assistance program available to families with children under age 19 who are in an emergency situation.

•  Diversionary Work Program (DWP):  A four month cash program that helps low-income families find a job.   The goal of DWP is to help parents immediately go to work rather than go on assistance.  Parents are expected to sign an employment plan before their family is approved for DWP.  After families have an employment plan, they can receive financial assistance to meet their basic needs and get other supports, such as food support and child and health care assistance.

•  Employment Services:  Programs, activities, and services related to job search, job placement, client assessment and training.

•  Food Support (FS):  A United States Department of Agriculture program that issues benefits to increase food purchasing power.

•  Food Support Employment and Training (FSET):  An employment and training programs to assist some Food Support Participants.

•  General Assistance (GA):  A cash assistance program for individuals age 18 – 64 who meet a basis of eligibility.

•  Emergency General Assistance (EGA):  An assistance program available to individuals who are ineligible for Emergency Assistance and Emergency Minnesota Supplemental Aid and who are in an emergency situation. 

•  Minnesota Supplemental Aid (MSA):  A state-funded program that provides cash assistance to SSI recipients, blind people, people age 65 or older, and disabled people who are age 18 and older. 

•  Emergency Minnesota Supplemental Aid (EMSA):  A program meeting the emergency need of MSA participants. 

•  Special Need Funds:  Money available to MSA participants for some expenses not covered by the monthly grant.

•  Group Residential Housing (GRH):  A state-funded program that provides a minimum, room and board for unrelated people who live in certain licensed group living arrangements.

•  Child Care Assistance Program (CCAP):  Helps eligible families pay child care costs while families work, look for work or attend school.

• Aitkin County Child Care Assistance Plan (PDF/409kb)

 Minnesota Health Care Programs:

• Medical Assistance (MA):  Medical coverage for families with children, pregnant women, people 65 and over and disabled persons.

• Employed Persons with Disabilities:  Medical Assistance for the employed disabled individuals.  Allows working individuals with disabilities to qualify for Medical Assistance under higher income and asset limits.

• Long Term Care (LTC):  Medical Assistance for individuals residing in a long term care facility.

• Asset Assessment:  An evaluation of all non-excluded assets owned by either or both of the spouses.   An asset assessment is the first step in dividing marital assets between spouses when one spouse requires long-term care services

• Qualified Medicare Beneficiary (QMB):  A Medicare Savings Program which pays for some Medicare expenses including premiums, co-payments and deductibles.

• Service Limited Medicare Beneficiary (SLMB):   A Medicare Savings Program that pays for the Medicare Part B premium.

• Qualified Individual (Q):  A Medicare Savings Program which pays for the Medicare Part B premium.

• Qualified Working Disabled Adult QWD):  A person eligible for payment of the Medicare Part A premium by the Medical Assistance Program.  The person cannot receive Medical Assistance or Qualified Medical Beneficiary (QMB) benefits.

• Community Alternative Care (CAC):   A federally approved home and community-based services waiver program for chronically ill people under age 65.

• Community Alternatives for Disabled Individuals (CADI):   A federally approved home and community-based waiver program for people under age 65 who would otherwise require the level of care provided in a nursing facility.

• Elderly Waiver (EW):  An MA waiver program providing home and community-based services for clients age 65 or older who need a nursing home level of care to enable them to stay in the community.

• TEFRA:  Tax Equity and Fiscal Responsibility Act.  An MA waiver program that provides eligibility to some disabled children who live with their families.

• TBI:  Traumatic Brain Injury:. An MA waiver program for people diagnosed with a brain injury.

• General Assistance Medical Care (GAMC):  Health Care coverage for low-income adults, ages 21 – 64, who have no dependent children and who do not qualify for Medical Assistance.

• MinnesotaCare:  A subsidized premium-based Minnesota Health Care Program for some families with children and some adults without children who do not have access to affordable health care coverage.