New Jersey Administrative Code › Title 10 - HUMAN SERVICES › Chapter 90 - WORK FIRST NEW JERSEY PROGRAM › Subchapter 2 - NON-FINANCIAL ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS › Section 10:90-2.9 - Definition of employable/unemployable persons in WFNJ/GA

Current through Register Vol. 56, No. 14, July 15, 2024
(a) The definition
				of employable/unemployable persons for determination of payment level is as
				follows:
1. An employable person is any
				person applying for or receiving cash assistance who is able-bodied and does
				not meet any one of the criteria of deferred delineated in (a)2 below;
				and
2. An unemployable person is
				any person who meets any of the criteria listed below:
i. Persons who are 62 years of age or
				older;
ii. Persons receiving
				inpatient hospital care and treatment who were receiving an unemployable grant
				prior to entering the hospital. (Persons who were listed as employable shall
				retain such employable status until hospital discharge.);
iii. Persons who are residents in long term
				care facilities;
iv. Persons in the
				first 12 months of residential treatment in centers licensed by the New Jersey
				Department of Health and Senior Services for the treatment of drug abuse, when
				medical evidence exists that the residential treatment is necessary (see
				10:90-2.8(a)7  ii
				regarding drug abuse treatment for those convicted of possession or use of
				controlled substances). The 12 month period starts anew for each commencement
				of treatment, previous incomplete or unsuccessful courses of treatment
				notwithstanding;
v. Persons
				normally eligible to receive RSDI (Title II benefits), SSI or Railroad
				Retirement benefits on the basis of disability, but due to administrative
				delays in that respective program, payments are being withheld;
vi. Persons who have been determined to be
				legally blind by the New Jersey Commission for the Blind and Visually
				Impaired;
vii. Persons in the third
				trimester of pregnancy when an examining physician certifies to both the
				pregnancy and its term;
viii.
				Pregnant persons when an examining physician certifies that employment poses a
				threat to the mother or the fetus;
ix. A caretaker relative of a disabled
				dependent who must provide full-time care for the disabled dependent (see
				10:90-2.4(a)2 
				ii). No more than one person in an eligible unit may be considered unemployable
				for this reason without written authorization from the DFD; and/or
x. Persons determined to be incapacitated by
				the agency that administers the WFNJ/GA program are unemployable when such
				determination of incapacity is supported by the following circumstances:
(1) Form WFNJ/MED-1 shall be fully completed
				by an examining physician that the individual is unable to comply with WFNJ/GA
				requirements. Such certification shall include, at a minimum, the date of
				examination, diagnosis, length of incapacity, functional limitations,
				prescribed treatment, an indication of whether or not reevaluation will be
				necessary, and the examining physician's signature. The cash assistance benefit
				shall be issued at the employable rate until the recipient is determined
				unemployable for a minimum of six continuous months by the examining physician.
				Upon presentation of documentation of unemployability, applicants and
				recipients shall be considered deferred from the work requirement in accordance
				with 10:90-4.10 and shall not be
				required to meet the WFNJ/GA 28-day work activity requirement. A recipient
				whose unemployable status fluctuates from month-to-month will continue to
				receive cash assistance at the employable rate until he or she is determined
				unemployable for a minimum of six continuous months by an examining physician.
				Payment at the unemployable rate shall begin at the seventh month of
				unemployability. If medical documentation presented at application or
				redetermination indicates a period of unemployability of six months or more,
				then the unemployable cash assistance rate shall be issued upon a determination
				of eligibility.
(A) Individuals who are
				deferred from the work requirement because of a physical or mental condition,
				which prevent them from being able to work full-time may participate part-time
				in a WFNJ work activity or employment if their physical or mental impairment
				allows, and the examining practitioner certifies on the WFNJ/MED-1 that the
				individual's physical or mental condition will allow participation. If a
				deferred individual chooses to participate in a work activity or employment and
				then finds that his or her condition precludes continuing participation, he or
				she shall not be subject to a WFNJ sanction. Part-time participants shall be
				given access to the same services and supports as non-deferred recipients, such
				as access to training slots, transportation and child care supports.