Pennsylvania Code › Title 55 - HUMAN SERVICES › Part II - Public Assistance Manual › Subpart D - Determination of Need and Amount of Assistance › Chapter 178 - RESOURCE PROVISIONS FOR CATEGORICALLY NMP-MA AND MNO-MA › Subchapter A - GENERAL PROVISIONS FOR MA RESOURCES COMMON TO ALL CATEGORIES OF MA › GENERAL PROVISIONS FOR MA RESOURCES › Section 178.5 - Treatment of irrevocable burial reserves for all categories of MA

Current through Register Vol. 54, No. 28, July 13, 2024
Irrevocable burial reserves are considered as follows:
(1) To be considered irrevocable, the
						burial reserve funds shall be deposited with a financial institution or a
						funeral director under a written agreement which provides that the funds cannot
						be withdrawn before the death of the named beneficiary.
(2) Interest earned on the burial reserve is
						counted as income if it can be and is withdrawn before the death of the
						applicant/recipient.
(3) If a
						burial reserve is in an irrevocable form, it is not a countable resource. For
						the aged, blind and disabled categories of MA it shall be considered under
						§
												178.73(2)(ii)
						(relating to revocable burial reserve).
(4) Excess funds remaining from the
						irrevocable burial reserve after the burial expenses become a part of the
						deceased recipient's estate.
(5)
						The resource that was used to establish the irrevocable burial reserve, usually
						cash, is not excluded. The transaction establishing the irrevocable burial
						reserve shall be reviewed to determine if the disposition of property and fair
						consideration requirements at §
												178.101 or §
												178.171 (relating to disposition
						of property and fair consideration provisions for transfers during the period
						of January 4, 1991, through July 29, 1994) or the requirements in §
												178.104 or §
												178.174 (relating to the
						disposition of assets and fair consideration provisions for transfers on or
						after July 30, 1994) are met.
(i) Fair
						consideration is established if the irrevocable burial reserve is not
						exorbitant in relation to the average cost of burial in the locality where the
						person lives. To allow for future increases in the cost of burial, an
						irrevocable burial reserve is not considered exorbitant if it does not exceed
						the average local costs by more than 25%.
(ii) Fair consideration for amounts above
						those in subparagraph (i) shall be documented, and if determined by the
						Department to be reasonable, the creation of the irrevocable burial reserve may
						meet the fair consideration requirements. The documentation shall demonstrate
						that the amount is not exorbitant for the person's situation and the higher
						amount is needed for things such as:
(A) The
						cost of transport of the body because burial is to be in a community many miles
						away.
(B) The person arranged for a
						priest, minister or rabbi who is a close friend or relative and lives some
						miles away to conduct the memorial services with the cost of travel, food,
						lodging and honorarium to be paid from the irrevocable burial
						reserve.
(C) Arrangements include a
						reasonable gift to the church or synagogue for the use of the facilities for
						the services.
(iii) If
						fair consideration is not established, the difference between the cost of the
						burial arrangements and the amount of the burial reserve and if applicable, the
						25% factor in subparagraph (i), shall be counted as UV in accordance with
						§
													178.101(h) and
						§
													178.104(d) for
						the SSI-related categories or §
													178.171(h) and
						§
													178.174(d) for
						the AFDC-related/GA-related categories. If the application of the transfer of
						resources requirements at §
													178.101,
						178.104,
						178.171 or
						178.174 to an irrevocable burial
						reserve creates ineligibility, the person who created the irrevocable burial
						reserve or trust may be able to reform or revoke the reserve or
						trust.