House File 225 - Introduced HOUSE FILE 225 BY MADISON A BILL FOR An Act relating to the personal needs allowance under the 1 medical assistance program. 2 BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF IOWA: 3 TLSB 1559YH (4) 91 lh/ko

H.F. 225 Section 1. Section 249A.30A, Code 2025, is amended to read 1 as follows: 2 249A.30A Medical assistance —— personal needs allowance. 3 1. The personal needs allowance under the medical 4 assistance program, which may be retained by a person who is a 5 resident of a nursing facility, an intermediate care facility 6 for persons with an intellectual disability, or an intermediate 7 care facility for persons with mental illness, as defined in 8 section 135C.1 , or a person who is a resident of a psychiatric 9 medical institution for children as defined in section 135H.1 , 10 shall be fifty seventy-five dollars per month. 11 2. A resident who has income of less than fifty seventy-five 12 dollars per month shall receive a supplement from the state in 13 the amount necessary to receive a personal needs allowance of 14 fifty seventy-five dollars per month. The general assembly 15 shall annually appropriate a sufficient amount from the 16 general fund of the state to the department of health and human 17 services for this purpose. 18 3. The department shall annually increase the personal 19 needs allowance by the same percentage and at the same time as 20 the federal supplemental security income and federal social 21 security benefits are increased due to a recognized increase 22 in the cost of living. The personal needs allowance shall not 23 exceed two hundred dollars per month. 24 EXPLANATION 25 The inclusion of this explanation does not constitute agreement with 26 the explanation’s substance by the members of the general assembly. 27 This bill relates to the personal needs allowance under the 28 medical assistance program. 29 The personal needs allowance covers a person’s personal 30 expenses not covered by the medical assistance program. 31 Current law provides that a person who is a resident of a 32 nursing facility, an intermediate care facility for persons 33 with an intellectual disability or mental illness, or a 34 psychiatric medical institution for children may retain a 35 -1- LSB 1559YH (4) 91 lh/ko 1/ 2

H.F. 225 personal needs allowance of $50 per month. A resident who has 1 an income of less than $50 dollars per month shall receive a 2 supplement from the state to receive a personal needs allowance 3 of $50 per month. The bill increases the personal needs 4 allowance to $75 per month and a resident with an income of 5 less than $75 per month shall receive a supplement from the 6 state. 7 The bill provides that the department shall annually 8 increase the personal needs allowance by the same percentage 9 and at the same time as the federal supplemental security 10 income and federal social security benefits are increased due 11 to a recognized cost of living. The personal needs allowance 12 shall not exceed $200 per month. 13 -2- LSB 1559YH (4) 91 lh/ko 2/ 2