Medicaid for Employed People with Disabilities (MEPD) Eligibility for Young People

If you get a job and are either making too much money or have saved up too much money to get Medicaid, you might qualify for Medicaid for Employed People with Disabilities (MEPD). MEPD offers the same coverage as regular Medicaid, but you may have to pay a monthly premium to keep your coverage.

To qualify for MEPD, you must:

• Be under 65 years old.
• Live in Iowa.
• Be a U.S. citizen or a qualified immigrant.
• Be working.
• Have a disability that meets Social Security’s medical standards.
  • Note: For MEPD, SSA’s disability rules related to income do not apply.
  • Note: If you aren't sure if your disability qualifies, you can apply and the state will check.
• Have $12,000 or less in resources ($24,000 for a couple).
  • Money in an ABLE account, the house you live in, and a car are not counted.
  • If you use assistive technology to work, you can also set money aside in a separate bank account to pay for it, and MEPD won't count that money as part of your resources.
• Have countable family income at or below 250% of the Federal Poverty Guidelines (FPG) for your family size. If you're single, that's $3,325 or less per month; for a family of four, that's $6,875 or less per month of family income.

To see if someone qualifies for MEPD, MEPD counts their family's money the same way that SSI does: almost all of the family members' unearned income is counted, but less than half of their earned income is counted. For example, this means that if you live alone and don't have any unearned income, you could make as much as $6,735 per month at work and still qualify!

Use the tool below to figure out your family's countable income and see if you may qualify for MEPD.

Your MEPD Family Countable Income:

Your family size:	123456789101112
Your Family's Monthly Earned Income	$
Your Family's Monthly Unearned Income	$
	$1,330
	$20
	$65
Your Family's Monthly Countable Income
	$15,960
	$5,680
250% of Federal Poverty Guidelines
Your Countable Income as a Percent of FPG
(Over MEPD limit)	0.00
(Under MEPD limit)	0.00

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Depending on your income, you may have to pay a monthly premium for your MEPD coverage. Your premium amount is determined by your individual gross income, which is your total income before taxes are taken out. The higher your gross income, the higher your premium will be. See what your premium would be based on your income.

MEPD is a great option if you like your current Medicaid coverage and get a job. You don’t have to be afraid you will lose your health coverage!

How to Apply for MEPD

There are different ways to apply for Medicaid for Employed People with Disabilities (MEPD):

• Online using the Iowa HHS Benefits Portal. The Iowa HHS Benefits Portal lets you apply for other programs, like the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) or the Family Investment Program (FIP), at the same time.
• In person at your local Health and Human Services (HHS) office.
• Using a paper application and faxing or mailing it in to your local Health and Human Services (HHS) office.

If you need help applying for MEPD, talk to a benefits planner or visit or call your local Health and Human Services (HHS) office.

For more information, read DB101’s MEPD article.