(a) Property used to produce goods and services.  Personal property necessary to perform daily activities or to produce goods for home consumption is excluded if the equity value does not exceed $6000. An equity value in excess of $6000 is a countable resource.  The property does not have to produce a 6% annual return.  The $6000 equity maximum includes all such resources in total and does not pertain to each item separately.  Examples of property used to produce goods and services are tractors, wildcatting tools, mechanized equipment for gardening, livestock grown for home consumption, etc.

(b) Cash savings and bank accounts.  Money on hand or in a savings account is considered as a countable resource.  The member's statement that he/she does not have any money on hand or on deposit is sufficient unless there are indications to the contrary.  When there is information to the contrary or when the member does not have records to verify the amount on deposit, verification is obtained from bank records.  Title 56, O.S., Section 1671 provides that financial records obtained for the purpose of establishing eligibility for assistance or services must be furnished without cost to the member or the Agency.

• (1) Checking accounts may or may not represent savings.  Current bank statements are evaluated with the member to establish what, if any, portion of the account represents savings.  Any income which has been deposited during the current month is not considered unless it exceeds what is considered as ordinary maintenance expense for the month.
• (2) Accounts which are owned jointly by the member and a person not receiving SoonerCare are considered available to the member in their entirety unless it can be established what part of the account actually belongs to each of the owners and the money is actually separated and the joint account dissolved.  • 1   When the member is in a nursing facility and the spouse is in the home or if both are institutionalized, a joint bank account may be maintained with one-half of the account considered available to each.

(c) Life insurance policies.  If the total face value of all life insurance policies owned by an individual is $1500 or less, the policies (both face value and cash surrender value) are excluded as resources.

• (1) If the total face value of all policies owned by an individual exceeds $1500, the net cash surrender value of such policies must be counted as resources.  Life insurance policies which do not provide a cash surrender value (e.g., term insurance) are not used in determining whether the total face value of all policies is over $1,500.
• (2) The face value of a life insurance policy which has been assigned to fund a prepaid burial contract must be evaluated and counted according to the policy on burial funds or, if applicable, the policy on the irrevocable burial contract.
• (3) The net cash surrender value of insurance (i.e., cash surrender value less any loans or unpaid interest thereon) usually can be verified by inspection of the insurance policies and documents in the member's possession or by use of the OKDHS Form 08MP061E, Request to Insurance Company.
• (4) Dividends which accrue and which remain with the insurance company increase the amount of resource.  Dividends which are paid to the member are considered as income.
• (5) If an individual has a life insurance policy which allows death benefits to be received while living, and the individual meets the insurance company's requirements for receiving such proceeds, the individual is not required to file for such proceeds.  However, if the individual does file for and receive the benefits, the payment will be considered as income in the month it is received and countable as a resource in the following months to the extent it is available.  The payment of such benefits is not considered a conversion of a resource because the cash surrender value of the insurance policy is still available to the individual.  The individual is in effect, receiving the death benefits and not the cash surrender value.

(d) Burial spaces.  The value of burial spaces for an individual, the individual's spouse or any member of the individual's immediate family will be excluded from resources.  "Burial spaces" means conventional grave sites, crypts, mausoleums, urns, and other repositories which are customarily and traditionally used for the remains of deceased persons.  "Immediate family" means individual's minor and adult children, including adopted children and step-children; and individual's brothers, sisters, parents, adoptive parents, and the spouse of these individuals.  Neither dependency nor living in the same household will be a factor in determining whether a person is an immediate family member.

(e) Burial funds.  Revocable burial funds not in excess of $1500 are excluded as a resource if the funds are specifically set aside for the burial arrangements of the individual or the individual's spouse.  Any amount in excess of $1500 is considered as a resource. Burial policies which require premium payments and do not accumulate cash value are not considered to be prepaid burial policies.

• (1) "Burial funds" means a prepaid funeral contract or burial trust with a funeral home or burial association which is for the individual's or spouse's burial expenses.
• (2) The face value of a life insurance policy, when properly assigned by the owner to a funeral home or burial association, may be used for purchasing "burial funds" as described in (1) of this subsection.
• (3) The burial fund exclusion must be reduced by the face value of life insurance policies owned by the individual or spouse; and amounts in an irrevocable trust or other irrevocable arrangement.
• (4) Interest earned or appreciation on the value of any excluded burial funds is excluded if left to accumulate and become a part of the burial fund.
• (5) If the member did not purchase his/her own prepaid burial, even if his/her money was used for the purchase, the member is not the "owner" and the prepaid burial funds cannot be considered a resource to him/her.  However, if the member's money was used by another to purchase the prepaid burial, the rules on transfer of property must be applied since the purchaser (owner) could withdraw the funds any time.

(f) Irrevocable burial contract.  Oklahoma law provides that a purchaser (buyer) of a prepaid funeral contract may elect to make the contract irrevocable.  The irrevocability cannot become effective until 30 days after purchase.  For an irrevocable contract to be valid, the election to make it irrevocable must be made by the purchaser (owner) or the purchaser's guardian or an individual with power of attorney for the purchaser (owner).  • 2 In instances where the OKDHS Form 08MA084E, Management of Recipient's Funds, is on file in the nursing facility, the form serves as a power of attorney for the administrator to purchase and/or elect to make irrevocable the burial funds for the member.

• (1) If the irrevocable election was made prior to July 1, 1986, and the member received assistance on July 1, 1986, the full amount of the irrevocable contract is not considered a countable resource.  This exclusion applies only if the member does not add to the amount of the contract.  Interest accrued on the contract is not considered as added by the member.  Any break in assistance will require that the contract be evaluated at the time of reapplication according to rules in (2) of this subsection.
• (2) If the effective date for the irrevocable election or application for assistance is July 1, 1986, or later:
• (A) the face value amount of an irrevocable burial contract cannot exceed $6,000 plus accrued interest through August 4, 1998.
• (B) the face value amount of an irrevocable burial contract cannot exceed $7,500 plus accrued interest for the period August 5, 1998, through October 31, 2009.
• (C) after November 1, 2009, state statute excludes the face value of an irrevocable burial contract, up to $10,000.  This exclusion includes any combination of irrevocable contract, revocable prepaid account, designated account or cash value in life insurance policies not used to fund the burial policy, regardless of the face value, provided the cash value in policies and designated accounts does not exceed $1500.   • 3  When the amount exceeds $10,000, the member is ineligible for assistance.  Accrued interest is not counted as a part of the $10,000 limit regardless of when it is accrued.
• (D) the face value of life insurance policies used to fund burial contracts is counted towards the $10,000 limit.

(g) Medical insurance.  If a member is covered by insurance other than SoonerCare, then SoonerCare is the payer of last resort and should not be bill until all other payers have paid.  If payment is made directly to the member, the member must reimburse OHCA up to the amount paid by SoonerCare.  Any amount remaining after payment to OHCA is considered as an available resource.