| TO: | ALL COUNTY OFFICES |
| FROM: | JANEL R. LUCK, DIRECTOR |
| SUBJECT: | FEDERAL EMPLOYER IDENTIFICATION NUMBER DATA COLLECTION |
| REFERENCE: | INCOME MAINTENANCE |
DISCUSSION:
On November 27, 2006, Governor Matt Blunt signed an executive order requiring the Department of Social Services to prepare a Medicaid beneficiary employer report which is to be submitted on a quarterly basis. The Missouri Health Care Responsibility Report gathers statistical data needed to analyze healthcare for individuals employed in Missouri and their participation in taxpayer subsidized health care plans, specifically Medicaid.
Effective February 1, 2007, information about employers of Medicaid applicants and recipients must be captured for all sources of earned income. To facilitate the tracking of employers, mandatory fields are added to Legacy and FAMIS to capture the Federal Employer Identification Number (FEIN). Additionally, the number of hours worked per month must be entered to determine whether the individual is employed full or part time. This information will be used to gather information from outside sources about the industry type, number of employees employed by the employer, and insurance benefits offered by the employer.
FEDERAL EMPLOYER IDENTIFICATION NUMBER (FEIN)
The FEIN is a nine-digit number which is assigned by the Internal Revenue Service to identify tax accounts of employers. The Family Support Division is using this number to identify employers of Medicaid applicants/recipients. Obtain the FEIN for all employers of Medicaid applicants/recipients at application, reinvestigation, and/or when acting on a reported change to a Medicaid case. The FEIN can be obtained by searching the MACSS Employer List screen (see instructions below), sending the IM-12 or IM-12A for Legacy cases or the FA-311 for FAMIS cases to the employer to be completed, or by contacting the employer. Some self-employed persons may not have a FEIN. For these individuals, enter the self-employed person’s Social Security Number into the system.
Prior to requesting the FEIN from the applicant/recipient, attempt to obtain the information from MACSS. If the information is not available in MACSS, request the information from the individual using the IM-31A. Allow the individual 10 days to provide the FEIN. During this period, provide assistance to individuals who request help in obtaining the information.
NOTE: If the FEIN is not available in MACSS, a pseudo number of all 9’s must be entered in FAMIS during the interview to complete the controlled flow. Estimate the number of hours to be worked monthly.
When a pseudo number is used as the FEIN, continue to attempt to obtain the number at the next reinvestigation or interim contact unless it is determined that the employer does not have a FEIN. Document attempts to obtain the FEIN by recording comments in the case record. Before requesting the applicant/recipient to supply the FEIN, the Eligibility Specialist must first review the MACSS Employer List (EMPLL) screen to see if the information is listed there. Do not close the case or reject the application if the recipient does not provide the FEIN.
USING THE EMPLOYER LIST SCREEN TO OBTAIN THE FEIN
To assist in obtaining the FEIN, Family Support Division staff now have inquiry access to the Child Support Enforcement (CSE) MACSS screen entitled Employer List (EMPLL). This screen is a database compiled by CSE from information they have obtained on employers located in various states. Complete a search of this screen prior to requesting FEIN information from the individual or employer. If the employer is not listed, request the information from the applicant/recipient using an IM-31A.
This screen allows for searches to be completed based on the following criteria:
- Start Employer Name: conducts a search based on the employer name. Employers may be listed in various ways. For example: If the employer name is “The Jones Company” search for both “The Jones Company” and “Jones Company.”
- State: conducts a search based on the state in which the employer is headquartered. Some employers have numerous locations in various states. In these instances, the employer may be found by entering the state or they may also be found by entering the employer name only and searching the entire list of employers with that name.
- City: conducts a search based on the city in which the employer is headquartered. Some employers have numerous locations in various states. In these instances, the employer may also be found by entering the city in which the headquarters is located and searching the entire list of entries.
To Access the EMPLL Screen:
- On a new session type MAPC and press Ctrl;
- Sign-On with regular User ID and password;
- Type MDCM and press Ctrl;
- Type EMPLL on the command line and press Ctrl;
- Type the employer name in the Start Employer Name field and press Ctrl;
- If the employer information needed displays, review the screen for the FEIN;
- If the employer information needed does not display, press F8=Forward to search the list of employers or enter additional search criteria; or
- Type state and city and press Ctrl. Press F8=Forward to search the list of employers.
The above are suggestions for searching the information in this database. However, any one or combination of search criteria can be used to locate the employer information.
When a search of the EMPLL screen is completed, the following information displays for each employer listed in the database:
- Employer ID - an eight-digit tracking number assigned by MACSS. This is not the FEIN.
- Name – the name of the employer.
- Primary Address – the address listed as the headquarters/location of the business.
- City – the city where the business is headquartered/located.
- State – the state in which the business is headquartered/located.
- Federal Tax ID – This is the FEIN for the employer. If EMPLL contains this number for the employer, it displays on the right side of the screen under this heading.
NOTE: The same employer may be listed in MACSS in various ways depending on the spelling, order of words in the name, etc. Review the displayed information carefully to identify the correct employer.
REQUESTING THE FEDERAL EMPLOYER IDENTIFICATION NUMBER
Prior to requesting the FEIN from the applicant/recipient, complete a search using the MACSS screen EMPLL. If the FEIN is not available, request the information from the individual using the IM-31A. Provide the individual with the appropriate verification form. The IM-12, IM-12A, and FA-311 forms are being revised to further assist in the collection of the FEIN and the employer name and address used for tax reporting purposes. Allow the individual 10 days to provide the requested information.
For FAMIS applications, if the FEIN is not in MACSS and the client does not have the FEIN, enter all 9’s in the field. Give the applicant an IM-31A requesting the information. For Legacy applications, if the information is not provided and cannot be obtained within the 10 day period, approve the case after entering the number of hours worked and all 9’s in the EMP ID Number field. If the FEIN is provided at a later date, update the system with the number. If the individual does not provide the FEIN and the employer does not provide the number upon request, no adverse action can be taken against the applicant/recipient for failure to supply the FEIN.
When information is not available in MACSS, assist individuals in obtaining the information from the employer when possible. When contacting employers, advise them of the reason for the request and inform them that the information will be used for statistical purposes. If the employer is a new employer who indicates a FEIN has not yet been assigned, enter the 9’s in the EMP ID Number field and set a priority to follow-up with the employer in 60 days.
IMU5 ENTRY FOR MEDICAID CASES IN LEGACY
Fields 13R and 13S have been added to IMU5 to the IM Individual Update “B” screen. Field 13R is the EMP ID Number field and captures the FEIN or pseudo number of the employer. Field 13S is Est Hrs and captures the number of estimated monthly hours to be worked. Field 13S is a three digit field. If a two digit number is being entered, enter a leading 0. For example, 40 hours must be entered as 040 hours. If estimated monthly hours are not declared, or cannot be obtained, enter a series of three 9’s. The “B” screen is capable of capturing employer information for two different sources. Fields 13U and 13V are available for entry of a second employer for each applicant/recipient.
INCOME (FMX0) SCREEN ENTRY FOR FAMILY MEDICAID CASES IN FAMIS
Enter the FEIN in FAMIS on the Income (FMX0) screen in the Emp ID Number field. Enter the estimated number of monthly hours to be worked in the “Est Hrs” field. If estimated monthly hours are not declared, or cannot be obtained, enter a series of three 9’s. These fields are mandatory for earned income sources for all programs.
Reports will be generated for Central Office to allow for monitoring of pseudo number usage. Use of the pseudo number and pseudo estimated hours to be worked should be limited. It is important to continue to attempt to obtain the FEIN and estimated monthly hours worked when initial efforts have failed.
FAMIS FOOD STAMP ONLY CASES
When entering earned income for a food stamp only case, enter the pseudo number “999999999” in the “Emp Id Number” field on the Income (FMX0) screen in FAMIS. Enter the estimated number of monthly hours to be worked in the “Est Hrs” field, if known. If an estimate of hours is not available, enter “999”. Do not delay processing a food stamp only case for a Federal Employer Identification Number (FEIN).
NECESSARY ACTION:
- Review this memorandum with all appropriate staff.
- Effective February 1, 2007, access MACSS to search for the employer FEIN.
- Enter the FEIN and hours worked in IMU5 and FAMIS.
- Enter the Social Security Number for self-employed persons without a FEIN.
- Enter a pseudo number (all 9’s) for the FEIN and estimated hours if the actual numbers cannot be obtained.
- If the only eligibility unit is for the Food Stamp Program, enter 9’s in the Emp ID Number and Est Hrs fields on the Income (FMX0) screen in FAMIS.
- Continue to follow-up on pseudo numbers entered to obtain the correct number.