1998 Minnesota Code
Chapters 245 - 267 Public Welfare and Related Activities
Chapter 246 Public Institutions
Section 246.51 Payment for care and treatment; determination.

246.51 Payment for care and treatment; determination.

Subdivision 1. Procedures. The commissioner shall make investigation as necessary to determine, and as circumstances require redetermine, what part of the cost of care, if any, the client is able to pay. If the client is unable to pay the full cost of care the commissioner shall make a determination as to the ability of the relatives to pay. The client and relatives shall provide the commissioner documents and proofs necessary to determine their ability to pay. Failure to provide the commissioner with sufficient information to determine ability to pay may make the client or relatives liable for the full cost of care until the time when sufficient information is provided. No parent shall be liable for the cost of care given a client at a regional treatment center after the client has reached the age of 18 years. The commissioner's determination shall be conclusive in any action to enforce payment of the cost of care unless appealed from as provided in section 246.55. All money received, except for chemical dependency receipts, shall be paid to the state treasurer and placed in the general fund of the state and a separate account kept of it. Except for services provided under chapter 254B, responsibility under this section shall not apply to those relatives having gross earnings of less than $11,000 per year.

Subd. 2. Rules. The commissioner shall adopt, pursuant to the Administrative Procedure Act, rules establishing uniform standards for determination of client liability and relative, guardian or conservator responsibility for care provided at state facilities. The standards may differ for mental illness, chemical dependency, or mental retardation. The standards established in rules adopted under chapter 254B shall determine the amount of client and relative responsibility when a portion of the client's cost of care has been paid under chapter 254B. These rules shall have the force and effect of law.

Subd. 3. Applicability. The commissioner may recover, under sections 246.50 to 246.55, the cost of any care provided in a state facility, including care provided prior to July 1, 1989, regardless of the terminology used to designate the status or condition of the person receiving the care or the terminology used to identify the facility. For purposes of recovering the cost of care provided prior to July 1, 1989, the term "state facility" as used in sections 246.50 to 246.55 includes "state hospital," "regional treatment center," or "regional center"; and the term "client" includes, but is not limited to, persons designated as "mentally deficient," "inebriate," "chemically dependent," or "intoxicated."

HIST: 1959 c 578 s 2; 1969 c 399 s 1; 1971 c 637 s 5; 1973 c 35 s 46; 1973 c 138 s 1; 1973 c 235 s 2; 1973 c 725 s 45; 1977 c 331 s 1; 1982 c 641 art 1 s 6; 1986 c 394 s 5; 1987 c 299 s 1; 1987 c 384 art 1 s 20; 1987 c 403 art 2 s 51; 1989 c 282 art 2 s 90,218