Accident and Incident Overview TAFDC

When an accident, incident, injury or illness is the reason someone is applying for TAFDC, or an accident, incident, injury or illness happens to a current client (applicant is hereafter known as client) he or she must notify you, in writing about:

• a claim for compensation or recovery that has begun for any member of the filing unit, and/or
• any settlement negotiations for any member of the filing unit before the negotiations become final.

The client must assign to the Department and MassHealth the right to recover an amount equal to the services provided as a result of the accident, incident, injury or illness. This assignment is required as a condition of initial and continuing eligibility at application, reevaluation, or any time the information becomes known to the Department.

Note: Assignment of third party recovery is not required as a condition of eligibility for clients receiving SNAP benefits only.  However, the information may be used by the Department for developing potential financial income and/or assets.

You must obtain applicable third party information.  Information about the accident, incident, injury or illness may be obtained from the client or from a Division of Industrial Accidents (DIA) file match (processed by the Centralized Match Unit).  This includes, but is not limited to, information about an accident, injury, wrongful death, employment-related wrongful termination, employment- related discrimination, and/or employment-related sexual harassment.

Note: A client who has an employment-related accident or incident (wrongful termination, sexual harassment) must apply for Worker’s Compensation as a condition of eligibility.

To document an accident, incident, injury or illness, you must fill out the Assignment of Third-Party Recovery (A-16) form with the client and enter that information onto BEACON.

The assignment document, Assignment of Third-Party Recovery (A-16) remains a stand-alone form outside of BEACON and must be signed by the client and countersigned by you.

The information regarding the accident, incident, injury or illness is entered on BEACON.