Skip to main content

Notice of Privacy Incident
Medicaid Provider Termination Alert: Revalidation deadlines are approaching. Failure by providers to revalidate will lead to termination and payment suspension. Check your account now at https://impact.illinois.gov/ to learn if your required revalidation is due this month. More revalidation information here.

Glossary of Terminology

Glossary of Terminology

AABD	Aid to the Aged, Blind or Disabled. A program that provides grant assistance benefits to needy aged, blind and disables recipients. An AABD lien usually applies to homestead property owned and occupied by an AABD recipient and is intended to secure repayment of all cash benefits the customer received.
Administrator/Executor of Estate	A person appointed by a court to settle an estate, or a person appointed by a probate court to manage the distribution of the decedent's estate assets when the decedent has not left a will or left a will that does not name an executor who is willing or able to perform this function.
Affidavit	A written or printed declaration of facts, made voluntarily and confirmed by the oath or affirmation of the party making it, taken before a person having authority to administer such oath or affirmation.
Application for Benefits Eligibility (ABE)	The customer self-service portal for applying for assistance/benefits.
Assessed valuation	The value of real property established by taxing authorities on the basis of which the tax rate is applied. This valuation may not equal market value.
Assistance	Help provided to eligible customers in the form of grant (cash) payments, medical services, social services, and food stamps (SNAP).
Assisted Living Facility	A non-institutionalized facility that is used by customers who are not able to live on their own but do not yet need the level of continuous care that a nursing home offers.
Burial Trust	Irrevocable, pre-need funeral arrangements with a funeral director or other entity to meet the expenses associated with the burial of a decedent. The agreement can include burial spaces as well as the service of the funeral director.
Case Number	Unique identifier for each case within the IES system. A case is an individual or group of individuals in a household that is applying for one or more benefits together. Case numbers are 9 digits and begin with the number 1.
Claim	The assertion of amounts owed to the claimant by the customer or the customer's estate and the related demand for payment.
Community Spouse	A person who is the spouse of an institutionalized person and who is residing in the community but not expected to receive home and community-based services pursuant to a waiver under Section 1915c of the Social Security Act for at least 30 consecutive days.
Comparative Market Analysis	An estimate of the value of real property using price information from sales of comparable properties in the same area.
Coordination of Benefits (COB)	When a person has Medicaid and there is another liable third party (such as health insurance, Medicare, TRICARE, etc.), Medicaid generally pays any remaining claim amount after the other parties pay to the limits of their coverage liability.
Cost Avoidance	Federal statutes require healthcare providers to bill a customers' health insurance before billing Medicaid, thereby allowing Medicaid to avoid the cost of the claim. (See Coordination of Benefits).

Current Market Value	The fair value for which a property could be sold for today. This may be higher or lower than the appraised or assessed value.
Customer	For purposes of this webpage, the term customer refers to an individual who has received aid through the Aged, Blind or Disabled (AABD) program, also referred to as a beneficiary.
Decedent	A deceased individual.
Deed	An instrument in writing, duly executed and delivered, that conveys title to real property.
Estate	An estate is the accumulation of property, cash, investments, a house or other items of value that a person leaves to family members or others (heirs) when he or she dies.
Fair Market Value	The price a property would sell for on the open market. It is the price that would be agreed upon between a willing buyer and seller.
Grant	Cash assistance provided to a customer.
Guardianship	An individual who guards, protects, or takes care of another person or property of another person.
Hardship Waiver	A decedent's heirs can request an exemption from the state's estate recovery efforts, and the state may consider it a hardship, when: The estate property was a family business, farm, or ranch for at least 12 months before the person on Medicaid dies, and is the main source of income for the heirs; The heirs would need financial help from the government if the state filed a claim to get money back; The heirs could stop getting financial help from the government if the state did not file a claim; There are other circumstances that may create a hardship. The state will not grant a hardship request unless the person's heirs request it and provide the requested proof of the hardship.
Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA)	A federal law primarily about health insurance which also sets out protections of the privacy of individually identifiable health information in its various forms.
Heir	A person entitled to inherit property and other assets from a decedent based on the rules state law. An heir is usually the spouse or child of the decedent, but if neither of these exist, it can be another close relative.
Illinois Integrated Eligibility System (IES)	The computer system for medical, SNAP and cash benefits eligibility determination and case management used by the Department of Human Services (DHS) and others.
Legatee	A person who inherits under a will but is not related to the decedent.
Lien	Liens are rights to property that are given to secure a debt. When a property subject to a lien is sold, the lien must be satisfied (paid) before title can transfer to the new owner.

Medicaid Management Information System (MMIS)	Computer system for Medicaid claims processing.
Medicare Part A	Medicare benefit covering hospital costs.
Medicare Part B	Medicare supplementary benefit that covers outpatient care and services.
Medicare Part C	Optional Part A and Part B Medicare coverage provided through a Medicare Advantage Plan.
Medicare Part D	Medicare prescription drug coverage provided through private plans.
Personally Identifying Information (PII)	Information that can be used on its own or with other information to identify, contact, or locate a single person, or to identify an individual.
Protected Health Information (PHI)	Any information about health status, provision of health care, or payment for health care that can be linked to a specific individual (protected by HIPAA).
Real Property	Land and generally whatever is erected, growing upon, or otherwise permanently affixed to the land.
Recipient	Those who have been or are currently receiving public assistance. Also referred to as the customer.
Recorder of Deeds	The county office responsible for recording documents that establish ownership of property, mortgages, and other instruments that relate to real property.
Release	The relinquishment of a claim due to satisfaction of a debt or amount owed by another party.
Recipient Identification Number (RIN)	Unique number used by state agencies to identify each individual receiving public assistance.
Social Security Administration (SSA)	A federal agency that administers Social Security, a social insurance program consisting of retirement, disability, and survivors' benefits. To qualify for these benefits, most American workers pay Social Security taxes on their earnings; future benefits are based on the employees' contributions.
Supportive Living Facility	Designed for individuals who do not need full-time nursing care but who may find it difficult to live safely in their own homes.
Supplemental Security Income (SSI)	A federal program administered by the Social Security Administration that provides stipends to low-income people who are either aged (65 or older), blind, or disabled
Third Party Liability (TPL)	Refers to third parties who have a legal obligation to pay for part or all of the cost of medical services provided to a Medicaid beneficiary. Examples are other programs such as Medicare or health insurance the individual may have that covers at least some of the cost of the medical service. If a third party has such an obligation, Medicaid will only pay for the net portion of cost remaining after the other party pays.
Trust	A right of property, real and/or personal, held by one party for the benefit of another. In general, a trust allows a person, or trustee, to oversee financial assets for the benefit of someone else. In the case of special needs individuals, this is especially important and useful if they cannot make decisions for themselves. An OBRA trust helps make sure disabled individuals maintain Medicaid eligibility, regardless of owning an amount of financial assets that would normally disqualify them. For many individuals, this means personal funds can continue to be used for daily living expenses, rather than using all of their financial resources to pay for a nursing home when they get older. The individual holding legal title to the property and who executes the trust is called the Trustee. The individual for whose use and enjoyment the trust was created is called the Beneficiary.

Voluntary Repayment	Payment of amounts owed based on a person's choice without legal action to force the payment. Customers may freely choose to repay the Department of Healthcare and Family Services (HFS) for any assistance they received for themselves or on the behalf of someone else.
Workers' Compensation Claim	The claim for medical expenses paid by the Department (HFS) on the behalf of the working recipient for reimbursement by the employer's insurance company.