The Texas Health and Human Services Commission (HHSC) determines the Medicaid eligibility effective date for an applicant as follows:

1. (1) Medicaid coverage begins on the earliest day of the application month on which the applicant meets all eligibility criteria.
2. (2) Retroactive coverage may begin as early as three months before the application month, except that a newborn's coverage begins no earlier than the child's date of birth.
3. (3) A recipient is continuously eligible for Medicaid through the certification period or through the month of the recipient's 19th birthday, whichever is earlier. A recipient who is a newborn has continuous eligibility through the month of his or her first birthday. If the household is eligible in the application or process month, the child is eligible for continuous coverage beginning the first month the household meets the eligibility criteria.

Source Note:The provisions of this §366.539 adopted to be effective June 9, 2010, 35 TexReg 4661.