Oakland County, Michigan, Friday, April 20, 2007 -- Ruth Johnson, the Oakland County Clerk/Register of Deeds, was honored today for her work with helping Oakland County Medicaid recipients meet new federal documentation requirements.

"Ruth Johnson's office was absolutely wonderful," said Pam Barckholtz, coordinator for the Oakland County Human Services Community Collaborative Council. "We asked them to come on board and they immediately began to problem solve with us on how to deal with consumers who needed birth certificates and risked losing their Medicaid if they couldn't get them."

A system to match up computerized birth certificates with current Medicaid recipients, developed by Johnson's office and Oakland County Information Technology, may be used by the state, Barckholtz said. "We found that about 25 percent of the 110,000 Medicaid recipients in Oakland County were born here. It was efficient and saved time and money."

The OCHSCCC includes Oakland County Community Mental Health, the Michigan Department of Human Services-Oakland, the Oakland County Department of Health and Human Services and the Area Agency on Aging.

Johnson was thrilled with the "Collaborative Partner Award." Deputy Oakland County Clerk Connie Spak was also acknowledged for her contributions. The awards were given at the OCHSCCC's annual meeting at Glen Oaks this morning.

"Hopefully this will ease the burden on people who truly deserve Medicaid and help stop abuse of the system by people who are not entitled to those benefits," Johnson said. "We were more than happy to help out by streamlining the system."

Effective April 1, Medicaid applicants in Michigan must provide proof of U.S. citizenship as required by the federal U.S. Deficit Reduction Act of 2006. Documentation that may be used ranges from U.S. passports to birth certificates. Current Medicaid recipients will eventually need to prove their citizenship as part of the re-determination process.

The Oakland County Clerk's Office, as part of the Oakland County Human Services Community Collaborative Council, has agreed to provide administrative copies of birth records, at no cost. The copies, however, may only be requested by caseworkers at local agencies trying to assist recipients. Recipients who come directly to the Clerk/Register of Deeds Office will be charged the $15 fee.

Medicaid applicants and beneficiaries who are age 16 and above must provide proof of U.S. citizenship. Local health officials have said Medicaid beneficiaries may continue to receive their Medicaid benefits while they are demonstrating a good-faith effort to document their citizenship. Those unable to document their citizenship will be disqualified from receiving Medicaid benefits

"People who are entitled to those benefits should certainly get them, but Medicaid fraud simply can't be tolerated," Johnson said.

The Oakland County Clerk/Register of Deeds Office retains more than 1.5 million birth records, most stored electronically, dating back to 1837.