North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services Division of Aging and Adult Services

The purpose of this letter is to provide additional information to facilities authorized to accept payments from residents who receive Special Assistance (SA) benefits. Beginning September 2013, paper checks for SA applicants will begin the transition to electronic payments. Current SA beneficiaries will receive their SA payments electronically beginning in November 2013. The changeover to electronic payments will continue as departments of social services implement the North Carolina Families Accessing Services through Technology (NC FAST) Case Management system for benefits eligibility. It will take several months for all 100 county DSSs to change from paper checks to electronic payments. Facilities may have residents receiving their SA and Medicaid from several counties other than the county where the facility is located, so facilities can expect that their residents’ initial electronic SA payments will not be issued simultaneously.