Information and Referral Services Guide

Welcome!

Welcome to the Information and Referral Services Guide.

This guide is not for general use for referral and admission to other services. For referral and admission procedures for other services, please review the Referral, Admission and Discharge Guide here.

As a part of our mission, we provide Information and Referral services to individuals who need help with such things as housing, access to financial assistance, health insurance, and social services, but who are not eligible for any of the other services we provide.

One of these services is MNSure Navigation, where trained navigators help individuals access and use MNSure to find affordable health insurance. If you're interested in becoming a trained MNSure Navigator, speak to Human Resources about adding this to the goals your Career Plan.

As you can see, this guide is just getting started. Check back often for updates. Make suggestions by tapping on the Feedback and Suggestions link below.

What Are Information and Referral Services?

Information and Referral Services are supports and services that we provide to any community member who may need help finding:

• Health care insurance and services
• Mental health services
• Affordable housing
• Resources for disability legal and advocacy services (but not legal advice)
• Information about health care rights
• Other community financial, disability, and community services

We provide these services at no charge as a part of our mission. Individuals who may need these supports include people who are not eligible for the health care services we provide, people who may be eligible for our services, but are currently uninsured, and people who are seeking help obtaining health insurance using MNSure.

Do not open referrals for Information and Referral Services who are insured and eligible for other services that can meet their needs.

What Information and Referral Services Do Not Include

The list above is not fully inclusive (rather examples) of support we can provide to walk-ins needing help. There are things for which we cannot offer support. This list is endless, so what follows are examples. Please seek guidance for requests about which you are unsure.

• We do not offer legal advice for a criminal or civil matter, or completing paperwork for the response, rather help finding legal aide or an attorney.
• We do not offer assistance in responding directly to criminal charges, or completing paperwork for the response, rather help finding legal aide or an attorney.
• We do not offer assistance in filing civil suits, rather help finding legal aide or an attorney.
• Included in the do-nots listed above, we never offer assistance to individuals for obtaining firearms or other deadly weapons. We do not object to firearm ownership in compliance with state and federal law. This matter is simply out of our scope and we can refer individuals to other resources.

Brief, Targeted Interventions

Information and Referral Services are brief, targeted interventions, generally consisting of one meeting to a few weeks of supports and advocacy until an individual is connected with the recommended community resources they need. Information and Referral Services should not replace medically necessary services for which individuals are eligible, such as ARMHS, Case Management, or Behavioral Health Home services.

Information and Referral -versus- Case Management or Behavioral Health Home Outreach Services

Offer Information and Referral Services when the individual is not eligible for, or does not need Case Management or Behavioral Health Home services and the intervention will be brief, consisting of referrals to other community resources, or MNSure Navigation only.

When the individual needs supports in the long-term:

• Offer Case Management when the individual is diagnosed with SPMI and has a statement from a mental health professional saying Case Management is medically necessary.
• Offer Behavioral Health Home Services when the individual does not meet eligiblity criteria for Case Management.
• Use Case Management or Behavioral Health Services Outreach when an individual needs and wants one of these services and is eligible and referred for it, but is temporarily uninsured for the applicable service and working on obtaining insurance.

Getting Started and Wrapping Up

There are no required assessments or service plans necessary for Information and Referral Services. When an individual needs this help, open a tab for the service immediately and set the status to Active. Then, refer the individual to the person who can best help them, who might include one of our Intake or Service Coordinators, Behavioral Health Home, or Case Management providers, or MNSure Navigators.

Providers of Information and Referral services should close the service tab as Previous as soon as your work is finished because the individual has connected with the services he or she needs.

MNSure Navigation

MNSure is Minnesota's health insurance marketplace where individuals and families can shop, compare and choose health insurance coverage that meets their needs. We have a contract with MNSure to provide navigation support services to anyone who needs it. These might include individuals who currently receive services, or any other community members who may need help using the MNSure system.

Only team members who have received training and supervision through MNSure may act as Navigators.

Other Community Resources

Community resources in this guide are under development. Check back here later for information and links to these resources.

Documenting Information and Referral Services

Feedback or Questions about this Guide

This guide is a living document. We want to improve it with your help. Do you have questions? Found a typo? Find yourself wanting more information? Please send us your thoughts about anything in this chapter by tapping on the link below.