Your Rights
• Your right to privacy. Your private information, including your health information, is protected by state and
federal laws. Your worker has given you a Notice of Privacy Practices (DHS-3979) information sheet
explaining these rights.
• You have the right to reapply at any time if your benefits end
• You have the right to know why, if we have not processed your application promptly.
ₒ 15 days for medical care for pregnant women
ₒ 30 days for cash, SNAP and child care
ₒ 45 days for medical care
ₒ 60 days for cash and medical care related to disability
• You have the right to know the rules of the program you are applying for and for us to tell you how we
figured your benefits.
• You have the right to choose where and with whom you live and, within certain limits, to choose your own
doctor, hospital, etc.
• Appeal rights. If you are unhappy with the action taken or feel the agency did not act on your request for
assistance, you may appeal. For cash, child care and health care, you may appeal within 30 days from the
date you receive the notice by writing to the county agency, or directly to the State Appeals Office at the
Minnesota Department of Human Services, P.O. Box 64941 St. Paul, MN 55164-0941. (If you show good
cause for not appealing your cash and health care within 30 days, the agency can accept your appeal for up
to 90 days from the date you receive the notice.) For SNAP, you may appeal within 90 days by writing or
calling the county or the State Appeals Office. If you wish your assistance to continue until the hearing, you
must appeal before the date of the proposed action or within 10 days after the date the agency notice was
mailed, whichever is later. Ask your county worker to explain how the timing of your appeal could affect
your present or future assistance.
• Access to free legal services. Contact your worker for information on free legal services.
• Your right to file a complaint. If you feel the county or the Minnesota Department of Human Services
treated you differently in the handling of your public assistance application or benefits because of race,
color, national origin, political beliefs, religion, creed, sex, sexual orientation, public assistance status, age
or disability, including physical access to government buildings, you may file a complaint with your county
agency or any of the following agencies.
MN Dept of Human Services
Equal Opportunity and Access
P.O. Box 64997
St Paul, MN 55164-0997
651-431-3040 (Voice)
(866) 786-3945 (TTY)
MM Dept of Human Rights
Freeman Building
625 Robert Street North
St Paul, MN 55155
(800) 657-3704 (voice)
(651) 296-1283 (TTY)
U.S. Dept of Health &Human
Services
Office for Civil Rights, Region V
233 North Michigan Avenue, # 240
Chicago, IL 60601
(312) 886-2359 (Voice)
(312) 353-5693 (TTY)
In accordance with Federal and U.S. Department of Agriculture policy, this institution is prohibited from
discrimination on the basis of race, color, national origin, sex, age, religion, political beliefs, or disability. To
file a complaint of discrimination, write:
U.S. Department of Agriculture
Director, Office of Civil Rights
1400 Independence Avenue, SW
Washington, D.C. 20250-9410
(800) 795-3272 (Voice) / (202) 720-6382 (TTY)
USDA is an equal opportunity provider and employer.
RCHW 3614B FAS Revised: 07/2020
RAMSEY COUNTY
Financial Assistance Services