AARP Lawsuit Aims To Curb Nevada Practice of Placing Liens on Homes of Still Living Seniors To Recover Medicaid Expenses
AARP has filed a class-action lawsuit to prohibit Nevada from placing liens on jointly owned property of seniors enrolled in Medicaid, the Las Vegas Sun reports (Las Vegas Sun, 7/29). Through the Estate Recovery Act, which has been part of Medicaid law since the program was created in 1965, states are required to recover Medicaid expenses for nursing home care of deceased beneficiaries by filing a "proof of claim" against the beneficiary's estate. In some states, liens are placed on homes, and proceeds from the sale of property are used to reimburse Medicaid. Only about half of states collected such reimbursements until 1993, when Congress made the recovery program mandatory (Kaiser Daily Health Policy Report, 5/1). The law bars states from recovering Medicaid expenses from the sale of "jointly-owned property" until both spouses are deceased, the Sun reports. AARP claims, however, that "[d]espite the law," the Nevada State Welfare division has "repeatedly" placed liens on homes of couples even if the husband and wife are still alive. Jody Olson, an AARP spokesperson, said, "The law, in effect, puts the surviving spouse into poverty." District Court Judge Ron Parraguirre was expected on July 29 to begin to hear arguments in the case (Las Vegas Sun, 7/29).
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