The Bipartisan Budget Act of 2018 included a critical change for anyone handling a case with a Medicaid lien: Section 53102 fully repeals Medicaid’s expanded third-party recovery rights. Medicaid can now only seek reimbursement from a portion of the settlement allocated to medical costs. Medicaid cannot recover monies from lost wages, pain and suffering or any other damages awarded to the injured party.
“Now, the Medicaid recovery law is fixed. Without this action, injury victims could have lost their entire settlement, including compensation for pain and suffering, to repay Medicaid,” according to John McCulloch, Vice President at Arcadia Settlements Group.
The National Structured Settlements Trade Association (NSSTA) discusses the change and how it positively impacts injured parties in this article.