ESTATE RECOVERY PROGRAM

October 2005

The Estate Recovery Program recovers medical care costs from the estates of certain deceased Medicaid consumers. The Estate Recovery Unit (ERU) has recouped approximately $42 million from 19,000 cases since the start of the program.

Under federal law, the State agency is allowed to establish a claim for Medicaid on consumers who, prior to their death:

Beginning 01-01-03, the agency will not establish a claim for persons only receiving coverage under the Medicare Savings Program(QMB and LMB).

In Kansas, ERU mostly recovers through probate actions and family agreements. However, if there is a surviving spouse, surviving child under the age of 21 years, blind or permanently disabled according to Social Security criteria, the unit does not pursue a claim at that time. Upon the death of the surviving spouse, ERU can file a claim in that spouse's estate. The claim is based on the medical assistance a consumer has received on and after July 1, 1992, the effective date of the Kansas law.

The medical assistance claim is first class claim against the estate of the deceased person. The medical assistance claim is junior to reasonable funeral expenses. It is a higher ranking claim to all other creditors. At present, no liens are filed against the property of a recipient or the recipient's spouse in order to establish a claim prior to the individual's death. The medical assistance claim is filed against property that is still available at the time of death.

To recover property, ERU uses several avenues, including, but not limited to, agreements with heirs, claims against financial accounts, and filing of probate actions. In some circumstances, the heirs of the deceased may choose not to initiate probate proceedings. In these instances, ERU determines whether to proceed with probate based on the amount of the agency's claim, value of estate assets, presence of other creditors, and any other relevant information.

Beginning July 1, 2004, ERU will have increased authority to recover property through liens and court actions involving an expanded definition of a probate estate. While these provisions are new, they are have similar recovery limitations to those noted above. Specific questions should be directed to ERU.

A summary of total collections for the last five years is below. The State of Kansas retains approximately 40% of all monies recovered.

FISCAL SUMMARY - Last Five Fiscal Years

Estate Recovery Brochure (.PDF)

If you have questions about the program, you may contact Estate Recovery at (785) 296-6707 or write Estate Recovery Unit at Division of Health Policy and Finance, P.O. Box 2428, Topeka, KS., 66601.