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Last year, when Congress
passed the Health Insurance Portability & Accountability Act, they
made it criminal to give away certain assets when applying for Medicaid.
Federal law already contained severe penalties for anyone transferring
an asset to get nursing home assistance. The new law, which took effect
January 1, 1997 is flawed in many ways, and may be unconstitutional.
Many members of Congress
are now saying they don't know how that provision got passed. They
weren't aware it was tucked into the voluminous provisions of the Health
Insurance Portability & Accountability Act. They weren't aware that
it was vague, difficult to enforce and attacked some of society's
weakest members.
In fact, it has become
known as the "send Granny to jail" law.
Twenty Representatives
are now co-sponsoring a bill to revoke these criminal sanctions. The
White House has announced that it supports the bill (and wants to revoke
the criminal sanctions). The administrator of HCFA (the Health Care
Finance Administration) has announced that he supports the bill. HCFA is
responsible for overseeing the nation's Medicaid nursing home program.
AARP, the Alzheimer's
Association, the American Bar Association, the National Senior Citizens
Law Center and the State Bars of New York and Ohio are all supporting
the bill. They all recommend repeal of the criminal sanctions.
It is time for you to
write Washington to let them know your feelings in this matter. Repeal
is contained in House Bill 216. I suggest a short statement to the
effect that you "support the passage of HB 216, which would revoke
criminal sanctions for making gifts." Congress must hear from a
large number of constituents to be sure they act properly.
Passage of HB 216 will
take the Medicaid system out of the criminal area, and put it back into
civil law. As always, it will still be illegal to give away large
amounts of money, expecting to get free tax-sponsored nursing home care.
However, instead of threatening to "send granny to jail" the
law will simply deny benefits to anyone who illegally manipulates the
system.
Manipulation of the
Medicaid system has always been risky business. Many people wrongly
believe they can give away their savings and immediately qualify for
Medicaid. That was never the case. Federal law imposes a
disqualification period if assets are given away. But with the new law
that took effect January 1st, a criminal penalty was added on top of the
disqualification period. Most people agree the new law went too far. If
you support its repeal, contact Congress now. |
