Family homes may be used to pay for TennCare

WKMS | By Todd Hatton

Published May 31, 2012 at 9:29 AM CDT

The Tennessee Supreme Court has ruled the state can go after the houses and property of people who have died, even property left to family members, if money is owed for end-of-life care.

Wednesday's unanimous decision says both federal and state law permit TennCare to get reimbursed for the costs of nursing home or long-term care. TennCare administers the federal Medicaid program in the state. The Supreme Court holds that reimbursement can come from any property that can be used to pay debts. The decision involved a Putnam County woman who left her home to loved ones after she died. TennCare filed a $22,000 claim against her estate for her care.

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Todd Hatton

Todd Hatton hails from Paducah, Kentucky, where he got into radio under the auspices of the late, great John Stewart of WKYX while a student at Paducah Community College. He also worked at WKMS in the reel-to-reel tape days of the early 1990s before running off first to San Francisco, then Orlando in search of something to do when he grew up. He received his MFA in Creative Writing at Murray State University. He vigorously resists adulthood and watches his wife, Angela Hatton, save the world one plastic bottle at a time.

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