HHS Issues Critical Medicaid Policy Guidance for LGBT Beneficiaries

President Obama has issued policy guidance on the extension of healthcare benefits under Medicaid for gay couples.

Under the new guidance, dated June 10, states have the option to allow healthy partners in a same-sex relationship to keep their homes while their partners are receiving support for long-term care under Medicaid, such as care in a nursing home.

President Obama has issued policy guidance on the extension of healthcare benefits under Medicaid for gay couples.

Under the new guidance, dated June 10, states have the option to allow healthy partners in a same-sex relationship to keep their homes while their partners are receiving support for long-term care under Medicaid, such as care in a nursing home.

This is significant, because, as the article states, states have the ability to seize property to pay for overdue medical charges once a beneficiary’s ability to pay is exhausted. The presence of a spouse in a married relationship living on that property would prevent liens and seizures from taking place, allowing Medicaid benefits to kick in. The same-sex partner living in the home would abort any power the state would have in realizing payments under those alternative conditions for beneficiaries receiving long term care services.

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