Found this on NPR - This may have been discussed here before but for those who missed it, like me :
PERRY, Iowa — Fran Ruhl's family received a startling letter from the Iowa Department of Human Services four weeks after she died in January 2022.
"Dear FAMILY OF FRANCES RUHL," the letter begins. "We have been informed of the death of the above person, and we wish to express our sincere condolences."
The letter gets right to the point: Iowa's Medicaid program had spent $226,611.35 for Ruhl's health care, and the government was entitled to recoup that money from her estate, including nearly any assets she owned or had a share in. If a spouse or disabled child survived Ruhl, the collection could be delayed until after their death, but the money would still be owed.
The notice said the family had 30 days to respond.
"I said, 'What is this letter for? What is this?'" says Ruhl's daughter, Jen Coghlan.
It seemed bogus, but it was real. Federal law requires all states to have "estate recovery programs," which seek reimbursements for spending under Medicaid, the joint federal and state health insurance program mainly for people with low incomes or disabilities. The recovery efforts collect more than $700 million a year, according to a 2021 report from the Medicaid and CHIP Payment and Access Commission, or MACPAC, an agency that advises Congress.
Henry Ruhl of Perry, Iowa, lost his wife, Fran, in January 2022. A few weeks after her death, he was startled by a notice saying her estate owed a huge bill to Iowa's Medicaid program for her dementia care.
KC McGinnis for Kaiser Health News
States have leeway to decide whom to bill and what type of assets to target. Some states collect very little. For example, Hawaii's Medicaid estate recovery program collected just $31,000 in 2019, according to the federal report.
Iowa, whose population is about twice Hawaii's, recovered more than $26 million that year, the report says.
Iowa uses a private contractor to recoup money spent on Medicaid coverage for any participant who was 55 or older or was a resident of a long-term care facility when they died. Even if an Iowan used few health services, the government can bill their estate for what Medicaid spent on premiums for coverage from private insurers known as managed-care organizations.
the rest is at:
https://www.npr.org/sections/health-shots/2023/03/01/1159490515/they-could-lose-the-house-to-medicaid
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But if it really happens I'll take credit for the idea LOL
