Favorable Appeals Court Decision for New York Medicaid Recipients
On October 15, 2015, the U.S. Second Circuit Court of Appeals issued an important decision in favor of low-income elderly and disabled New York Medicaid recipients who seek fair hearings to challenge New York State’s termination of their Medicaid. The lower court had refused to stop the State of New York from terminating without notice Medicaid for recipients who miss a fair hearing they have requested to challenge the closing of their Medicaid case. The problem arose because many disabled and/or elderly Medicaid recipients do not receive the appointment that schedules the fair hearing. Yet, when the recipient misses the fair hearing, her Medicaid is terminated without further notice. Plaintiffs claim that termination without such a post-default notice violates both due process and the Medicaid Act. The Second Circuit set aside the lower court’s decision and sent the case back to the lower court for further consideration. This win impacts hundreds of New York Medicaid recipients each year. NCLEJ filed a friend-of-the-court brief in support of the Medicaid recipients who brought the case.
