GOVERNMENT BENEFITS CASES

• Spry v. Thompson
• Alford v. County of San Diego

U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals, May 21, 2007
Spry v. Thompson, No. 04-35746, 04-35750
In the context of the question of what federal Medicaid restrictions apply to a state program providing medical benefits to persons who are not eligible for Medicaid, no waiver from the Secretary of Health and Human Services is necessary for expansion populations not eligible for Medicaid to enable the state to exceed the co-payment and premium limitations applicable to those individuals. Read more...

California Appellate Districts, May 23, 2007
Alford v. County of San Diego, No. D048758
Approval of defendant county's financial eligibility standard for "last resort" medical care, which denies any services for individuals who earn more than $1,078 per month and also limits the provision of subsistence medical care to residents who have assets of $2,000 or less, is reversed where defendant's eligibility standard is void because it is based upon an inflexible income cap that denies any medical care to indigent residents, in particular the working poor, whose monthly salary exceeds that cap by even $1, without consideration of their ability to pay for some or all of their medical care. Read more...