Structured Settlements – Plaintiff Loyal Structured Settlement Company

Medicare Set-Aside Arrangements for Third Party Settlements

While we have all heard about MSA’s for worker’s compensation cases, 3rd Party Liability Settlements are becoming an increasing area of interest for CMS (Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services).   

You may not yet be aware, but on December 29, 2007, President Bush signed the Medicare Medicaid and SCHIP Extension Act of 2007 (“2007 Extension Act”), which will strengthen Medicare’s secondary payer rights under the Medicare Secondary Payer Statute. 

The 2007 Extension Act, which goes into effect on July 1, 2009, will require that Medicare be notified of all claims/settlements involving a Medicare beneficiary where a workers’ compensation, LIABILITY, no fault or self-insurance program exists. 
 
Failure to report in a “timely manner” can result in penalties, which among others can include a money penalty of $1,000 for each day of noncompliance for each individual for which the information required for submission should have been submitted.  The information that must be submitted must be done so within a time specified by the Secretary after the claim is resolved through a settlement, judgment, award or other payment (regardless of whether or not there is a determination or admission of liability).
 
The punitive nature of this new law will mandate that plaintiff attorneys start incorporating into their practices standard evaluation procedures to assess whether a Medicare Set-Aside Arrangement must be established on behalf of a client that is a Medicare beneficiary or likely to become a Medicare beneficiary.  Defendants will insist on establishing a Medicare Set-Aside Arrangements prior to settling a claim, where the facts warrant.  Some defendants, particularly self-insureds, already mandate such evaluations as part of settlement, and further mandate that the MSA will be funded in part by a tax exempt Structured Settlement Annuity as a cost-saving device.

Attached for your review please find this new law.
 
Even if your client is foregoing a Structured Settlement Annuity as part of a plan for their overall settlement, Plaintiff Attorneys will still need to retain a Plaintiff Loyal Settlement Planner to shop the MSA annuity and protect their client from possible “pricing” abuse. 
 
With the passing of the Medicare Medicaid and SCHIP Extension Act of 2007 (“2007 Extension Act”) on December 29, 2007, MSA’s on third party liability cases will become an ever present concern for your clients.

For help in determining your case’s exposure to this latest government requirement, contact me at 800-666-5584 or through my contact form.