A U.S. district court finds that the state is not entitled to the proceeds of a wrongful death action even though it had a valid Medicaid lien against proceeds from the deceased's personal injury action. Dexter v. Ford Motor Company(U.S. Dist. Ct., D. Utah, No. 2:01 CV 595 TC, July 31, 2006).
Kelvin Dexter was injured when his car rolled over. He received Medicaid benefits to help pay for his medical expenses, and later initiated a personal injury action against Ford Motor Company. After he died, his wife, Artysha, amended the complaint, substituting her name as personal representative for Mr. Dexter's heirs and changing the claim to a wrongful death action.
The State of Nevada filed a motion to intervene in the case, claiming it had a Medicaid lien against the proceeds of any settlement. Mrs. Dexter argued that the state's interest in settlement proceeds extinguished when the case became a wrongful death action.
The U.S. District Court for the District of Utah denies the motion to intervene. According to the court, because any recovery in a wrongful death action is a recovery for the heirs and not for the estate, the state is not entitled to any of the settlement proceeds. The court notes that the state can pursue its own claim against Ford for reimbursement of its medical expenses.
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