Settling Personal Injury Claims in Utah – an Update on Medicare Liens

No doubt you have heard about Medicare’s new reporting requirements.  If Medicare has paid for any of a personal injury claimant’s medical care, Medicare is entitled to be repaid whenever the case is settled—regardless of any provision in the settlement documentation disputing any liability or otherwise attempting to allocate the settlement funds to a non-medical care purpose.  The new requirements appear to have a dual purpose: 1) reimburse Medicare and 2) deter non-reporting.  Failure to comply with the reporting requirements can result in double recovery and $1,000 per day fines.  The ABA published an article (by Caroline Powell of Cranfill Sumner & Hartzog LLP) that provides a good summary of the new reporting requirements here.

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