Supplemental Security Income (“SSI”) and Medicaid are needs-based programs. Many individuals receive SSI due to poverty and others receive SSI due to disability. In most states, disabled people who qualify for SSI automatically become eligible for Medicaid, which is the joint federal and state program providing medical coverage for the needy. Medicaid benefits can cover items like prescription medication, transportation, and home-based care.
Under certain circumstances, Medicaid will pay for either all or part of your injury-related care when another party is responsible. If you are able to recover from the party who caused your injury, you must repay Medicaid. When a person receives Medicaid benefits from the state, that person agrees, by accepting those benefits, to reimburse the state for injury-related care if that person recovers from the party that caused his/her injury.