Is Medicare's lien higher than your settlement?

Question: My case settled for $125,000, but Medicare has claimed $200,000 in liens – what do I do?

Answer: Medicare has, in the past, been willing to reduce its lien if the lien will consume the net proceeds of the settlement or judgment. Most commonly, Medicare allows a three-way split: Attorney takes 1/3, Medicare takes 1/3, and the claimant takes 1/3. This allows everyone to recover something.

Medicare does also consider waiving its entire lien, in light of evidence or exigent circumstances demonstrating why Medicare should take $0 for its claim. In one circumstance, a claimant needed the funds -- which would have been subject to Medicare’s lien -- to keep her house. Obtaining a full Medicare waiver really depends on the severity of the circumstances and the ability to get Medicare to listen. Our team of Medicare Lien Analysts deals with these sort of issues daily. If you would like, we can put you in contact with someone who can walk you through the finer points of getting Medicare to reduce its lien.