Harrisburg – June 17, 2014 – Legislation authored by the Democratic leader of the Senate, Sen. Jay Costa (D-Allegheny), which would improve how pooled trusts are administered, has been approved by the state Senate.
“The measure changes the calculation of how funds are to be distributed after the beneficiary dies,” Costa said. “The legislation retains the original purpose of the bill which allows funding to be used for the benefit of all individuals who are serviced by the trust.”
Under current law, a trust may retain up to 50 percent of a beneficiary’s account for to be distributed to other beneficiaries. The remaining 50 percent of the account is reimbursed to Pennsylvania equal to the total amount of Medical Assistance that was paid on behalf of the beneficiary.
“The bill was designed to benefit those individuals who would otherwise not have access to pooled resources,” Costa said. “The legislation broadens the scope of how funds can be spent and allows pooled trust funds to be used in support of those
The bill was amended on the Senate floor to change the details about how the fund should be split. The new language requires that if there are funds not retained by the trust after the beneficiary dies, then the trust reimburses Pennsylvania or other states an amount that covers the cost of providing Medical Assistance to the beneficiary from the funds not retained by the trust.
The bill now goes to the state House of Representatives.