Rhode Island ACLU Files Suit Over Terminations From Medicare Payment Program Without Notice

On January 2, 2018, the American Civil Liberties Union (ALCU) of Rhode Island filed a class-action lawsuit against the Rhode Island Executive Office of Health and Human Services (EOHHS) because the state had not provided proper notice before it stopped paying Medicare premiums for low-income Medicare beneficiaries. The plaintiffs in the lawsuit, Scherwitz v. Beane, had been enrolled in the Medicare Payment Program (MPP). After the state went live with a new benefits eligibility determination system in September 2016, benefits were terminated without notice for many MPP participants.

Under the MPP, the state pays Medicare premiums for people . . .