Show #285 Airing Sunday, February 20, 2005
Golden Opportunities viewers, you are the greatest! Earlier this year I described a serious problem concerning a collection letter sent by the Attorney General’s office. You responded with calls and letters, and I wanted to tell you that your advocacy really made a positive difference.
In January I related the story of a gentleman whose wife had recently died after a prolonged nursing home stay. He didn’t own much except his home, so his wife’s care was paid by Medicaid.
He thought the worst was over. But boy, was he wrong. Shortly after his wife’s funeral, he received a letter from the Ohio Attorney General’s office informing him that the state had put a lien on his home. To avoid having his home taken away, he needed to immediately pay Ohio $121,000. Well, this man didn’t have $121,000. That’s why his wife was on Medicaid! The only way he could pay that bill would be to sell his home. And then, he’d have to sleep on the streets.
On this program, I explained that the state’s collection letter violated the law in several different ways. Most important, no collection activity whatsoever may be made by the state against the living spouse of a Medicaid recipient.
After hearing about this, many of you complained to the Attorney General’s office. Their response? Budish is wrong.
I then received a letter signed by the Attorney General himself, accusing me of making false and misleading statements.
This got my dander up. I hope you know me well enough by now to understand that I don’t present information to you until I’ve fully researched the facts.
I took the initiative, called the Attorney General, and sent a copy of the letter that the gentleman had received. Only then did I receive a call from the A. G.’s office stating they were “uncomfortable” with the content and tone of the letter. The attorney who had sent that letter was supposedly instructed about the law. According to the A. G.’s office, the situation had been “corrected.”
So much for me not knowing what I’m talking about!
The good news is that the gentleman of our story can now rest easy that he’s not about to be thrown out into the street. And you can take some credit for that. So thank you.
But it’s not all good news. How many other people received threatening letters like this one? I can only guess they may have sent hundreds, possibly even thousands of similar letters. How much money have Ohioans improperly paid, and how many people have lost their homes?
I asked the A.G.’s office to follow up with all those people who received similar, improper letters. Their response: “It would be impossible to contact each person that received a similar letter.”
Why is that? Surely they must have a list of folks who were sent those letters. I can’t understand why it’s too difficult to simply contact these individuals to put their minds at ease by telling them they’re not about to lose their homes.
I invited the Attorney General or his representative to join us on the show to talk to you directly. They’ve agreed to an interview for April 6th.
Oh, one more thing. Remember I mentioned that I had received a letter from the Attorney General accusing me of making false and misleading statements? Even though they’ve acknowledged that their letter was improper, I have yet to receive an apology. I don’t know about you, but my mom taught me, when you make a mistake, you own up to it. Maybe the A.G.’s mom should have a talk with him.
