On December 4, 2012, a 21-year-old with muscular dystrophy filed this lawsuit against the California Department of Health Care Services in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of California. Prior to turning 21, the plaintiff had received 615 hours of Medi-Cal funded, in-home nursing care per month. Once he turned 21 in September 2012, however, the state reduced his nursing care by 200 hours per month due to its restrictions on funded nursing hours for adults, despite the fact that his condition remained the same. The plaintiff alleged that the reduction in nursing hours put him at serious risk of unnecessary institutionalization in violation of the Americans with Disabilities Act and Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act. He also alleged a deprivation of the constitutional right to procedural due process under 42 U.S.C. § 1983. The plaintiff sought declaratory and injunctive relief to prevent the reduction in his in-home nursing care.

On August 1, 2013, Judge William B. Shubb dismissed the case pursuant to the parties' settlement agreement. Under the terms of the agreement, the plaintiff was permitted to select any combination of services available under the state plan to address his health care needs. The plaintiff could also, when medically necessary, submit a request to be reassessed for additional waiver services. The defendant agreed to pay $69,500 in attorneys' fees and costs. The case is now closed.

Beth Kurtz - 02/22/2013
Eva Richardson - 10/21/2018


compress summary