§ 994.2.Medicaid Recovery - Oklahoma Health Care Authority Recovery - Calculations
Chapter 15: Appeal and Error · Not amended since adoption on record · Last verified August 3, 2026
Full Text of § 994.2
Amendment History
Added by Laws 2013, c. 14 s. 2, eff. 9/10/2013.
Note
Text formerly resided under repealed Title 12, § 994.1, which was derived from Laws 2009, c. 228, § 10, which was held unconstitutional by the Oklahoma Supreme Court in the case of Douglas v. Cox Retirement Properties, Inc., 2013 OK 37, 302 P.2d 789 (Okla. 2013).
Plain-English Summary
When Medicaid has paid medical expenses that a later judgment or settlement also covers, the Oklahoma Health Care Authority's recovery isn't the full Medicaid payment — it's reduced to account for the cost of getting that judgment or settlement, but only when the claim was disputed and the party the Authority is recovering from bore those procurement costs.
The formula depends on how the numbers compare. If Medicaid's payment is less than the judgment or settlement, the Authority's recovery is the Medicaid payment minus Medicaid's proportional share of the procurement costs, calculated by the ratio those costs bear to the total recovery. If Medicaid's payment equals or exceeds the recovery, the Authority instead recovers the total judgment or settlement minus the total procurement costs. And if the Authority had to sue because the party who received the payment opposed recovery, subsection E caps the recovery at the lower of the Medicaid payment or the recovery minus that party's procurement costs. The section spells out the same math as a fill-in-the-blank worksheet and authorizes the Authority to seek federal waivers or state plan amendments to carry the section out.
A compiler's note explains why this section exists as written: its predecessor, former Section 994.1, came from a 2009 law the Oklahoma Supreme Court struck down as unconstitutional in Douglas v. Cox Retirement Properties, Inc. — the same case that forced the rewrite of Section 993 — and this section reenacted the formula in 2013.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does the Oklahoma Health Care Authority always recover the full amount Medicaid paid?
No — its recovery is reduced to account for a proportional share of the procurement costs the recovering party incurred, if the claim was disputed and that party bore those costs.
How is the recovery calculated if Medicaid's payment is less than the settlement?
The Authority determines the ratio of procurement costs to the total recovery, applies that ratio to the Medicaid payment to find Medicaid's share of those costs, and subtracts that share from the Medicaid payment.
What if Medicaid's payment equals or exceeds the judgment or settlement?
The recovery amount is the total judgment or settlement minus the total procurement costs.
Why does the compiler's note mention a struck-down predecessor section?
Because this section's formula previously lived in former Section 994.1, derived from a 2009 law the Oklahoma Supreme Court declared unconstitutional in Douglas v. Cox Retirement Properties, Inc.; this section reenacted it in 2013.