An Act amending Title 23 (Domestic Relations) of the Pennsylvania Consolidated Statutes, in support of the indigent, further providing for relatives' liability and procedure; and making an editorial change.

PRINTER'S NO. 28
THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF PENNSYLVANIA
HOUSE BILL
No. 65
Session of
2025
INTRODUCED BY HOWARD, PROBST, VENKAT, PROKOPIAK, HILL-EVANS,
GIRAL, PIELLI, HADDOCK, McNEILL, SANCHEZ, GUENST, HOHENSTEIN,
OTTEN AND FRIEL, JANUARY 10, 2025
REFERRED TO COMMITTEE ON HEALTH, JANUARY 10, 2025
AN ACT
Amending Title 23 (Domestic Relations) of the Pennsylvania
Consolidated Statutes, in support of the indigent, further
providing for relatives' liability and procedure; and making
an editorial change.
The General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
hereby enacts as follows:
Section 1. Sections 4602 and 4603(a) and (b) of Title 23 of
the Pennsylvania Consolidated Statutes are amended to read:
§ 4602. Definitions.
The following words and phrases when used in this chapter
shall have the meanings given to them in this section unless the
context clearly indicates otherwise:
"Court." A court of common pleas and the Philadelphia
Municipal Court.
"Department." The Department of [Public Welfare] Human
Services of the Commonwealth.
§ 4603. Relatives' liability; procedure.
(a) Liability.--
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(1) [Except as set forth in paragraph (2), all] All of
the following individuals have the responsibility to care for
and maintain or financially assist an indigent person,
regardless of whether the indigent person is a public charge:
(i) The spouse of the indigent person.
(ii) A child of the indigent person.
(iii) A parent of the indigent person.
(2) Paragraph (1) [does not apply in any of] shall only
apply in the following cases:
[(i) If an individual does not have sufficient
financial ability to support the indigent person.
(ii) A child shall not be liable for the support of
a parent who abandoned the child and persisted in the
abandonment for a period of ten years during the child's
minority.]
(i.1) In the case of an indigent individual who has
applied for or is receiving medical assistance for long-
term services and supports, including nursing facility
and home and community-based services, when an individual
under paragraph (1) has received or transferred any of
the following owned by an indigent individual or spouse
of an indigent individual for less than fair market value
within five years of the date the indigent individual
applies for or receives long-term services and supports:
(A) An asset.
(B) A resource, as defined in 55 Pa. Code §
178.2 (relating to definitions).
(C) Income.
(D) Real or personal property.
(i.2) In the case of an indigent individual who has
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applied for or is receiving medical assistance for long-
term services and supports, including nursing facility
and home and community-based services, when an individual
under paragraph (1) does not cooperate with the
department, a nursing facility, a provider or other
person in the medical assistance eligibility process for
an indigent individual.
(3) Paragraph (1) does not apply to an individual who
has received or transferred an asset, resource, income or
real property or personal property under 42 U.S.C. § 1396p(c)
(2)(C) (relating to liens, adjustments and recoveries, and
transfers of assets) or 55 Pa. Code § 178.104(e)(3) (relating
to disposition of assets and fair consideration provisions
for transfers on or after July 30, 1994).
(b) Amount.--
(1) Except as set forth in paragraph (2), the amount of
liability shall be set by the court in the judicial district
in which the indigent person resides.
(2) For medical assistance for [the aged other than
public nursing home care,] long-term services and supports,
including nursing home facility and home and community-based
services, as provided in section 401 of the act of June 13,
1967 (P.L.31, No.21), known as the [Public Welfare] Human
Services Code, the following apply:
(i) Except as set forth in subparagraph (ii), the
amount of liability shall, during any 12-month period, be
the lesser of:
(A) six times the excess of the liable
individual's average monthly income over the amount
required for the reasonable support of the liable
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individual and other persons dependent upon the
liable individual; or
(B) the cost of the medical assistance for [the
aged.] long-term services and supports, including
nursing home facility and home and community-based
services.
(ii) The department may, by reasonable regulations,
adjust the liability under subparagraph (i), including
complete elimination of the liability, at a cost to the
Commonwealth not exceeding those funds certified by the
Secretary of the Budget as available for this purpose.
* * *
Section 2. This act shall take effect immediately.
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