The Florida Estate Planning and Probate Law Blog is focused on recent federal and state case law and planning ideas.

Spouses Do Not Need to Be Estranged to Request Spousal Waiver From Medicaid Application Process

A New Jersey appeals court has ruled that a married Medicaid applicant could request a spousal waiver for undue hardship even though the spouses were not estranged because the applicant's spouse refused to provide financial information. N.S. v. Division of Medical Assistance and Health Services (N.J. Super. Ct., App. Div., No. A-3562-17T2, July 8, 2019). The New Jersey Superior Court, Appellate Division, held that there is no requirement in federal law that "spouses be estranged in order to receive a spousal waiver for an undue hardship." The court holds that the "determination of undue hardship should be a fact-sensitive inquiry taking into account the totality of the circumstances," and it remands to the state to process the application based on the information and documents already submitted. While this law is not binding in Florida it can be used for argument purposes and to support a legal position.