2011 Wyoming Statutes
TITLE 42 - WELFARE
CHAPTER 2 - PUBLIC ASSISTANCE AND SOCIAL SERVICES
42-2-403. Trust transfers affecting eligibility for medical assistance.

(a) For purposes of determining an individual's eligibility for or the amount of benefits under chapter 4 of this title, the rules specified in subsections (d) and (e) of this section shall apply to a trust established by the individual.

(b) For purposes of this section, a trust shall be considered to have been established if an asset of an individual, other than an asset transferred by will, was used to form all or part of the corpus of the trust by any of the following:

(i) The individual;

(ii) The individual's spouse;

(iii) A person including a court or administrative body, with legal authority to act in place of or on behalf of the individual or the individual's spouse;

(iv) A person including a court or administrative body, acting at the direction or upon the request of the individual or the individual's spouse.

(c) In the case of a trust the corpus of which includes assets of any other person, the provisions of this section shall apply to the portion of the trust attributable to the assets of the individual. This section shall apply without regard to:

(i) The purposes for which a trust is established;

(ii) Whether the trustees may exercise any discretion under the trust;

(iii) Any restrictions on when or whether distributions may be made from the trust; or

(iv) Any restrictions on the use of distributions from the trust.

(d) In the case of a revocable trust:

(i) The corpus of the trust shall be considered resources available to the individual;

(ii) Payments from the trust to or for the benefit of the individual shall be considered income of the individual; and

(iii) Any other payments from the trust shall be considered assets disposed of by the individual for purposes of W.S. 42-2-402.

(e) In the case of an irrevocable trust:

(i) If there are any circumstances under which payment from the trust could be made to or for the benefit of the individual, the portion of the corpus or corpus income from which payments to the individual could be made shall be considered resources available to the individual, and payments from that portion of the corpus or income to or for the benefit of the individual shall be considered income of the individual. Payments from that portion of the corpus or income for any other purpose shall be considered a transfer of assets by the individual subject to W.S. 42-2-402; and

(ii) Any portion of the trust or corpus income from which no payment could under any circumstances be made to the individual shall be considered, as of the date of establishment of the trust or, if later, the date on which payment to the individual was foreclosed, to be assets disposed by the individual for purposes of W.S. 42-2-402. The value of the trust shall be determined for purposes of W.S. 42-2-402 by including the amount of any payments made from such portion of the trust after the date specified in this paragraph.

(f) Notwithstanding any other provision of this section, this section shall not apply to any of the following trusts:

(i) A trust containing the assets of an individual under age sixty-five (65) who is disabled as defined by 42 U.S.C. 1382c(a)(3) and which is established for the benefit of that individual by a parent, grandparent, legal guardian of the individual or a court if the state will receive all amounts remaining in the trust upon the death of the individual up to an amount equal to the total medical assistance paid on behalf of the individual under chapter 4 of this title;

(ii) A trust established for the benefit of an individual if:

(A) The trust is composed only of pension, social security and other income to the individual and accumulated income in the trust; and

(B) The state will receive all amounts remaining in the trust upon the death of the individual up to an amount equal to the total medical assistance paid on behalf of the individual under chapter 4 of this title.

(iii) A trust containing the assets of an individual who is disabled as defined in 42 U.S.C. 1382c(a)(3), that meets the following conditions:

(A) The trust is established and managed by a nonprofit association;

(B) A separate account is maintained for each beneficiary of the trust but, for the purposes of investment and management of funds, the trust pools the accounts;

(C) Accounts in the trust are established solely for the benefit of individuals who are disabled as defined by 42 U.S.C. 1382c(a)(3), by the parent, grandparent, legal guardian of the disabled individual, by the disabled individual or by a court; and

(D) To the extent that amounts remaining in the beneficiary's account upon the death of the beneficiary are not retained by the trust, the trust pays to the state from the remaining amounts in the account an amount equal to the total amount of medical assistance paid on behalf of the beneficiary under chapter 4 of this title.

(g) The department shall establish procedures in accordance with standards specified by the secretary of health and human services under which the department waives the application of this section for an individual if the individual establishes that application would work an undue hardship on the individual as determined on the basis of criteria established by the secretary.

(h) For purposes of this section, "trust" includes any legal instrument or device that is similar to a trust but includes an annuity only to the extent and in the manner as the secretary of health and human resources specifies.