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1    AN ACT concerning public aid.
 
2    Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
3represented in the General Assembly:
 
4    Section 5. The Illinois Public Aid Code is amended by
5changing Section 11-22 as follows:
 
6    (305 ILCS 5/11-22)  (from Ch. 23, par. 11-22)
7    Sec. 11-22. Charge upon claims and causes of action for
8injuries. The Illinois Department shall have a charge upon all
9claims, demands and causes of action for injuries to an
10applicant for or recipient of (i) financial aid under Articles
11III, IV, and V, (ii) health care benefits provided under the
12Covering ALL KIDS Health Insurance Act, or (iii) health care
13benefits provided under the Veterans' Health Insurance Program
14Act or the Veterans' Health Insurance Program Act of 2008 for
15the total amount of medical assistance provided the recipient
16from the time of injury to the date of recovery upon such
17claim, demand or cause of action. In addition, if the applicant
18or recipient was employable, as defined by the Department, at
19the time of the injury, the Department shall also have a charge
20upon any such claims, demands and causes of action for the
21total amount of aid provided to the recipient and his
22dependents, including all cash assistance and medical
23assistance only to the extent includable in the claimant's

 

 

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1action, from the time of injury to the date of recovery upon
2such claim, demand or cause of action. Any definition of
3"employable" adopted by the Department shall apply only to
4persons above the age of compulsory school attendance.
5    If the injured person was employable at the time of the
6injury and is provided aid under Articles III, IV, or V and any
7dependent or member of his family is provided aid under Article
8VI, or vice versa, both the Illinois Department and the local
9governmental unit shall have a charge upon such claims, demands
10and causes of action for the aid provided to the injured person
11and any dependent member of his family, including all cash
12assistance, medical assistance and food stamps, from the time
13of the injury to the date of recovery.
14    "Recipient", as used herein, means (i) in the case of
15financial aid provided under this Code, the grantee of record
16and any persons whose needs are included in the financial aid
17provided to the grantee of record or otherwise met by grants
18under the appropriate Article of this Code for which such
19person is eligible, (ii) in the case of health care benefits
20provided under the Covering ALL KIDS Health Insurance Act, the
21child to whom those benefits are provided, and (iii) in the
22case of health care benefits provided under the Veterans'
23Health Insurance Program Act or the Veterans' Health Insurance
24Program Act of 2008, the veteran to whom benefits are provided.
25    In each case, the notice shall be served by certified mail
26or registered mail, or by facsimile or electronic messaging

 

 

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1when requested by the party or parties against whom the
2applicant or recipient has a claim, demand, or cause of action,
3upon the party or parties against whom the applicant or
4recipient has a claim, demand or cause of action. The notice
5shall claim the charge and describe the interest the Illinois
6Department, the local governmental unit, or the county, has in
7the claim, demand, or cause of action. The charge shall attach
8to any verdict or judgment entered and to any money or property
9which may be recovered on account of such claim, demand, cause
10of action or suit from and after the time of the service of the
11notice.
12    On petition filed by the Illinois Department, or by the
13local governmental unit or county if either is claiming a
14charge, or by the recipient, or by the defendant, the court, on
15written notice to all interested parties, may adjudicate the
16rights of the parties and enforce the charge. The court may
17approve the settlement of any claim, demand or cause of action
18either before or after a verdict, and nothing in this Section
19shall be construed as requiring the actual trial or final
20adjudication of any claim, demand or cause of action upon which
21the Illinois Department, the local governmental unit or county
22has charge. The court may determine what portion of the
23recovery shall be paid to the injured person and what portion
24shall be paid to the Illinois Department, the local
25governmental unit or county having a charge against the
26recovery. In making this determination, the court shall conduct

 

 

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1an evidentiary hearing and shall consider competent evidence
2pertaining to the following matters:
3        (1) the amount of the charge sought to be enforced
4    against the recovery when expressed as a percentage of the
5    gross amount of the recovery; the amount of the charge
6    sought to be enforced against the recovery when expressed
7    as a percentage of the amount obtained by subtracting from
8    the gross amount of the recovery the total attorney's fees
9    and other costs incurred by the recipient incident to the
10    recovery; and whether the Department, unit of local
11    government or county seeking to enforce the charge against
12    the recovery should as a matter of fairness and equity bear
13    its proportionate share of the fees and costs incurred to
14    generate the recovery from which the charge is sought to be
15    satisfied;
16        (2) the amount, if any, of the attorney's fees and
17    other costs incurred by the recipient incident to the
18    recovery and paid by the recipient up to the time of
19    recovery, and the amount of such fees and costs remaining
20    unpaid at the time of recovery;
21        (3) the total hospital, doctor and other medical
22    expenses incurred for care and treatment of the injury to
23    the date of recovery therefor, the portion of such expenses
24    theretofore paid by the recipient, by insurance provided by
25    the recipient, and by the Department, unit of local
26    government and county seeking to enforce a charge against

 

 

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1    the recovery, and the amount of such previously incurred
2    expenses which remain unpaid at the time of recovery and by
3    whom such incurred, unpaid expenses are to be paid;
4        (4) whether the recovery represents less than
5    substantially full recompense for the injury and the
6    hospital, doctor and other medical expenses incurred to the
7    date of recovery for the care and treatment of the injury,
8    so that reduction of the charge sought to be enforced
9    against the recovery would not likely result in a double
10    recovery or unjust enrichment to the recipient;
11        (5) the age of the recipient and of persons dependent
12    for support upon the recipient, the nature and permanency
13    of the recipient's injuries as they affect not only the
14    future employability and education of the recipient but
15    also the reasonably necessary and foreseeable future
16    material, maintenance, medical, rehabilitative and
17    training needs of the recipient, the cost of such
18    reasonably necessary and foreseeable future needs, and the
19    resources available to meet such needs and pay such costs;
20        (6) the realistic ability of the recipient to repay in
21    whole or in part the charge sought to be enforced against
22    the recovery when judged in light of the factors enumerated
23    above.
24    The burden of producing evidence sufficient to support the
25exercise by the court of its discretion to reduce the amount of
26a proven charge sought to be enforced against the recovery

 

 

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1shall rest with the party seeking such reduction.
2    The court may reduce and apportion the Illinois
3Department's lien proportionate to the recovery of the
4claimant. The court may consider the nature and extent of the
5injury, economic and noneconomic loss, settlement offers,
6comparative negligence as it applies to the case at hand,
7hospital costs, physician costs, and all other appropriate
8costs. The Illinois Department shall pay its pro rata share of
9the attorney fees based on the Illinois Department's lien as it
10compares to the total settlement agreed upon. This Section
11shall not affect the priority of an attorney's lien under the
12Attorneys Lien Act. The charges of the Illinois Department
13described in this Section, however, shall take priority over
14all other liens and charges existing under the laws of the
15State of Illinois with the exception of the attorney's lien
16under said statute.
17    Whenever the Department or any unit of local government has
18a statutory charge under this Section against a recovery for
19damages incurred by a recipient because of its advancement of
20any assistance, such charge shall not be satisfied out of any
21recovery until the attorney's claim for fees is satisfied,
22irrespective of whether or not an action based on recipient's
23claim has been filed in court.
24    This Section shall be inapplicable to any claim, demand or
25cause of action arising under (a) the Workers' Compensation Act
26or the predecessor Workers' Compensation Act of June 28, 1913,

 

 

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1(b) the Workers' Occupational Diseases Act or the predecessor
2Workers' Occupational Diseases Act of March 16, 1936; and (c)
3the Wrongful Death Act.
4(Source: P.A. 94-693, eff. 7-1-06; 94-816, eff. 5-30-06;
595-755, eff. 7-25-08.)
 
6    Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon
7becoming law.