The plaintiff and defendant (or qualified settlement fund) agree that as part of the consideration for release, future periodic payments will be received in lieu of an immediate lump sum of cash to the plaintiff. This future periodic payment obligation is assigned by the defendant (or qualified settlement fund) to Independent Assignment Company through a qualified assignment agreement pursuant to Section 130 of the Internal Revenue Code. Independent Assignment Company then purchases an annuity from Independent Life Insurance Company to satisfy the obligation set forth in both the release and qualified assignment agreement. Independent Life Insurance Company would make the payments directly to the plaintiff as directed by Independent Assignment Company. A visual overview of this process can be seen below:
When a Medicare recipient has been injured and receives funds to resolve their claim, Medicare requires that funds be set-aside to pay for future medical expenses associated with the injuries sustained in the accident. It is Medicare’s position that Medicare should be a secondary payer for these expenses. If funds are not set-aside, the plaintiff risks losing their Medicare eligibility.
To determine what needs to be set-aside, an allocation report is created by a professional well versed in Medicare compliance. The result of the allocation report informs the plaintiff and their representatives what the total amount to be set-aside is, taking into account the plaintiff’s life expectancy.
The plaintiff can either set-aside the full amount in an interest-bearing checking account, or they can utilize a structured settlement to make an annual payment into the Medicare Set-Aside account. By using a structured settlement, a significant cost-savings can be realized as the interest rate of the annuity allows for less money to be used from the outset to achieve the same result.
