California Welfare and Institutions Code 4659.11 – (a) When services are provided or will be provided to a consumer …
(a) When services are provided or will be provided to a consumer under this division, or to a child under 36 months of age who is eligible for the California Early Intervention Program pursuant to Title 14 (commencing with Section 95000) of the Government Code, as a result of an injury for which another person is liable, or for which an insurance carrier is liable in accordance with the provisions of any policy of insurance issued pursuant to § 11580.2 of the Insurance Code, the department or the regional center from which the individual obtained services shall have a right to recover from the person or carrier the reasonable value of services so provided. To enforce that right, the department or the regional center may institute and prosecute legal proceedings against the third person or carrier who may be liable for the injury in an appropriate court, either in the name of the department or regional center or in the name of the child or consumer, his or her guardian, conservator, limited conservator, personal representative, estate, or survivors.
(b) The department and the regional center may compromise, or settle and release a claim as described in subdivision (a).
Terms Used In California Welfare and Institutions Code 4659.11
- Consumer: means a person who has a disability that meets the definition of developmental disability set forth in subdivision (a). See California Welfare and Institutions Code 4512
- Damages: Money paid by defendants to successful plaintiffs in civil cases to compensate the plaintiffs for their injuries.
- Department: means the State Department of Developmental Services. See California Welfare and Institutions Code 4639.80
- Guardian: A person legally empowered and charged with the duty of taking care of and managing the property of another person who because of age, intellect, or health, is incapable of managing his (her) own affairs.
- Prosecute: To charge someone with a crime. A prosecutor tries a criminal case on behalf of the government.
- Regional center: means a regional center as that term is used in this chapter. See California Welfare and Institutions Code 4639.80
(c) The department may waive a claim as described in subdivision (a), in whole or in part, if the department determines that collection would not be cost efficient, would result in undue hardship upon the consumer or child who suffered the injury, or in a wrongful death action upon the heirs of the deceased.
(d) No action taken on behalf of the department or the regional center pursuant to this section or any judgment rendered in that action shall be a bar to any action upon the claim or cause of action of the child or consumer, his or her guardian, conservator, personal representative, estate, dependents, or survivors against the third party who may be liable for the injury, or shall operate to deny to the child or consumer the recovery for that portion of any damages not covered hereunder.
(e) The department, the State Department of Health Care Services, and the Department of Managed Health Care shall work together to ensure that the recovery sought by the department, regional centers, and the State Department of Health Care Services for services for Medi-Cal beneficiaries with developmental disabilities is appropriate.
(Added by Stats. 2011, Ch. 9, Sec. 14. (SB 74) Effective March 24, 2011.)