§ 108A-70.  Recoupment of amounts spent on medical care.

(a) To the extent necessary to reimburse the Department or a PHP for expenditures for costs under this Part, and provided that claims for current and past due child support shall take priority over claims for those expenditures, the Department may garnish the wages, salary, or other employment income of, and the Secretary of Revenue shall withhold amounts from State tax refunds to, any person who meets all of the following criteria:

(1) Is required by court or administrative order to provide health benefit plan coverage for the cost of health care services to a child eligible for medical assistance under Medicaid.

(2) Has received payment from a third party for the costs of such services.

(3) Has not used such payments to reimburse, as appropriate, either the other parent or guardian of the child or the provider of the services.

(b) To the extent that payment for covered services has been made under G.S. 108A-55 for health care items or services furnished to an individual, in any case where a third party has a legal liability to make payments, the Department of Health and Human Services is considered to have acquired the rights of the individual to payment by any other party for those health care items or services. (1993 (Reg. Sess., 1994), c. 644, s. 3; 1997-443, s. 11A.118(a); 2019-81, s. 5.)