# Pennsylvania — Medicaid Estate Recovery Rules by State For Pennsylvania, citation is 55 Pa. Code Chapter 258, recorded from its source on 2026-08-31. - **State:** Pennsylvania _(our reading, not quoted from the source)_ - **What counts as the estate:** (a) All estate property is subject to the Department’s claim. Estate property includes all real and personal property of a decedent which is subject to administration by a decedent’s personal representative, whether actually administered or not administered. (b) Property held by a decedent and another at the time of death as joint tenants with rights of survivorship, or as tenants by the entireties, is not subject to the Department’s claim. _(verified: appears in its own passage below)_ - **Survivor protections:** (a) The Department will postpone collection of its claim until the last of one of the following occurs: (1) The death of any surviving spouse. (2) The death of any child who is blind or totally and permanently disabled, as determined under the standards of the Supplemental Security Income (SSI) program in the Social Security Act. See 42 U.S.C.A. § 1382. (3) The date any surviving child is 21 years of age. (4) The death of, property transfer by or vacating of the property by a sibling who has an equity interest in the property and who has been living in the home for at least 1 year prior to the death of the decedent. _(verified: appears in its own passage below)_ - **Undue hardship waiver:** (a) The Department will waive its claim in cases of undue hardship. (b) The Department will find undue hardship and will permanently waive its claim with respect to the primary residence of a decedent if the person requesting the undue hardship waiver meets all of the following conditions: (1) The person has continuously resided in the primary residence of the decedent for at least 2 years immediately preceding the decedent’s receipt of nursing facility services, or, for at least 2 years during the period of time which Medicaid-funded home and community based services were received. (2) The person has no other alternative permanent residence. (3) The person has provided care or support to the decedent for at least 2 years during the period of time that Medicaid-funded home and community based services were received by the decedent, or for at least 2 years prior to the decedent’s receipt of nursing home services during which time the decedent needed care or support to remain at home _(verified: appears in its own passage below)_ - **Citation:** 55 Pa. Code Chapter 258 _(our reading, not quoted from the source)_ ## What the source says > (b) The estate of a an individual who was 55 years or older at the time that MA was received is liable to repay the Department for the amount of MA paid for all nursing facility services, home and community based services and related hospital and prescription drug services provided from the time the individual was 55 years of age and thereafter. Only MA services provided on or after August 15, 1994, are subject to estate recovery. ## Where each value comes from This source states these in separate places, so each value is shown with the passage that states it. ### What counts as the estate > § 258.3. Property liable to repay the Department. (a) All estate property is subject to the Department’s claim. Estate property includes all real and personal property of a decedent which is subject to administration by a decedent’s personal representative, whether actually administered or not administered. (b) Property held by a decedent and another at the time of death as joint tenants with rights of survivorship, or as tenants by the entireties, is not subject to the Department’s claim. ### Survivor protections > § 258.7. Postponement of collection. (a) The Department will postpone collection of its claim until the last of one of the following occurs: (1) The death of any surviving spouse. (2) The death of any child who is blind or totally and permanently disabled, as determined under the standards of the Supplemental Security Income (SSI) program in the Social Security Act. See 42 U.S.C.A. § 1382. (3) The date any surviving child is 21 years of age. (4) The death of, property transfer by or vacating of the property by a sibling who has an equity interest in the property and who has been living in the home for at least 1 year prior to the death of the decedent. ### Undue hardship waiver > § 258.10. Undue hardship waivers. (a) The Department will waive its claim in cases of undue hardship. (b) The Department will find undue hardship and will permanently waive its claim with respect to the primary residence of a decedent if the person requesting the undue hardship waiver meets all of the following conditions: (1) The person has continuously resided in the primary residence of the decedent for at least 2 years immediately preceding the decedent’s receipt of nursing facility services, or, for at least 2 years during the period of time which Medicaid-funded home and community based services were received. (2) The person has no other alternative permanent residence. (3) The person has provided care or support to the decedent for at least 2 years during the period of time that Medicaid-funded home and community based services were received by the decedent, or for at least 2 years prior to the decedent’s receipt of nursing home services during which time the decedent needed care or support to remain at home ## Source - https://www.pacodeandbulletin.gov/Display/pacode?file=/secure/pacode/data/055/chapter258/chap258toc.html Last verified: 2026-08-31. Review by: 2027-08-31. Part of [Medicaid Estate Recovery Rules by State](https://referencesource.org/medicaid-estate-recovery-rules-by-state/).