Cota et. al. (Brantley) v. Maxwell-Jolly, Director of California Department of Health Care Services

Overview

On August 18, 2009, several elderly individuals with disabilities filed a class action lawsuit to stop devastating cuts in Adult Day Health Care services. The case was filed as Lillie Brantley et. al v. David Maxwell-Jolly but upon the passing of Mrs. Brantley, the case name has been changed to Harry Cota et. al v. Maxwell-Jolly. On September 10, 2009, Judge Saundra Brown Armstrong granted Plaintiffs' Motion for a Preliminary Injunction, halting an across-the-board cut from a maximum of five to no more than three days per week.

On February 24, 2010, the Court granted Plaintiffs' second Motion for Preliminary Injunction, which challenged restrictive new eligibility criteria, which would have permanently ended ADHC services for approximately 15,000 participants.

In its February 24 Order, the Court found that Plaintiffs were likely to prevail on their claims that the new, restrictive criteria violate the Americans with Disabilities Act, federal Medicaid law, and due process under the United States Constitution. The Court was persuaded that the balance of hardships weighed in Plaintiffs’ favor because they face the loss of services that would be critical to avoid institutionalization. The Court rejected Defendant’s argument that they are “entitled to cut services at will to accommodate the State’s budgetary constraints.”

Filed in federal court in the Northern District of California, the case is being litigated by Disability Rights California, AARP Foundation Litigation, National Senior Citizens Law Center, the National Health Law Program and the law firm of Howrey LLP.

The State has appealed the February 24 injunction to the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals. No date has been set yet for the argument. The injunction will remain in effect until the Ninth Circuit's ruling.

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