Susan v. Riley, 2:00-cv-918-MEF.

CourtUnited States District Courts. 11th Circuit. Middle District of Alabama
Citation616 F.Supp.2d 1219
Docket NumberNo. 2:00-cv-918-MEF.,2:00-cv-918-MEF.
PartiesSUSAN J., et al., Plaintiffs, v. Bob RILEY, in his official capacity as Governor of the State of Alabama, et al., Defendants.
Decision Date29 April 2009
616 F.Supp.2d 1219
SUSAN J., et al., Plaintiffs,
v.
Bob RILEY, in his official capacity as Governor of the State of Alabama, et al., Defendants.
No. 2:00-cv-918-MEF.
United States District Court, M.D. Alabama, Northern Division.
April 29, 2009.

[616 F.Supp.2d 1224]

Deborah Ann Mattison, Rachel Lee McGinley, Wiggins Childs Quinn & Pantanzis, PC, Birmingham, AL, Glenn Nelson Baxter, James Arnold Tucker, James Patrick Hackney, Alabama Disabilities Advocacy Program, Tuscaloosa, AL, Robert Russell Kracke, Sr., Kracke & Thompson, LLC, Birmingham, AL, for Plaintiffs.

Misty S. Fairbanks, Office of the Attorney General, Montgomery, AL, William G. Parker, Jr., State of Alabama Office of the Attorney General, Montgomery, AL, for Defendants.

MEMORANDUM OPINION AND ORDER

MARK E. FULLER, Chief Judge.


I. INTRODUCTION

Plaintiffs are adults with disabilities and mental retardation who bring this class action for declaratory and injunctive relief to declare their rights, to remedy alleged violations of the Social Security (Medicaid) Act, 42 U.S.C. §§ 1396 et seq., and to redress alleged deprivations of their due process rights under the Fourteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution. This case is before the Court on the following summary judgment motions: Defendants' Motion for Summary Judgement as to All Claims Brought By Paul B. (Doc. # 127); Defendants' Motion for Summary Judgment as to All Claims Brought by Susan J., Angie D., Elizabeth A., Charles P., and Nicholas A. (Doc. # 152); Defendants' Motion for Summary Judgment (Doc. # 172); and Plaintiffs' Motion for Partial Summary Judgment on "Reasonable Promptness" Claim (Doc. # 211).

For the reasons set forth in this Memorandum Opinion and Order, Defendants' Motion for Summary Judgment as to All Claims Brought by Paul B. (Doc. # 127) is due to be DENIED. Defendants' Motion for Summary Judgment as to All Claims Brought by Susan J., Angie D., Elizabeth A., Charles P., and Nicholas A. (Doc. # 152) is due to be GRANTED with respect to Elizabeth A. and Charles P., due to be DENIED with respect to Angie D. and Susan J, and due to be DENIED as moot with respect to Nicholas A. Defendants' Motion for Summary Judgment (Doc. # 172) is due to be GRANTED in part and DENIED in part, and Plaintiffs' Motion for Partial Summary Judgment on "Reasonable Promptness" Claim (Doc. # 211) is due to be DENIED. In the end, all that remains (and they remain completely) are the claims of Subclasses Two and Three.

II. JURISDICTION AND VENUE

This Court has jurisdiction pursuant to 28 U.S.C. §§ 1331 and 1343 because Plaintiffs claims are pursuant to 42 U.S.C. § 1396 et seq., § 1983, and the Due Process Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment. The parties do not contest venue and personal jurisdiction, and the Court finds a sufficient basis for each.

III. PROCEDURAL HISTORY

On July 12, 2000, Named Plaintiffs filed suit against Don Siegelman in his official

616 F.Supp.2d 1225

capacity as Governor of the State of Alabama, Kathy Sawyer in her official capacity as Commissioner of Mental Health and Mental Retardation for the State of Alabama, and the Alabama Department of Mental Health and Mental Retardation seeking declaratory and injunctive relief to enforce their rights under the Social Security (Medicaid) Act, 42 U.S.C. §§ 1396 et seq. and the United States Constitution. (Doc. # 1.) On May 20, 2003, the Court terminated Defendant Siegelman and added Defendant Bob Riley in his official capacity as Governor of the State of Alabama. (Doc. # 21.) Likewise, on August 17, 2007, the Court terminated Defendant Sawyer and added Defendant John Houston in his official capacity as Commissioner of the State of Alabama Department of Mental Health and Mental Retardation. (Doc. # 117.)1

With leave of this Court, Plaintiffs filed a Second Amended Complaint on June 21, 2005 (Doc. # 46) and Third Amended Complaint on July 26, 2007 (Doc. # 107) ("Third Amended Complaint").

On April 24, 2007, Plaintiffs filed a motion to certify the case as a class action (Doc. # 87), which this Court denied on September 12, 2007 (Doc. # 126). Plaintiffs then filed a Second Motion to Certify Class (Doc. # 128), which this Court granted in part and denied in part on October 24, 2008 (Doc. # 222). The Court certified two subclasses:

Subclass Two: All persons with mental retardation who have applied for services compensable under Alabama's Home and Community Based Waiver Programs but who have been adjudged ineligible and/or denied services without notice and opportunity for hearing.

Subclass Three: All persons with mental retardation who have applied for services compensable under Alabama's Home and Community Based Waiver Programs and have not received a reasonably prompt claims determination.

(Doc. # 222.) Proposed Subclass One contained persons "with mental retardation who have applied for services compensable under Alabama's Home and Community Based Waiver Programs and who have been determined to be eligible for services but who have not received them with reasonable promptness or have received inadequate or inappropriate services." The Court declined to certify this subclass because there was insufficient information available to make a numerosity determination. The Court also noted proposed Subclass One did not meet the adequacy requirement.

Upon joint motion of the Parties (Doc. # 225), the Court staid the case pending interlocutory appeal under Rule 26(f) (Doc. # 226). The Eleventh Circuit denied the Petition for Permission to Appeal on December 12, 2008. (Doc. # 227.) The Court then held a Status Conference (Doc. # # 228, 230), lifted the stay (Doc. # 232), and set this case for trial in the Court's June 29, 2009 term. (Doc. # 229.)

Currently before the Court are four motions for summary judgment filed by parties on both sides: (1) Defendants' Motion for Summary Judgment as to All Claims Brought By Paul B (Doc. # 127), filed on September 19, 2007; (2) Defendants' Motion for Summary Judgment as to All Claims Brought by Susan J., Angie D., Elizabeth A., Charles P., and Nicholas A. (Doc. # 152), filed on December 28, 2007; (3) Defendants' Motion for Summary Judgment (Doc. # 172), filed on January 22, 2008; and (4) Plaintiffs' Motion for Partial Summary Judgment on "Reasonable Promptness" Claim (Doc. # 211), filed on

616 F.Supp.2d 1226

January 23, 2008. These four motions are ripe for disposition.

IV. FACTS

The Memorandum Opinion and Order granting the Amended Motion for Class Certification provides a full account of the facts of this case. See Susan J. v. Riley, 254 F.R.D. 439, 445-50 (M.D.Ala.2008) (Fuller, C.J.). The Court incorporates those largely undisputed facts by reference and assumes familiarity with them. This Section therefore provides only a brief summary of the case and a discussion of the claims of the named plaintiffs. The Court has carefully considered all deposition excerpts and documents submitted in support of and in opposition to the Motions. Because of the way this case has progressed, the Court has also considered its Order on Pretrial Hearing. (Doc. # 221.) There are cross-motions for summary judgment in this case, so the Court will consider the facts and reasonable inferences to be drawn from the facts in the light most favorable to the non-moving party as the Court considers each of the motions. With that caveat, the submissions of the parties, viewed in the light most favorable to the nonmoving party, establish the following relevant facts:

The named Plaintiffs represent a group of adults with mental retardation who are unable to care fully for themselves and require varying degrees of care and treatment. The Defendants are Bob Riley, in his official capacity as Governor of the State of Alabama, the Alabama Department of Mental Health and Mental Retardation (the "Department"), and John M. Houston ("Houston"), in his official capacity as Commissioner of the Department.

Plaintiffs seek placement in Alabama's Home and Community Based Waiver programs ("HCB Waiver" or "Waiver"), which includes both the Mental Retardation Waiver program ("MR Waiver") and the Living at Home Waiver program ("LAH Waiver"). They also seek to enforce procedural protections they claim the Constitution and the Medicaid Act provide to applicants for slots in those programs. They present their claims in four counts. They claim:2 (1) that Defendants have violated the Medicaid act by failing to provide ICF/MR and/or Waiver services with reasonable promptness as required by 42 U.S.C. § 1396a(a)(8); (2) that Defendants have also failed to comply with the comparability requirements of 42 U.S.C. § 1396a(a)(10); (3) that Defendants have deprived Plaintiffs of their right to apply pursuant to 42 U.S.C. § 1396a(a)(3); and (4) that Defendants have violated Plaintiffs' due process rights guaranteed by the United States Constitution.

A. Susan J.

Susan J. is a forty-six year old female with Down Syndrome associated with mental retardation and a seizure disorder. She applied for residential services in 1992 and withdrew her request for these services in 2007. She applied for day habilitation services in 1993 and began receiving them in 1999. She remains on the waiting list for respite services with a criticality score of one because she may want additional services in the future. As of January 2008, her ranking on the waiting list was 1256. She would like financial reimbursement for persons who transport her to her day habilitation program, but the state has not authorized such reimbursement under its Waiver program.

B. Angie D.

Angie D. is a thirty-one year old female with cerebral palsy associated with mental retardation. She applied for day habilitation LAH Waiver services in 2000 and began receiving them in June 2007. She is

616 F.Supp.2d 1227

on the waiting list for residential services, but does not seek them at this time. Angie D. is eligible for Medicaid medical assistance benefits.

C. Elizabeth A.

Elizabeth A. is...

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