State ex rel. Oregon Health Authority v. Cue

Deane Preston Cloud, a disabled veteran, spent most of the last several years of his life as a patient at the Oregon State Hospital (OSH). Cloud died in 2011, testate, but without a spouse or dependents. Following Cloud’s death, the Oregon Health Authority (OHA) sought reimbursement for the costs of Cloud’s care at OSH from his estate, which consists entirely of federal veterans’ disability benefits paid to Cloud during his lifetime. Defendant, the personal representative of Cloud’s estate, rejected OHA’s claim, citing a federal statute that makes veterans’ benefits “exempt from the claim of…