John Geston v. Maggie D. Anderson

COLLOTON, Circuit Judge.

John Geston applied for Medicaid benefits, and the North Dakota Department of Human Services denied his application on the basis that the total assets owned by Geston and his wife exceeded the eligibility limit. The Gestons sued in the district court, arguing that the Department had wrongfully denied the application because it had improperly counted against Mr. Ge-ston’s eligibility an annuity owned by his wife. The district court 2 ruled for the Gestons, holding that the North Dakota statute under which the annuity had been deemed countable violates and is preempted…