498
Stevens, J., dissenting
nificant resources—"not . . . a lot of people" by Blumer's own account, Tr. of Oral Arg. 38—while offering nothing to, and perhaps disadvantaging, those who do not, couples for whom the other variables provide the primary protection against spousal impoverishment. Blumer would thus have us conclude that Congress pushed States toward altering standards that affect every person covered by the MCCA in order to install, without any increased spending, a resources-first rule that affects only those whose assets exceed the formula resources allowance. We perceive nothing in the Act contradicting the Secretary's conclusion that such a result is unnecessary and unwarranted.
* * *
For the reasons stated, the judgment of the Wisconsin Court of Appeals is reversed, and the case is remanded for further proceedings not inconsistent with this opinion.
It is so ordered.
Justice Stevens, with whom Justice O'Connor and Justice Scalia join, dissenting.
The Medicare Catastrophic Coverage Act of 1988 (MCCA), 42 U. S. C. § 1396r-5 (1994 ed. and Supp. V), provides important protections for married couples who need financial assistance when one spouse is institutionalized in a nursing home. Eligibility for financial assistance in paying nursing home costs is limited by a ceiling on the couple's resources and a ceiling on their income. The MCCA responded to pre-1988 eligibility rules that often required both spouses to deplete their combined resources before an institutionalized spouse became eligible for benefits. In order to prevent the "pauperization" of the spouse who remains at home (the "community spouse"), the 1988 Act gives couples two important rights that are implicated by this case. H. R. Rep.
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