What happens when a person who is in need of long-term care is unable to pay for it? More than half of the states in our country have filial responsibility laws — laws that can make adult children financially responsible for their parents’ medical bills and other necessities of life when the parents do not have the means to pay on their own. The extent of this responsibility varies by state.
What are Filial Responsibility Laws in our Area? (Virginia/Maryland/District of Columbia)
Currently, in the DMV area, Virginia has filial responsibility laws; DC and Maryland do not. Under VA Code § 20-88, every adult child over 18 shares a joint obligation to help support and maintain their parents if those parents cannot provide for themselves. The key phrase here is “sufficient earning capacity or income” — the law only applies if you can reasonably afford to help after taking care of your own immediate family first. There are no reported cases on what defines “sufficient earning capacity or income,” so unfortunately this is a gray area, the statute is clearly meant to be interpreted on a case by case basis.
The penalties are real, though rarely enforced: refusing to provide support under the statute can result in a fine up to $500 and up to 12 months in jail. More commonly, the concern is civil liability — a nursing home or other creditor pursuing you for unpaid bills.
Some states, like Virginia, incorporate the civil penalty and criminal penalty into one statute; others have two separate statutes, which are all listed in the list below.
Which States Enforce Filial Responsibility Laws?
As of 2026, there are 28 states with filial responsibility laws on the books. Iowa and Maryland’s prior laws are listed below, but have both been repealed.
Below are citations to the actual statutes:
1. Alaska Stat. 25.20.030, 47.25.230
In Alaska, each child is required to help support their parents when the parents are poor and unable to work to take care of themselves. This is a two-way duty — parents must also support their children in the same situation.
2. Arkansas Code Ann. 20-47-106
Arkansas only requires adult children to help pay for a parent’s care when the parent needs mental health treatment, cannot afford it, insurance does not cover it, and the child is able to pay.
3. California Fam. Code 4400, 4401, 4403, 4410-4414; California Penal Code 270c; California Welf. & Inst. Code 12350
California law says adult children must support a parent who is in need and cannot support themselves through work, as far as the child is able. However, a separate California law prevents government agencies from forcing relatives to pay, which creates a confusing conflict between the two rules.
4. Connecticut Gen. Stat. Ann. 46b-215, 53-304 (applies only to parents under age 65)
Connecticut is the only state that brings the parent’s age into its filial law. If you refuse to provide support for a parent who is under age 65, you can be found guilty of nonsupport and face up to one year in jail.
5. Delaware Code Ann. tit. 13, 503
Delaware law says the duty to support a poor person who cannot support themselves falls first on the spouse, then the parents, and then the children, in that order. Family Court handles these cases.
Georgia requires close family members — including children — to support relatives who are considered paupers. The county can also try to recover from relatives the cost of any aid it provided to the person in need.
Idaho’s law states that the father, mother, and children of any poor person must help maintain that person to the best of their ability. County officials can file a civil lawsuit to recover money spent on aid.
8. Indiana Code Ann. 31-16-17-1 to 31-16-17-7; Indiana Code Ann. 35-46-1-7
Indiana is one of the most detailed states when it comes to filial responsibility. It has both civil and criminal laws, meaning adult children can be sued for a parent’s care costs and can also face criminal charges for failing to provide support.
9. Iowa Code Ann. 252.2 – repealed in 2015
10. Kentucky Rev. Stat. Ann. 530.050
Kentucky defines two types of nonsupport: basic nonsupport (a Class A misdemeanor for the first offense) and flagrant nonsupport (an ongoing and knowing failure to provide support). Penalties increase with each offense and can include jail time.
11. Louisiana Rev. Stat. Ann. 4731
Louisiana requires both descendants and ascendants (children and grandchildren, as well as parents and grandparents) to provide basic necessities of life to family members who are unable to obtain them on their own.
12. Maryland Code Ann., Fam. Law 13-101 – 13-109 – Repealed in 2017
13. Massachusetts Gen. Laws Ann. ch. 273, 20
In Massachusetts, any person over age 18 who refuses to support a parent when they reasonably can may be fined up to $200 and face up to one year in prison. This is treated as a criminal neglect charge.
14. Mississippi Code Ann. 43-31-25
Mississippi requires all family members and descendants of a person who is unable to work to help support that person as directed by the local board overseeing the case.
15. Montana Code Ann. 40-6-214, 40-6-301
Montana’s law required parents and children to support each other when either was poor and unable to maintain themselves. Note: Some sources report this law has been repealed.
16. Nevada Rev. Stat. Ann. 428.070; Nev. Rev. Stat. Ann. 439B.310
Nevada’s filial law is unique because a child is only responsible for a parent’s care costs if the child had a written agreement to pay and also has control over the parent’s assets. Simply having enough income is not enough on its own.
17. New Hampshire Rev. Stat. Ann. 167:2
New Hampshire requires relatives — including step-parents — to support a family member in need when their weekly income is more than enough to live on. Refusing to pay can result in 60 to 90 days in jail.
18. New Jersey Stat. Ann. 44:4-100 to 44:4-102; 44:1-139 to 44:1-141
New Jersey has multiple statutes that allow the state to find out if a poor person has relatives who can help pay for their care. Once identified, those relatives can be ordered by a court to provide financial assistance.
19. North Carolina Gen. Stat. 14-326.1
In North Carolina, adult children with enough income — after taking care of their own family first — can be charged with a Class 1 or Class 2 misdemeanor for refusing to support a parent who cannot support themselves.
20. North Dakota Cent. Code 14-09-10
North Dakota says that every adult child of a parent who cannot support themselves must help maintain that parent to the best of their ability. This is a two-way duty between parents and adult children.
21. Ohio Rev. Code Ann. 2919.21
Ohio’s law makes it illegal to abandon or fail to provide adequate support to a dependent, which can include a parent in need. This falls under Ohio’s general nonsupport and contributing-to-nonsupport criminal statute.
Oregon’s law is straightforward: parents must maintain their children who are poor and unable to work, and children must maintain their parents in the same situation.
23. Pennsylvania Cons. Stat. 23 Pa.C.S. § 4603
Pennsylvania is the most well-known state for enforcing its filial law. It requires that a spouse, child, or parent support an indigent person. In a famous 2012 case, a court ordered a son to pay over $93,000 for his mother’s nursing home bill.
24. Rhode Island Gen. Laws 15-10-1 to 15-10-7; R.I. Gen. Laws 40-5-13 to 40-5-18
Rhode Island says any person over 18 who unreasonably refuses to support a destitute parent living in the state can be fined up to $200 or jailed for up to one year. There is an exception for children who were neglected or mistreated by the parent.
25. South Dakota Codified Laws 25-7-28
South Dakota requires adult children to provide food, clothing, shelter, and medical care to a destitute parent. The child must be formally notified of this duty before they can be held responsible.
26. Tennessee Code Ann. 71-5-115, Tenn. Code Ann. 71-5-103
Tennessee’s law is less direct than most states. It allows the state department to require responsible relatives to reimburse the cost of medical assistance provided to a family member, as permitted by federal law.
Utah’s law placed filial responsibility on children to support poor relatives, with children called upon first before parents, siblings, and grandparents. Note: Some sources report this law has been repealed as of 2024.
28. Vermont Stat. Ann. tit. 15, 202-03
Vermont says an adult child who has enough money or physical ability to support their parents but unreasonably refuses to do so — when the parent is destitute and living in the state — can be jailed for up to two years and/or fined up to $300.
Virginia requires every child over age 18 to help support and maintain their parents if the parents cannot provide for themselves. This only applies if the child has enough income after taking care of their own immediate family. Refusing can result in a $500 fine and up to 12 months in jail.
West Virginia says that individuals with a reasonable ability to pay have a duty to support an indigent relative. This applies when the relative cannot support themselves and needs help with basic living expenses.
How do Filial Responsibility Laws Work in My State?
State laws vary. However, law student Shannon Edelstone, in her award-winning essay (cited below), studied all of the state laws and found that most agree that children have a duty to provide necessities for parents who cannot do so for themselves. The states’ legislation also gives guidelines to the courts, telling judges to use a number of factors when weighing the adult child’s ability to pay against the indigent parent’s needs. Judges, accordingly, have considered such variables as the adult child’s financing of their child’s college education, as well as his/her personal needs for savings and retirement.
Contributing Source: Filial Responsibility: Can the Legal Duty to Support Our Parents Be Effectively Enforced? by Shannon Frank Edelstone, appearing in the Fall 2002 issue of the American Bar Association’s Family Law Quarterly, 36 Fam. L.Q. 501 (2002).