Deciding you can no longer adequately care for a spouse in your home is heart-wrenching. However, once you have made the decision to move your spouse to a nursing home, you will need to make a number of practical, financial, and legal adjustments as a result of the move. One of those adjustments may be to get your spouse qualified for Medicaid to help cover the high cost of nursing home care. If you have managed to hold onto a sizeable nest egg, however, you may be wondering how you can … [Read more...]
Medicaid Changes Make Pre-Planning Essential
Chronic illnesses and injuries leave countless Americans disabled and in need of long-term custodial care, which could easily cost over $50,000 per year. Traditional health insurance plans do not cover custodial care because it is not “medical” treatment. Similarly, the Medicare program does not cover custodial care because it is not medical treatment. So, what options remain? You can pay the cost yourself, quickly exhausting what you’ve taken a lifetime to save. … [Read more...]
Medicaid Planning: There’s a Right Way and a Wrong Way
As the population ages and health care costs skyrocket, seniors and their caregivers struggle with how to pay for long-term care without losing everything they have worked a lifetime to build. While Medicare covers much of the cost of physician and hospital visits for those over age 65, it does not pay for long-term care. Medicaid is a government program that pays for health care costs for those who, under the program guidelines, do not have sufficient assets or income to pay … [Read more...]
Preserving the Family Home from Medicaid Recovery
Many of us fear that as we age, we will need medical assistance. We strive throughout life to maintain insurance to pay for medical expenses while trying to save. Many of us also want to leave something for our children, so that they have an easier time in life than we did starting out. Perhaps the most meaningful asset to leave is the family home, for emotional as well as economic reasons. Unlike Medicare, Medicaid is a government program for which you must qualify by … [Read more...]
Is Your Real Property Safe from the Medicaid “Spend-Down” Requirements?
Almost half of all seniors eventually turn to Medicaid for help covering the high cost of long-term care. If you are one who may need to qualify for Medicaid at some point, will you be able to keep your real estate? Understandably, it’s a question that worries every senior who may need to qualify for Medicaid benefits in the future. The answer may surprise you! While you may already know that your primary residence is likely exempt from the Medicaid “spend-down” requirements, you may not know … [Read more...]
