Medicaid applications for
nursing home assistance require a full accounting of all of the assets
a person currently has or had in the previous five (5) years. If
the person has given away assets or money during the previous five year
period, the elderly person will be held responsible to pay that amount
of money towards their care at a nursing home.
If the elderly person has assets, they will be required to privately pay the cost of the nursing home until all of the assets of the elderly person have been spent down to a maximum of $2,000.00. Some assets are exempted if the person is still married and the spouse is in the home. Remember, during this spend down period you must document that all monies/assets were used for the benefit of the elderly person and not given away.
Check all deeds and accounts, including safe deposit boxes, for ownership or beneficiary status. Dont forget to list life estates in real property which may have been retained by the person. Medicaid may take a lien on the real property of an elderly person if: (1) they are a patient in a skilled nursing facility, an intermediate care facility, or an intermediate care facility for the mentally retarded; (2) they cannot reasonably be expected to be discharged and return home within 90 days; and (3) they would otherwise meet the Medicaid eligibility requirements.
Locate all income sources for the elderly person, including survivor benefits or veterans benefits for the widows of veterans. Check for other income sources that may have been forgotten. If the elderly person has income which exceeds the nursing home limit, a Qualifying Income Trust will have to be set up for the elderly person. This essentially takes all of the income which the person receives on a monthly basis and places it in an account. This account and all of the income which it receives is then paid to the nursing home and Medicaid steps in to pay the rest of the nursing home bill. The Qualifying Income Trust allows people who would be ineligible for Medicaid to become eligible for Medicaid assistance by factoring in the amount of their income.
If the elderly person has assets, they will be required to privately pay the cost of the nursing home until all of the assets of the elderly person have been spent down to a maximum of $2,000.00. Some assets are exempted if the person is still married and the spouse is in the home. Remember, during this spend down period you must document that all monies/assets were used for the benefit of the elderly person and not given away.
Check all deeds and accounts, including safe deposit boxes, for ownership or beneficiary status. Dont forget to list life estates in real property which may have been retained by the person. Medicaid may take a lien on the real property of an elderly person if: (1) they are a patient in a skilled nursing facility, an intermediate care facility, or an intermediate care facility for the mentally retarded; (2) they cannot reasonably be expected to be discharged and return home within 90 days; and (3) they would otherwise meet the Medicaid eligibility requirements.
Locate all income sources for the elderly person, including survivor benefits or veterans benefits for the widows of veterans. Check for other income sources that may have been forgotten. If the elderly person has income which exceeds the nursing home limit, a Qualifying Income Trust will have to be set up for the elderly person. This essentially takes all of the income which the person receives on a monthly basis and places it in an account. This account and all of the income which it receives is then paid to the nursing home and Medicaid steps in to pay the rest of the nursing home bill. The Qualifying Income Trust allows people who would be ineligible for Medicaid to become eligible for Medicaid assistance by factoring in the amount of their income.