Many people believe Medicaid serves only to provide medical care for people with low incomes. While this is one of the important roles Medicaid plays, Medicaid is also one of the primary payers of nursing home bills in the United States. Seniors and the disabled at all income brackets and all income levels could find themselves in need of nursing home care and may benefit from getting Medicaid to pay for it. The key, however, is to have a plan in advance in case you do need Medicaid coverage for nursing home care.
At the Law Offices of Kobrick & Moccia, we help people of all ages and income levels to create a comprehensive Medicaid plan. With our assistance, clients throughout Long Island have been able to get nursing home costs covered without being forced to spend their life savings and without putting their heirs’ inheritances at risk. Give us a call today at 800-295-1917 to learn more about the Medicaid planning process, to find out how we can personalize your plan, and to get answers to general questions including:
- Why is Medicaid planning important?
- How does Medicaid planning work?
- How can a Long Island Medicaid planning lawyer help?
Why Is Medicaid Planning Important?
For many people, nursing home care becomes essential at some point over the course of their life. Unfortunately, the cost of a nursing home can be many thousands of dollars each and every month. The cost is not affordable for many people, even with substantial assets in the bank.
Medicare covers nursing home care only if skilled medical assistance is required, not if a person just needs help with routine activities of daily living. Most private insurers have the same rules. This means that the average person who needs custodial care is going to struggle to pay for it.
For most people who don’t have a plan in place, the only option is to sell property, liquidate assets, and use up money in the bank to try to pay for a nursing home as long as possible. Only after a lifetime’s work is gone do you get help. Medicaid will kick in to pay for a nursing home if you have a low household income and few or no resources. For many seniors and their families, it is devastating to watch a life savings be lost in just a few months or a few years, only for Medicaid to eventually begin paying.
With a Medicaid plan, many assets can be protected from being lost because the assets will not count as resources when determining eligibility for Medicaid. This means you can get coverage for a nursing home sooner, and your money and property can remain in your family. Your estate also won’t be subject to Medicaid estate recovery efforts if you’ve appropriately structured the ownership of your property.
How Does Medicaid Planning Work?
Medicaid planning generally involves the use of irrevocable trusts, which take ownership of the property and assets which must be protected. You must ensure you follow all rules for the creation of these trusts and that you select the right kind of trust. You also need to take the formal step of funding the trust with the assets you are trying to protect.
Because you must transfer assets into a trust to keep them from counting for Medicaid purposes, it is important you create your Medicaid plan early. Medicaid looks back five years from the time you apply for coverage for a nursing home in order to determine if any transfers happened. If transfers occurred, there is a period of disqualification and you’ll need to pay for your own nursing home care during that time. To avoid having to face this loss of assets, you should get help with Medicaid planning today.
How Can a Long Island Medicaid Planning Lawyer Help?
The Law Offices of Kobrick & Moccia knows the steps involved in creating a Medicaid plan to shield your assets and we will do everything possible to help you protect as much of your money and property as you can. The sad reality is that anyone could end up needing nursing care at any time as a result of an illness or an injury. Don’t wait to act until it is too late.
If you live in Garden City, Hauppauge, Harrison, or surrounding areas in Long Island, give our Medicaid planning lawyers a call today at 800-295-1917. We’ll get you started on the creation of a plan that will protect your hard-earned money and property while still ensuring you can get the nursing care your health may require.
