Avoid Nursing Home Medicaid Mistakes

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Sechler Law Firm, LLC

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Posted on

Nov 28, 2018

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Pennsylvania - Greater Pittsburgh Area

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"I didn't know how stressful this would be."

This is a comment from a client of my firm, who recently placed her mom into a nursing home and is attempting to have Medicaid pay for the care.

If you are in the process of applying for Medicaid benefits, you probably share this sentiment. A nursing home admission will result in tremendous financial stress for families. Nursing homes can cost more than $10,000 per month and you are often required to pay privately until you run out of money.

The only other payment source is Medicaid, which has extremely complicated rules. Although there are exceptions, Medicaid generally allows a single person to keep up to $8,000 of available resources.

Additionally, a single person can keep an exempt home and car. Unfortunately, once the person passes away, the state has a claim against their estate and the family may lose the exempt house and car.

In the situation of a married couple with one spouse in the nursing home, the healthy spouse is allowed to keep half of the available resources (up to $123,600), plus the healthy spouse's retirement account, exempt house, and car. All other assets and potentially some of the family's monthly income must be spent on care. This can leave the healthy spouse destitute. When someone enters a nursing home, they must spend down their assets to the above limits to become eligible.

Unfortunately, the process of spending down is confusing and full of pitfalls.

Here are some mistakes to avoid:

  • Spending down on the wrong items
  • Applying at the wrong time
  • Failing to make exempt transfers
  • Misunderstanding the 5-year look back period
  • Failing to protect the healthy spouse
  • Working with non-lawyer Medicaid Advisors
  • Failing to avoid Estate Recovery
  • Failing to update Estate Planning Documents
  • Thinking it is too late to protect assets
  • Finally, many families fail to take advantage of more complex planning options.

The law allows for several strategies that can be used to protect assets, especially if there is a healthy spouse. You probably won't learn these strategies from a caseworker, online, or from a nursing home employee.

To be sure you are making the right decisions, you should consult with a Certified Elder Law Attorney to understand how to become eligible for Medicaid without making mistakes. If you are paying privately for nursing home care, call our office at (724) 841-1393 to schedule a Complimentary Initial Consultation.

Editors Note: This article was written by Tim Sechler, Esq., a Certified Elder Law Attorney and Principal of Sechler Law Firm, LLC

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Sechler Law Firm, LLC

Elder Law 20206 State Rte 19 Ste 300, Cranberry Township, Pennsylvania, 16066

At Sechler Law Firm, LLC, our mission is to help families make great plans. A great estate plan is more than just a set of documents. It is a comprehensive and well thought out written strategy on how to deal with lifes unfortunate twists and turns. Our process first provides you with the education necessary to make informed decisions with regard to your planning. Then we put the proper documents and legal framework in place to respond to lifes unfortunate changes.Our Estate Planning law office is headquartered in Cranberry, PA. From this office, we happily serve the residents of Cranberry, Mars, Wexford, Pittsburgh, Butler and the residents of surrounding communities. As one of the regions only Certified Elder Law Attorneys, Tim Sechler and his team often assist families from across Western Pennsylvania.We understand that the pursuit of health, wealth and happiness is the goal of most families. We want you to be able to pursue these goals, or whatever goals you may have, knowing that you have a back up plan if life throws you a curveball like a death, disability or nursing home need. With education as our foundation, we will work with you to make decisions to Shield What Matters Most to you.Practice AreasEstate PlanningCustomized planning doesnt have to be difficult for you. We strive to make the process easy. The first step is to identify your concerns so that we can make suggestions regarding your plan.Elder Law Crisis PlanningA significant percentage of our practice is dedicated to helping families navigate the long term care maze. We help with Asset Protection and eligibility for Medicaid and Veterans Benefits.Trust And Estate AdministrationIf you have lost a loved one, we can help you take the necessary steps to help handle their affairs.Tims estate planning practice is focused on guiding clients through the complicated maze of balancing transfer strategies, wealth preservation, and family values in the planning process.Tim is a Combat Veteran, having served in Afghanistan as a member of the West Virginia Air National Guard. Prior to leaving the military, Tim had attained the rank of Staff Sergeant. His experiences in the military have led him to thoroughly enjoy working with Veterans and their families.Tim received his law degree from Duquesne University School of Law, and his Master of Business Administration from the Duquesne University Donahue Graduate School of Business. He received his Bachelor of Science in Business Administration from West Virginia University, majoring in Finance. Tim is licensed to practice Law in Pennsylvania and West Virginia.Recently, Tim has been seen frequently as a guest on KDKAs Pittsburgh Today Live, and has been quoted in several local print publications. For the last several years, he has been honored to be chosen as a Super Lawyers Rising Star, an award given to less than 2.5% of Tims peers. Tim enjoys educating the public about Elder Law and Estate Planning. He has spoken to thousands of people regarding estate planning and has averaged more than 50 speaking events per year.Tim became a Certified Elder Law Attorney* in 2017. A CELA is more than just an attorney who specializes in the field of elder law. CELAs are committed, through certification, to maintaining and improving their proficiency with continual practice and continuing legal education. Becoming certified in elder law validates a lawyers specialty to handle issues that affect senior citizens.Tim and his wife, Robyn, are raising three beautiful children in their home in Mars, PA.*Certified as an Elder Law Attorney by the National Elder Law Foundation.