The Perils of GoFundMe – Part 3
In my blog post last week, I discussed crowd funding sites like GoFundMe. We see families dealing with a sudden catastrophic illness or injury attempt to use these sites to raise money to pay for medical and other bills. It rarely is a solution if only because of the amount of money
Medicaid Redeterminations – Part 5
In my post last week, I talked about what happens when the healthy spouse dies leaving a surviving spouse who is on Medicaid. The elective share requires that a minimum amount - 1/3 of the deceased spouse’s estate less what the surviving spouse already has - must go to the deceased
Medicaid Redeterminations – Part 4
In this week’s 4th blog post on Medicaid’s annual redetermination process I address how the death of a spouse can create issues. In the case of a married couple where only one spouse has been approved for Medicaid, the non-Medicaid or “community spouse” is entitled to keep a home if residing
Medicaid Redeterminations – Part 4
In this week’s blog post I continue my discussion on Medicaid’s annual redetermination process and the changes that can cause problems with achieving a renewal. In the case of a married couple where only one spouse has been approved for Medicaid, the non-Medicaid or “community spouse” is entitled to keep a
Medicaid Redeterminations – Part 2
In last week’s post I began to discuss Medicaid redeterminations and how they have become more difficult than they once were. There are several reasons for this. 10 years ago New Jersey made changes to its Medicaid program that required certain applicants to utilize a qualified income trust. I’ve written about
Medicaid Redeterminations – Part 1
When I explain how Medicaid works, I cover the income and asset limits in the case of a single applicant as well as a married one. I also talk about the 5 year Medicaid look back and the Medicaid penalty. People typically ask me about the qualified income trust and Medicaid estate
2 Years Private Pay and Then Medicaid – Part 2
In my post last week, I told you about a son who called. His mom had been paying for care for almost 2 years at an assisted living facility (ALF). Thinking he was ready to apply for Medicaid benefits, he called our office for help. His mom, however, still owned real estate worth
2 Years Private Pay and Then Medicaid? Not so fast
In this week’s post I will tell you about a call we received recently, similar to ones we have had many times over the years - although not in some time. Son called stating that Mom was close to completing a 2 year private pay requirement at a local assisted living
The Medicaid Spend Down Scramble – Part 3
The Medicaid Spend Down Scramble - Part 3 In my blog post for this week, I finish the topic of the spend down process before Medicaid and why it is so important to the financial well being of the healthy non-Medicaid spouse. As I explained last week, maximizing what that spouse, known
Another Medicaid Cautionary Tale – Part 2
In my blog post last week I told you about John’s call to our office. John had made several unsuccessful attempts to obtain Medicaid for his mom who was in a nursing facility. He called because he had been sued by the nursing home where his mom had been residing. The facility was