At the other end of the spectrum are Elderlaw Attorneys whose fees can be as low as $3,000 and as high as $10,000. This is a high cost for a family that is struggling to pay for care. However, as attorneys will point out, the cost is often less than the cost of one month of nursing home care.
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3. You have no stress dealing with Medicaid workers or the nursing home business office. You refer all questions to us. 4. You have more time with Dad or whoever you have in the nursing home. (They need you there. A nursing home is not a safe place without an “on duty” patient advocate.) And finally:
Jun 24, 2019 · Again, Michigan nursing homes charge, on the average, over $8,400 per month. If a Medicaid worker rejects an application after three months the loss is over $25,000! Fifth: The attorney must advise the client of the best, most suitable, “asset and income protection” strategy.
Mar 22, 2022 · Cost of Elder Law Attorneys and Medicaid Planning. There isn’t a clear-cut answer as to the cost of hiring an elder care attorney for Medicaid planning purposes. Some Medicaid lawyers offer free consultations, while others charge an initial consultation fee or offer Medicaid planning conferences that range in cost from approximately $175 – $500.
Aug 28, 2013 · The planning piece takes the expertise of an experienced elder law attorney, but may not take considerable time. The application can be time consuming, though most of the work can be completed by an experienced paralegal. My …
Spend down means that the applicant has only $2,000 at the time of application. If an average suburban married couple follows the advice of most nursing homes they may spend over $100,000 at the nursing home before applying for Medicaid. The attorney should be able to help an average couple to save that $100,000.
We might note that there are two ways attorneys charge for applications: 1) attorney asks for a retainer and bills hourly against the retainer; 2) a flat fee. Most clients prefer the latter since they know the fixed cost and the fee will be part of “spend down.”.
A Medicaid application will be rejected without “documentation” of the current cash value of the asset. It can take four weeks to get the needed paperwork. When children help elderly parents, finding or recovering the documentation can be challenging and time consuming.
Many Medicaid workers give clients and families wrong information. We see many mistakes that are not to the client’s benefit. For example, the agency will lose an application and tell the client to re-file with the result of loss of months of coverage. Your attorney will not allow that to happen.
And, yes, Medicaid will and does reject applications for lack of paperwork. That can be an unbelievable expensive. Again, Michigan nursing homes charge, on the average, over $8,400 per month. If a Medicaid worker rejects an application after three months the loss is over $25,000!
This person has much to lose. And, the need is doubly true if the client has a spouse. Clients do not hire an attorney to fill out a four to six page application.
Third: A little known fact is that Michigan has “Medicaid estate recovery.”. That means the government will take the house for repayment after the applicant and spouse dies. This can be a loss form $100,000 to $300,000 and up. Part of the attorney’s work is to make sure the government does not get the house.
This strategy reduces one’s countable assets, while at the same time , protecting some of them for family. Essentially, Medicaid applicants gift approximately half of their “excess” assets (assets over Medicaid’s limit) to their loved ones and then purchase an annuity with the remaining “excess” assets. (An annuity turns countable assets ...
One such strategy that elder law attorneys can implement is a Medicaid asset protection trust (MAPT). This type of trust not only prevents one from becoming ineligible for Medicaid due to gifting assets ...
On the other hand, Medicaid attorneys often focus more on the legal aspects of Medicaid planning, such as creating Medicaid asset protection trusts or Qualified income trusts, which makes them the better option for this type of assistance.
Medicaid attorneys and specialists also assist with crisis planning, which occurs when a senior needs Medicaid benefits within 30-60 days.
For persons who have Medicaid cases that are fairly simple and straightforward, a Medicaid planner, also called a Medicaid specialist or a Medicaid Advisor, might be a good option. Working with a professional Medicaid planner can be a lot more cost efficient than working with a Medicaid attorney.
The look back period is 5 years in all states except California (Medi-Cal has a 2.5 year look back).
What Elder Law Attorneys Do? Elder law attorneys, also called elder care attorneys, estate and trust attorneys, or Medicaid lawyers, assist persons in preparing for long-term care and death. They assist seniors in a large and diverse array of legal tasks, which encompasses retirement planning, estate planning, creating wills and durable power ...
First, the applicant applies for Medicaid, which they can do online or at any state Medicaid office.
Medicaid Eligibility for Nursing Home Care. To be eligible for nursing home care, all 50 states have financial eligibility criteria and level of care criteria. The financial eligibility criteria consist of income limits and countable assets limits. These limits change annually, change with marital status, and change depending on one’s state ...
The reason for this is because private pay residents pay approximately 25% more for nursing home care than Medicaid pays.
In 2021, the nationwide average private payer pays $255 per day for nursing home care while Medicaid pays approximately $206 per day. Being Medicaid eligible and finding a Medicaid nursing home is often not enough to move a loved one in. Read about how to get into a nursing home .
Short-term nursing homes are commonly called convalescent homes and these are meant for rehabilitation not long term care. Be aware that different states may use different names for their Medicaid programs. In California, it is called Medi-Cal. Other examples include Tennessee (TennCare), Massachusetts (MassHealth), and Connecticut (HUSKY Health).
A trustee is named to manage the account and funds can only be used for very specific purposes, such as contributing towards the cost of nursing home care. Assets. In all states, persons can “spend down” their assets that are over Medicaid’s limit. However, one needs to exercise caution when doing so.
Note for Married Couples – While a single nursing home Medicaid beneficiary must give Medicaid almost all their income for nursing home care, this is not always the case for married couples in which only one spouse needs Medicaid-funded nursing home care.
There is a simple option called an irrevocable funeral trust. This is essentially prepaying a funeral and all the associated expenses. The family simply allocates the amount of money by which they are over the Medicaid limit to the irrevocable funeral trust.
Medicaid Planners help clients structure their financial resources and prepare documentation to ensure the best possibility of being accepted into the Medicaid program. They create trusts, manage asset transfers, and convert countable assets into exempt assets to ensure eligibility and preserve a family’s resources.
It is worth noting that a mistake in planning can impact eligibility for as long as 5 years (2.5 years in California). This is because Medicaid has a look-back period. If one is not confident in their family’s ability to manage some complex legal and financial techniques, using a planner is advised.
A category of professionals called Life Resource Planners, or sometimes Eldercare Resource Planners, offer an alternative to traditional Medicaid planning. These advisors take a larger, holistic view of how to help families plan for paying for aging care. While Medicaid Planners are very focused on the task of helping families qualify for Medicaid, Life Resource Planners also look to see what other options exist and are available. As with Medicaid Planning professionals, their fees must be paid for out-of-pocket. However, those fees are substantially lower. Eldercare Resource Planners typically charge 50% – 75% less than Medicaid Planners. Learn more.
Putting the plan into action can take longer. Depending on the strategy, it can take several weeks or months, even up to 6 months in some cases. In situations where there is an immediate need for Medicaid care, the Medicaid application documentation can be prepared concurrent with the execution of the plan.
The long term care costs for two individuals can bankrupt most American families very quickly .
The consequences of being denied by Medicaid are severe and can negatively impact the comfort, happiness, and even the health of the individual applying and their entire family.
The biggest difference between a Medicaid specialist and an elder law attorney is that Medicaid specialists are not lawyers. Likewise, elder law attorneys cannot call themselves “Medicaid specialists,” as this is not a designated law specialization.
Elder law attorneys are experts in Medicaid and related issues, but their expertise extends to all broader issues related to elder care, aging, and the law – a wide-reaching, often complicated milieu of interrelated topics . An elder law attorney can do everything a Medicaid specialist does, and additionally offers legal services related to aging, ...
A Medicaid specialist is a person or niche firm that specializes in establishing Medicaid eligibility, facilitating the application process, and even completing the actual application on behalf of the Medicaid recipient.
If you plan to set up a trust, living will, transfer of assets , or other legal considerations related to a loved one’s Medicaid application, an elder law attorney can save you money. Lots of it. Often, elder law attorneys will employ in-house benefits specialists / Medicaid specialists, to help structure assistance and thus save you money. ...
But an assistant at the nursing home promises the added cost won’t be necessary; they’ll help with your Medicaid application. Money is tight as it is, Medicaid rules are clear, and the nursing home can help you for free.
The answer: Because, under certain circumstances, an expert can save you tens of thousands of dollars, if not hundreds of thousands of dollars. Yes, you read that right: hundreds of thousands of dollars. Because Medicaid specialists and elder law attorneys specialize in Medicaid rules and the issues surrounding them, ...
Or a life-changing injury. After the subsequent hospital visit and recovery, the doctors say your loved one will need to reside in a nursing home – indefinitely.
Medicaid calculates the penalty by dividing the amount transferred by what Medicaid determines is the average price of nursing home care in your state. 12 . For example, suppose Medicaid determines your state's average nursing home costs $6,000 per month, and you had transferred assets worth $120,000.
For the next 100 days, Medicare covers most of the charges, but patients must pay $176.00 per day (in 2020) unless they have a supplemental insurance policy. 3 .
The transfer of assets must have occurred at least five years before applying to Medicaid in order to avoid ...
Countable assets include checking and savings account balances, CDs, stocks, and bonds. 9 . In most states, you can retain up to $2,000 as an individual and $3,000 for a married couple outside of your countable assets. However, these amounts may vary depending on the state you reside in. 10 .
Each state has its own guidelines and eligibility requirements. For example In New York state, there is an income limit of $15,750 (in 2020) for individuals, but in Mississippi, the limit is much lower—$4,000. 7  8 . Because these rules vary by state, it may be best to speak directly to a regional office to obtain the correct set ...
Medicaid was created in 1965 as a social healthcare program to help people with low incomes receive medical attention. 1  Many seniors rely on Medicaid to pay for long-term nursing home care. “Most people pay out of their own pockets for long-term care until they become eligible for Medicaid.
Arrangements that are allowed include transfers to: 13 . Spouse of the applicant. A child under the age of 21. A child who is permanently disabled or blind. An adult child who has been living in the home and provided care to the patient for at least two years prior to the application for Medicaid.