A Position Paper
1. All recently drafted Wills,
Powers of Attorney, Healthcare Directives, and Living Wills
are adequate for Medicaid planning purposes.
Answer: No! Such
instruments should be
reviewed, by a Medicaid-Planning attorney, in light of a family's
situation.
2. If I don't transfer assets 5
years before entering a Nursing Home, I can't do it at all.
Answer: False! Medicaid has numerous
exceptions to their
lookback rules if the correct legal instruments and transfer
documents are in place.
3. I can't transfer assets after I
am already in a Nursing Home.
Answer: False! See answer for No. 2
above.
4. To protect their home, couples
should give it to their children right away.
Answer: No! In
most cases, a Medicaid-planning
attorney would advise that the marital home be transferred to the
healthy spouse.
5. To protect their home, single
people should give it to their children right away.
Answer: Depends!
Medicaid planning attorneys
need to know much more, about the family's situation, in order to
make this call.
6. I will be eligible for Medicaid
on the very day I spend down to the amount required by
Medicaid.
Answer: No! Medicaid requires that you
make the proper
transfers to meet their eligibility requirements on the first
calendar day of a given month.
7. You may not apply for Medicaid
within 5 years of making a gift.
Answer: Same
answer as for No. 2, above.
8. Non-income producing assets
(like uncashed Savings Bonds) do not have to be disclosed to
Medicaid.
Answer: Yes they do! Medicaid knows
they exist!
9. If one spouse goes into a
Nursing Home, all of his/her income goes to the Nursing Home
and not to the at-home spouse.
Answer: No! A Medicaid-planning attorney
can prevent this scenario from occurring.
10. All Nursing Homes and Assisted
Living Facilities accept Medicaid.
Answer: No! Get their
policy toward Medicaid, in
writing.
11. If a facility is known to accept Medicaid, families will never
have to offer any monies for private payment.
Answer: No! Most facilities expect a
family to pay privately,
where possible, for a certain number of months before becoming
Medicaid-eligible.
12. If I go broke, the Nursing Home and Medicaid are to blame.
Answer: No! Family
disharmony, in-action,
procrastination, and denial are the culprits.
