Can Medicaid Take Your Home After Death?
A common question the elderly have when applying for Medicaid to pay for the costs of a nursing home is “what will happen to my home” and “can Medicaid take your home after death?”. Typically, this is also a concern for the adult children of the elderly individual applying for benefits. That’s because most people’s largest asset is their house, and it contains a lot of value to be inherited by the kids.
So, can Medicaid take your home after death? If Medicaid pays for nursing home costs, in certain cases the state may try to collect reimbursement from your assets, including your home after you die. However, there are ways to prevent Medicaid from taking your home after death that we will cover in this article.
Let’s first cover some of the basics of Medicaid.
Using Medicaid To Pay For Long-Term Care
The cost of long-term care in a skilled nursing facility is very expensive. On average, it costs more than $100,000 a year. Most people don’t have the resources to be able to pay such a large expense out of pocket. So what is a family to do if they do not have the funds to pay for care and they don’t want to sell the family home?
When considering options to pay for the care of a loved one, many people mistakenly believe that Medicare will pay for it. Medicare is the primary health insurance benefit for people 65 and older. There is a lot of confusion between Medicare vs Medicaid, but for the purposes of long-term care it is important to understand that the maximum amount of time Medicare will pay for care in a skilled nursing facility is 100 days. Additionally, the care provided in the facility must be related to a hospitalization that was covered by Medicare.
Medicaid, on the other hand, is the benefit used when a family member will need long-term care for an extended period of time. Medicaid is actually the largest payer of long-term care in the United States. While there are different ways to pay for long-term care, they can be very restrictive and not as widely accessible as Medicaid. As a result, most families who have an aging or ill loved one use Medicaid benefits to pay for long-term care.
How Can Medicaid Take Your Home After Death?
Medicaid is a means-based program. This means that you must be under a certain income and asset limit in order to qualify. Generally, this is about $2,000 in “countable” assets. So, if you can only have $2,000 in assets and a house is worth much more than that, how can Medicaid take your home after death? The answer is that your home is not considered a “countable asset” when applying for Medicaid. As a result, in order to collect costs from the deceased persons estate, Medicaid can take your home after death. This is referred to as “estate recovery“.
Medicaid Estate Recovery Program Can Take Your Home After Death
Medicaid is a joint federal and state benefit program. The federal government established a policy that forces all 50 states to try and recover the costs that the state paid for long-term care for a Medicaid beneficiary. This includes in-home care, community-based care, assisted living, and nursing home care. Often times the only asset of value at the time of a Medicaid beneficiary’s death is their home. This is why the state’s estate recovery program typically targets the home after death. Fortunately, there is a solution that can help you protect your home from Medicaid…
If Medicaid Can Take Your Home After Death, Is There Anything I Can Do To Protect My Home From Medicaid While Still Getting Benefits?
If you have a family member that needs long-term care and you are worried about if Medicaid can take your home after death, there are proven Medicaid Planning strategies that can help you protect your home while still qualifying for the benefits you need. Proper Medicaid Planning has the following benefits.
- Ensure that Medicaid won’t take your family’s house just to pay for your care.
- The average cost of long-term care in MI is $108,000/year. Get Medicaid benefits to pay for long-term care so you don’t have to lose everything just to pay for a nursing home.
- Pay for a nursing home when money runs out.
- Preserve your assets for your family to inherit.
- Make sure the healthy spouse who lives at home will have the finances needed to continue living at home.
- Time is critical and eligibility for Medicaid is extremely complicated. Even the smallest mistake can lead to a denial or long delays, which means you will have to pay for care out of pocket.
While Medicaid Planning can help prevent Medicaid from taking your home after death, it involves complicated legal strategies to do so. As a result, you should seek the help of a Medicaid Attorney.
A Medicaid Planning Attorney Can Help Protect Your Home From Medicaid
Prior to applying for Medicaid, you should always have a plan in place to qualify for benefits and to make sure that Medicaid can’t take your home after death. Applying too early can mean a longer wait for Medicaid qualification than necessary, while applying too late can mean having to pay for months of care you may not have had to pay. Additionally, an inaccurate application or not having your assets structured properly can result in a Medicaid denial which is why it is best to work with a Medicaid Planning Attorney, also known as an Elder Law Attorney. A Medicaid Planning Attorney can help you in the following ways:
- Protect your home from being taken by Medicaid
- Apply and qualify for benefits fast, or appeal if you’ve been denied
- Qualify for benefits by legally structuring your income and assets according to Medicaid’s rules
- Get benefits quickly during a Medicaid Crisis
- Make sure the healthy spouse has money to survive
- Preserve wealth and plan for incapacity
Protect Your Home And Life Savings From Nursing Home Costs While Getting The Benefits
You Need To Pay For Care
Book A Free Consultation With A Medicaid Attorney Today
Determine Your Medicaid Eligibility Risk Free
Get Help Qualifying For Medicaid Long Term Care Benefits
Call Us Now (248) 613-0007
Because every Medicaid Planning situation is different, we offer a free initial consultation with a Medicaid Planning Attorney to help you determine if Medicaid Planning is right for you.
The initial consultation gives you the opportunity to help you understand your current Medicaid eligibility. It also gives us a better understanding of how we can help you plan to protect your home and life savings from nursing home costs while getting you the benefits you need to pay for care.
To book your free consultation, call us now at (248) 613-0007 and tell our friendly receptionist that you would like to book a consultation for Medicaid Planning. She will book you for the time that works best for your schedule.
We look forward to hearing from you!
Our 4 Step Process Makes Medicaid Planning Simple
Call Us To Request A Free Consultation
Discuss Your Situation With An Attorney In Person Or On The Phone
We'll Create A Medicaid Plan Based On Your Unique Situation
