Medicaid Planning – What does it mean?

People throw around the phrase “Medicaid Planning,” but what does it actually mean? First, when skilled nursing-level care is necessary, many families face the difficult question of how to pay the bill. Nursing homes in the Atlanta area cost over $10,000 per month!  Even the most diligent savers find this difficult to sustain. Despite many years of working and saving, families are concerned that they will not have enough money to cover the cost of care.

Very simply put, a Certified Elder Law Attorney can help you implement a plan to qualify for Georgia Nursing Home Medicaid while preserving assets. This is called Medicaid Planning.

When your spouse needs Medicaid for long-term care

This week’s blog will discuss qualifying for Medicaid as a married couple. This can become quite complex due to each spouse’s different health concerns, income and assets.

We hear about this situation frequently: “I won’t have any money to live on if my husband gets on Medicaid.” Or “my spouse has just transitioned from rehab to long-term care at a nursing home. The business office is talking to me about Medicaid, but I’m scared that I will have no money to live on if he gets on Medicaid. Maybe I should bring him home.”

Protecting assets for a healthy spouse

Many spouses fear they will have no money to live on if they apply for Medicaid for nursing home care for their ill spouse. In many ways, Medicaid laws are more generous for those with a spouse still at home. The rules allow a married individual to get on Medicaid without spending all of the couple’s assets and income. Let us put your mind at ease. Working with families to get the best care for their loved ones while determining the options to pay for care is a hallmark of our practice.

There is good news!

Georgia makes an effort to protect the well spouse (also known as the community spouse) through laws and regulations that apply enhanced asset limits, allow for spousal income diversions, and avoid or delay Medicaid estate recovery for married couples when one spouse is in a nursing home. Medicaid does not want the community spouse to be impoverished by an ill spouse’s nursing home costs or force someone from the family home.

The Elder Law Toolbox

Couples should always visit an experienced elder law attorney when faced with needing a nursing home. We can use many tools in our “elder law toolbox” to assist most of our married couple clients in saving 100% of their assets and most of their income. These planning techniques include transfers between spouses, burial exemptions, life insurance, retirement distributions, QITs (Miller Trust), spousal Monthly Maintenance Needs Allowance, spouses who still work, ownership of multiple properties, rental income, and more. Once again, these terms may sound unfamiliar, but remember, there are always  solutions to help save assets and income when you have a Medicaid plan.

Avoid the “spend down” by working with a Certified Elder law Attorney

Every family’s situation is unique, and Hurley Elder Care Law can tailor a plan just for you. There is no need to ‘spend down’ when you do proper Medicaid planning. Experience counts, and you should not try any of these methods alone. Repairing a bad plan is always more expensive than doing it correctly from the beginning.

Download our short video to learn more about nursing home Medicaid. Our holistic approach and white-glove service will help guide you through this process as smoothly as possible. Our number one goal is to get you the best financial result while finding quality care for your loved one. Call Hurley Elder Care Law today at 404-843-0121.