Longtime Partners but Never Married (Part 4)
In my last 3 posts I have been telling you about the saga of Bill and Mary. First Bill had a stroke. Mary called concerned about how to care for him and still be able to afford to pay her bills. Most of the assets, including the house, are in Bill’s name. Should they
Medicaid When a Spouse Owns a Business – Part 2
In my blog post last week I wrote about a more frequent scenario we are seeing with married couple Medicaid applications. It’s one in which one or both spouses own a business from which they derive income. As I explained last week, Medicaid allows the healthy spouse to keep a certain amount
Medicaid When a Spouse Owns a Business – Part 1
If you are a regular reader of this blog you know that in the case of a married couple where only one spouse is applying for Medicaid, the healthy spouse, known as the community spouse, is entitled to keep a certain amount of countable assets. The assets of both spouses are
2022 Medicaid Numbers
Last month in this blog I updated you on some of the new Social Security and Medicare numbers for 2022. With a cost of living adjustment (COLA) of 5.9% as a result of higher inflation, next year’s increase is the largest in some time. Many other federal programs are tied to the
On Credit Cards and Medicaid – Part 2
In last week’s post I told you about two calls I received regarding Medicaid. In each case the caller was concerned about how credit card charges on a Medicaid applicant’s card affects eligibility. A common misconception about Medicaid is that debts affect eligibility. Not true, at least in the sense that the State
On Credit Cards and Medicaid – Part 1
In this week’s post I want to tell you about two recent calls we received that highlight the same issue. Each caller reached out to us concerned about a family member who soon will run out of money to pay for long term care. Recognizing the need for Medicaid benefits, the callers
Recent Trends with Medicaid Applications – Part 2
In my post last week I told you why I think Medicaid applications have become more difficult to get approved. This week I will talk about the ways the State has made it more challenging. One way, which I have written about several times over the past few months is the QIT
Recent Trends with Medicaid Applications – Part 1
I have been saying for some time that Medicaid benefits are much more difficult to obtain now than at any time I can recall in the last 25 years I have been filing applications on behalf of clients. There are a number of reasons for this and a number of ways
Another Word About QITs – Part 5
In my last post on this topic (4/4/21) I told you about a case involving a qualified income trust (QIT) that was not used correctly causing the denial of a Medicaid application which we had filed. I appealed and the judge reversed the denial excusing the technical mistakes made by the
Another Home Based Medicaid Option – Part 3
In the final post of 3, this week I again discuss the Personal Preference Program, a home based Medicaid program. As I explained last week, once an applicant is approved through the usual Medicaid application process, a consultant is assigned to the case to determine a budget that is then used