(2/8/09)- For 2009, federal guidelines allow couples to keep up to $2,739 a month in combined income and $109,560 in assets, not including a home or car and still have Medicaid cover nursing home costs. There is a five year look-back on assets that are gifted by a Medicaid or Medicare beneficiary.

(12/16/08)- Your state may help pay for Medicare expenses through the Medicare Savings Program if:

• You have Medicare Hospital Insurance (Part A);
• Your monthly income is less than $1,190 for an individual or $1,595 for a couple (higher in Alaska and Hawaii); and
• The things you own (but not your home or one car) are worth no more than $4,000 for an individual or $6,000 for a couple (higher in some states)

(10/24/06)- If you are a New York City resident there is now an online tool that allows residents to see if they are eligible for up to 21 government programs, including Medicaid, food stamps, child care, Head Start, and tax and rent exemptions.

In addition to English the tool is available in Spanish, Chinese, Korean, Russian, Arabic and Haitian Creole. The tool is available at nyc.gov and is intended to ease the application process and cut down on office visits and paperwork. Eventually, users will be able to submit their information to city caseworkers electronically.

The first phase of the project cost $8.5 million; the second phase, costing $14 million and incorporating more programs, is to be completed next year.

(9/29/06)- Kelly Greene in her September 26, 2006 column in the Wall St. Journal entitled "Ask Encore" points out that the federal law requires the state's Medicaid program that paid for the care of a Medicaid patient may be entitled to reimbursement for the expenditures. Medicaid is a program that is run jointly by the federal government and the state's Medicaid department.

The recovery rule varies from state to state, so you have to check with the state Medicaid department that covered the costs of the Medicaid beneficiary to see what the rules are pertaining to recoveries from any of the estate assets. Thus if a beneficiary had a home, the state and the federal government may be able to recover some of their expenditures by selling the home after the death of the Medicaid patient.

(1/8/06)- Congress recently enacted changes in Medicaid coverage for nursing home care so that a nursing home resident whose home equity exceeds $500,000 would not be eligible for Medicaid coverage. A provision in the rules would allow individual states to increase this limit to $750,000

The changes enacted allow states to charge higher premiums and higher co-payments for a wide range of Medicaid benefits, including prescription drugs, doctors' services and hospital care. Medicaid recipients can be charged 10% of the cost of any item or service if their family incomes were 100% to 150% of the federal poverty level, $12,830 to $19,245 for a family of two. Recipients above that can be required to pay 20% of the cost of any item or service.

Total co-payments for all people in a family cannot exceed 5% of family income. States would not have to provide a Medicaid recipient with all the services now required by federal low, but can off a more modest package of benefits resembling commercial insurance. States will be allowed to end Medicaid coverage for people who fail to pay premiums for 60 days or more. Pharmacists can refuse to fill prescriptions and doctors and hospitals can deny services for recipients who do not make required co-payments.

(9/18/05)- A new homestead exemption law went into effect in New York State on August 31 that allows a person to protect $50,000 of equity in an individuals home from creditors. Thus a husband and wife can protect up to $100,000 in equity in their home from their creditors. The previous level had been $20,000.

The homestead provision had been introduced in every legislative session since 1992, but had never been able to get past the Republican Senate. This year, Senator Vincent L. Leibell, a Putnam county Republican backed the measure and was instrumental in getting it passed.

The new federal bankruptcy law, which tightens up the law considerably, goes into effect on October 17^th. That law will make it more difficult for people to claim bankruptcy and discharge their debts. Elizabeth Warren, a Harvard bankruptcy researcher, said the change in homestead protection would ultimately have greater impact in New York than the federal bankruptcy overhaul.

Some states like Texas allow homes to be withheld from creditors no matter what their value may be.

(4/19/05)-Medicaid is a program that pays for medical assistance for certain individuals and families with low incomes and resources. This program became law in 1965 and is jointly funded by the Federal and State governments (including the District of Columbia and the Territories) to assist States in providing medical long-term care assistance to people who meet certain eligibility. Medicaid is the largest source of funding for medical and health-related services for people with limited income.

For more information on Medicaid: www.cms.hhs.gov/medicaid

Medicaid Information for States and Territories- www.cms.hhs.gov/default.asp

FOR AN INFORMATIVE AND PERSONAL ARTICLE ON PRACTICAL SUGGESTIONS WHEN SELECTING A NURSING HOME SEE OUR ARTICLE "How to Select a Nursing Home"

Allan Rubin
updated February 8, 2009

http://www.therubins.com

To e-mail: hrubin12.@nyc.rr.com or rubin@brainlink.com

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