Medicaid planning is very important if you hope to protect your wealth and ensure you are able to get care if you get hurt or sick. Many people do not realize how important making a Medicaid plan is — and if you are one of them, you could be making a very costly mistake. 
The Law Office of Michael Robinson, P.C. can help you to determine if you need to make a Medicaid plan based on your situation. Most people do, and we’ll work with you to make effective use of legal tools to put a plan in place that keeps your assets safe and ensure you can get care at home or in a nursing home setting. To find out more about the ways in which our Medicaid planning attorneys can provide this assistance to you, give us a call today. You can also read on to learn about some key Medicaid planning mistakes that far too many people make but that you must be sure to avoid.
Medicaid Planning Mistake: Failing to Make a Plan
It is very common for people to assume their Medicare coverage or their health insurance coverage will pay for everything they need if they get sick or hurt. Unfortunately, many people do not realize Medicare and private insurance generally do not pay for nursing home care or long-term care at home except in very specific circumstances where someone needs skilled nursing rehabilitation care and meets qualifying requirements.
Since Medicare and private insurance won’t pay, the only options are likely qualifying for Medicaid to get coverage you need or paying out of pocket. If you don’t make a plan to qualify for Medicaid when you need care, you could end up having to impoverish yourself until you have limited resources since Medicaid won’t cover you until you’re assets are below their resource limits. You don’t want to lose everything just because you get sick, so don’t make the mistake of failing to create a Medicaid plan.
Medicaid Planning Mistake: Waiting too Long to Make a Plan
Medicaid planning is something that should be done before you need care if you want to protect the maximum value of assets. That’s because Medicaid has a five year lookback rule. If you transfer money or property for less than fair market value within five years of the time that you need care, you will be temporarily disqualified from getting Medicaid to cover the care you need.
Medicaid Planning: Giving Away Wealth to Try to Get Covered
Giving away money or property could also trigger problems with the five year lookback rule. Medicaid will look at transactions you’ve undertaken and if you gave away wealth, you could be disqualified from coverage for a period of months equal to the value of transferred assets divided by the average cost of nursing home care in your area.
Medicaid Planning: Not Getting the Right Help
Making a Medicaid plan can be complicated and the stakes are very high because failing to protect assets properly could mean that you have to spend thousands of dollars every single month if you need nursing home care or long-term care at home. If you do not want to lose your life savings and lose many of the assets that you should be able to pass down to your family members as a part of your legacy, you need to talk with Medicaid planning lawyers about the options available to you. An attorney can help you to make the best use of legal tools to ensure you have effectively protected your money and property while ensuring you can get the care you require.
Contact a Medicaid Planning Attorney Today
When it comes to something as important as Medicaid planning, you cannot afford to make mistakes that put your assets at risk and jeopardize your legacy. You should join us for a free seminar today to find out how we can help. You can also give us a call at 585-374-5210 or contact us online to get personalized advice and get your Medicaid plan underway.
- How Estate Planning for a Family May Trap the Unwary Practitioner - August 31, 2022
- State Income Taxation of Social Security Benefits - August 24, 2022
- Understanding Tax Apportionment Clauses - August 17, 2022
