8.18August

Impovershed by Medicaid
By: Jerry Creed / Trust Jerry
brother and sister came to my office. Their
A mom had passed years earlier and dad,
dying from Parkinson’s disease, was entering
hospice. He had been in a skilled nursing facility for the last ten years.
The two kids had worked extra jobs to keep dad’s house, hoping for
him to return home one day. Worst case the kids figured, when dad died
they could recover their funds by selling the house.
Unfortunately Medicaid has changed and went from being a benefit
to a loan. Every dollar spent by Medicaid on you is tracked and when
you die, Medicaid expects to be paid back from your Estate.
In addition, the rules to qualify for Medicaid changed so that instead
of 200,000 people on Medicaid in Nevada, we now have over 600,000.
In effect, while reducing the Estate Tax, they created a huge hidden tax,
without politicians calling it a tax, simply a “recovery” so more people
can benefit from the program.
I had to explain to the brother and sister that Medicaid was no longer
a benefit, but a loan. In their case, dad was in a skilled nursing facility
- $8,000 a month (average cost in Nevada), 12 months a year, $96,000
for 10 years or $960,000.
End result, dad’s home was sold to pay Medicaid back. The kids got
no inheritance and had lost years of work.
It should surprise no one that when the Federal Government raised
the Federal Estate Tax threshold to 11.2 million dollars appearing to
reduce their supply of our money, Congress had already found a new
source of funds by stealing the life savings of our seniors. The method
for capturing these funds - changing Medicaid.
While most people can afford the cost of assisted living for a spouse,
few people can afford the $8,000 monthly cost of a skilled nursing
facility. In order to qualify for Medicaid assistance, a single person is
allowed to keep $2,000 in assets, and if both spouses need assistance the
amount increases to $3,000.
If you can’t pay the $8,000 a month, you’ll be forced to reduce your
life savings to impoverishment levels and have no safety net in order to
receive Medicaid’s help. There is a better way.
Contacting an Elder law attorney and planning for Medicaid as part
of your estate plan now can save financial and emotional heartache for
you and your family. Failing to plan is planning to fail.
I urge you to not let this happen to you and your family. Protect
yourself and find an elder law attorney to speak with today.
23