Read our short article here on nursing expenses and call or e-connect with us if you’d like to discuss how planning can help your family through this difficult situation…
I like to remind our clients that we are an intergenerational financial planning firm. We believe that when the whole family is winning financially, is when you have real success.
Planning inter-generationally involves smart tax planning, and smart estate planning. One area of smart estate planning is proper elder care when it comes to planning for nursing care expenses. Whether the plan is to be cared for at home or if an unplanned event led to the need for full nursing care, a proper plan prepares for this.
Your Assets Determine the Planning
Many people are surprised to learn that having a high income doesn’t necessarily exclude you from qualifying for Medicaid help (Medicaid is called Masshealth in MA and is a joint federal/state program).
Having high assets will exclude you, but high income no. Take a married couple for example. If the spouse entering the nursing home has $2,000/mo of income, and the healthy spouse has $9,000 per month, Medicaid will only typically require that the sick spouse’s $2,000/mo go toward paying for care before Medicaid pays. None of the $9,000 will be expected to go to care.
if however, this couple had combined assets of $750,000 in investments, this would be a problem. The reason is that in the current year (2020), in Massachusetts for example, Medicaid allows $128,640 maximum to be kept liquid by the healthy spouse. The sick spouse can keep $2,000.
The rest of the assets need a plan or they will be expected to be spent on care BEFORE Medicaid helps out. In this case, an immediate annuity is often purchased that satisfies the state Medicaid rules and helps the healthy spouse stay financially solvent.
Other Considerations
Other questions people have include: can people have their house in a trust and apply (yes but there’s more), is my house protected (it could be if a certain long term care insurance policy is purchased), can my kids inherit if a parent was on Medicaid (often yes but good planning here is a must), and more.
If this topic is causing you to toss and turn a bit at night, give our team a call. Our planning team is CFP(TM) led, with a skilled group of CPAs, estate and real estate attorneys, real estate experts, insurance pros and Medicaid experts to help make sure your Medicaid/Masshealth planning goes smoothly. We will:
Help you get organized and help you gather all of the appropriate documentation needed.
Attorneys will prepare your MassHealth application
Attorneys will review and submit the application
We will handle any necessary appeals and requests for more information
We will set up the planning with an intergenerational focus - get the financial help you want, ensure the spouse has solid income and help protect the assets for the family.
If this might help you click the box here to contact us via our web contact form.