Applying for Medicaid in NY certainly comes with its pros and cons. Many elderly people are concerned that Medicaid may try to take their home (or other assets) after their death. And if they have children, grandchildren or family members they wish to leave assets too it can be very concerning. If you are worried about protecting your assets from Medicaid in your old age or after passing then a NY elder law attorney can help with planning.
Medicaid is divided into two general categories:
- Institutional, which includes nursing home and intermediate care facilities
- Community-based which includes all the other services Medicaid provides including home care and insurance.
Understanding these two categories are one of the major factors taken into consideration regarding assets along with age and family situation.
Medicaid is required to place a lien on your home if:
- Are receiving nursing home care
- are considered a permanently institutionalized individual (will not return home)
- Own your home
In these cases when the property is eventually sold the lien must be paid in full before the beneficiaries receive any assets or funds.
But there are certain exceptions to this rule including:
- If certain qualifying family members are residing in the home including a spouse, child under 18, or a child of any age who is blind or disabled the lien cannot be placed.
- If you return home after being a permanently institutionalized individual, Medicaid must remove the lien.
- Prior to initiating a lien against your home, Medicaid allows you to transfer your home to the children under 18, spouses or any blind or disabled child of any age
Probate and Medicaid
If Medicaid is providing you with various types of medical care it is possible they will try to reclaim the value of their payout from your estate that is in probate. This is called Estate Recovery and there are certain ways to protect yourself from it.
But it is possible to protect your home from probate since Medicaid goes after assets included in probate.
Next, they can only recover payments paid after your 55th birthday. They can only recover up to 10 years’ worth of benefits from the day of death. And lastly, Medicaid can not recover any payment if you have a living spouse, a child less than 21 years old or a disabled or blind child of any age.
What type of trust protects assets from Medicaid?
An income only Medicaid trust is one of several methods an experienced elder law attorney can use to help protect your home.
Get a free consultation with the local estate planning experts at:
Roman Aminov Esq. Estate, Probate & Elder Law of Queens 147-17 Union Tpke, Queens, NY 11367 (347) 766-2685 https://www.aminovlaw.com/