Did you know there is a way for family members to provide in-home care for their parents, get paid to do it, and help their parents qualify for Medicaid if they need to go into the nursing home? Under Medicaid rules, if a parent transferred money to a child this could create a penalized transfer that would impact Medicaid eligibility. Medicaid makes an exception when the child is being paid to provide in-home care to the parent that helps keep him or her out of the nursing home. Naturally, a parent transferring money to a child is open for abuse, so Medicaid imposes rules that must be followed before this will qualify – including the need for a written personal care contract BEFORE the services begin. This both a powerful planning tool, and an area where someone can easily fail to dot the “i’s” and cross the “t’s.” If you think you or your loved one’s situation may benefit from a personal care contract you should contact an elder law attorney immediately.
Month: June 2019
How long do you have to open a probate estate?
In Missouri, you have one year after a person dies to open a probate estate. The estate can be opened at any time during that year. Since the probate process can be long and slow, the probate estate should be opened as soon as reasonably possible. If an estate is not opened within one year, then a determination of heirship may need to be filed to resolve any questions about ownership of property owned by the person who passed away.
What is the difference between “guardianship” and “conservatorship” in Missouri?
In Missouri, when someone lacks the ability to make decisions for him or herself, either a guardian, a conservator, or both can be appointed. The roles are similar, and often the same person will be both a guardian and a conservator. The key difference is that the guardian makes decisions for the “person” and the conservator makes decisions regarding the “estate” (i.e., finances). The guardian will make decisions like where the person will live and medical decisions. The conservator will pay bills with the person’s money and make other financial decisions. To learn more see our video at Answers About Guardianships and Conservatorships.
How do most people pay for nursing home care?
The cost of nursing home care can be daunting – in St. Louis a skilled nursing facility can easily cost more than $8,000 per month. At nearly $100,000 per year, nursing home care can quickly deplete a person’s life-savings. Although some nursing home costs are covered by private pay, or long-term care insurance, the reality is that more than 60% of nursing home care is paid for by Medicaid. Designed as a “safety net” program for the financially needy, Medicaid has become the primary payor for the prohibitively expensive cost of nursing home care.
Medicaid has strict rules for assets to qualify for Medicaid coverage. Too often, seniors satisfy these requirements by sending their last dollar to the nursing home. With proactive planning, individuals can qualify for the coverage they need, while making the best use of their life savings. If you or a loved one is facing the possibility of nursing home care be sure to contact an elder law attorney to discuss your options.
Social Security is Slowly Running Out of Money
As more and more Americans reach retirement age, Social Security is once again slowly running out of money. For decades, experts have warned that the Social Security system is ill-prepared for when the Baby Boomers generation reached retirement age. Now, 10,000 Baby Boomers reach age 65 every day, and the Social Security system is beginning to feel the strain.
The Social Security funds are kept in the Social Security Trust Fund, with benefits being paid on the returns from the trust fund. Next year (for the first time since 1982), the program must start drawing down assets held in the Trust Fund to pay retirees. Absent some action, Social Security’s trust funds are expected to be exhausted within fifteen years. If that happened, benefit checks for retirees would be cut by about 20 percent across the board – just as a large portion of the population comes to depend on those payments.