Why do Medicaid Planning?
The purpose of Medicaid planning for people who need long term care in a nursing home is to preserve assets and to set up the person’s affairs such that the State will pay the majority of the care costs in the nursing home. The individual only would have to contribute his or her income towards the cost of care, and if there is a spouse at home, then such income may be paid to the spouse rather than to the nursing home in certain circumstances.
Keeping All of Your Assets
The objective of Medicaid planning is for a married couple to be able to keep all of their assets and still have the State pay for the nursing home care. For a single person who needs nursing home care, the objective is to preserve half or all of that person’s accumulated wealth and still have the State pay for the nursing home care. How much a single person can keep depends on various circumstances. That is the simple goal of Medicaid planning.
Beware of the Advice from the Nursing Home
If you ask the nursing home, or the County Department of Social Services, or the State Medicaid department about getting Medicaid benefits, they will advise you that a married couple will only get to keep half the total assets or $100,000, whichever is lower, before Medicaid will pay. They will tell you that a single person can keep only $2,500, and Medicaid will not pay if the assets are more than that. They will not tell you that you may keep everything, and they will not tell you to seek the advice of qualified legal counsel who can assist you in keeping as much of your wealth as possible.
How Can We Help?
William M. Gatesman has worked with hundreds of families to assist them in keeping their assets and in qualifying for Medicaid benefits for long term care in a nursing home. While the objectives of Medicaid planning identified above are simple, clear, and straight-forward, the methods of achieving those objectives are sophisticated and often very complex, especially for those who are not well-versed in Medicaid planning strategies.
William M. Gatesman utilizes the skills he has gained through his experience and education as an accountant, tax specialist, and lawyer, and the decades he has spent collaborating with Maryland’s other leading Medicaid lawyers and working with the State regulators, local caseworkers, nursing home finance officers and client’s families to address every issue implicated by Medicaid asset preservation planning.
Working as a team, Mr. Gatesman will enable you to manage family dynamics, easily implement complex financial transactions, minimize income and transfer tax consequences, mitigate the adverse consequences of otherwise disqualifying circumstances, maximize your asset preservation, obtain Medicaid eligibility, and set up your affairs to avoid Medicaid estate recovery.
Call 301-260-0095 for more information about Medicaid planning or to make an appointment to discuss how William M. Gatesman can help you to preserve your assets.