Does Medicaid Count a 529 Plan As an Available Asset?
If your mother applies for Medicaid, the 529 plan could be considered an available asset. This means money in the 529 account must be exhausted before Medicaid will pay nursing home bills. In [...]
New Book Helps You Get Smart About Social Security
Figuring out when to start taking Social Security benefits shouldn’t require a degree in economics, but the complicated rules mean many Americans are not getting all the benefits they are [...]
Feds Rescind Rule Protecting Some Reverse Mortgage Non-Borrowing Spouses
The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) has rescinded a rule issued last year that was intended to keep at least some spouses of reverse mortgage holders from being forced out [...]
Medicaid’s Gift to Children Who Help Parents Postpone Nursing Home Care
In most states, transferring your house to your children (or someone else) may lead to a Medicaid penalty period, which would make you ineligible for Medicaid for a period of time. However, there [...]
How Can We Publicly Complain About a Care Manager and Still Get a Refund?
I can see the dilemma. You want to get your money back and protect others from someone you feel did not perform the services he/she promised. The GCM wants to maintain his/her livelihood. The [...]
Is There Any Way Mom Can Inherit Money Without Losing Medicaid?
There are a few possibilities. In some states, your mother could transfer her funds to a so-called “(d)(4)(C)” or “pooled disability” trust. Here’s a link to a list of such trusts that may [...]
How Can We Convince My Father That Moving from the Nursing Home to Our House Is Not an Option?
You do not have to take your father in, even if he is evicted from the nursing home. In terms of convincing him that you would be at risk of liability if he were to move in with you, I [...]
VA Eliminates Net Worth Requirement for Health Care
The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) has updated the way it determines eligibility for VA health care benefits, making it easier for many veterans to get access to the benefits. The VA will no [...]
Congress Schedules End to Insurance Coverage of Medicare Part B Deductible
Medicare beneficiaries often buy “Medigap” insurance that pays for many of regular Medicare’s deductibles and copayments. But as a result of legislation just passed by Congress, [...]