It is important to protect money from nursing home costs because if you do not take steps to ensure assets are safe, a nursing home can result in crippling financial loss. A nursing home costs thousands of dollars every single month and it is not covered by Medicare or by most private insurance providers except in very limited circumstances such as when skilled nursing care is required. In the vast majority of cases where custodial care is needed — which means help is needed for routine activities of daily living — Medicare and private insurance policies provide no coverage at all. 
You should be aware of the limitations of Medicare coverage if your parents are getting older. If your parents do not have an asset protection plan in place, they could end up in a situation where they end up spending their entire life savings on the costs of a nursing home. This could jeopardize their financial security and any legacy that they want to leave behind. Mark S. Eghrari & Associates, PLLC can provide assistance in making certain that your parents have taken steps to protect money from nursing home costs and can work with your family to develop a comprehensive plan in case nursing home care becomes necessary. To find out more about how our firm can help, give us a call today.
How to Protect Money from Nursing Home Costs
The best way to protect money from nursing home costs is to make a Medicaid plan. This involves structuring the ownership of your wealth so it does not count as financial resources for purposes of qualifying for means-tested Medicaid coverage. The reason this approach is a good one is because Medicaid covers the costs of nursing home care but Medicare does not provide this type of coverage. Medicaid, however, will not pay for you to get care unless you have limited financial resources because Medicaid benefits are available only to people with demonstrated financial need.
If you don’t make a Medicaid plan, you may have to impoverish yourself before you fall below Medicaid asset limits and Medicaid starts to pick up the tab for your nursing care. If you do make a Medicaid plan, then you can get Medicaid to cover you right away because the assets that you have protected won’t count when your eligibility for Medicaid is determined. Mark S. Eghrari & Associates, PLLC can assist with creating a customized asset protection plan by working with you to create and fund an asset protection trust.
If your parents are starting to get older, you should talk with them about whether they have this type of trust in place. If they have not made a plan to cover nursing home care, you should encourage them to. By working with your parents to put a plan in place, you can help them to keep their wealth safe and you can avoid having to make difficult decisions about what nursing home is right for them if the time comes when they need care.
Getting Help from a Nursing Home Planning Attorney
Mark S. Eghrari & Associates, PLLC will work with your family at any stage in the nursing home planning process. We can help if you and your parents are making advanced plans to get your care in a nursing home covered and we can provide assistance with crisis planning if your parents require nursing home care imminently and you do not already have plans in place to protect wealth. The sooner you take action, the more assets you can protect — but we can assist even in situations where you need care now and want to preserve as much of your parent’s wealth as possible.
To find out more about how our legal team can assist you with all of the legal issues related to nursing home planning and nursing home care, join us for a free seminar. You can also give us a call at (631) 265-0599 or contact us online to get personalized advice specific to your situation.
Mark S. Eghrari, Estate Planning Attorney
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