Long Island Elder Law & Estate Planning

Long Island Medicaid planning attorneys help clients to protect their assets and make plans to obtain healthcare coverage in case they require costly medical services. As you get older, or if you get sick, you may have high care needs that necessitate expensive healthcare. In some cases, the care that you need is not covered by typical insurance or by Medicare. This can be a big problem, for example, if you need routine nursing home care or long-term care at home, neither of which are paid for by Medicare or most other policies. Long Island Medicaid Planning Attorneys

Medicaid is a primary payer of nursing home care and may be the only source of payment for many seniors. This is a big reason why there is so much concern regarding the potential for Medicaid cuts. In fact, Island Packet reported recently on testimony to the legislative committee regarding the potential risks of Medicaid cuts.

Because Medicaid is such a vital program, you should talk with Mark S. Eghrari & Associates, PLLC about whether you may need Medicaid someday and about what you can do to ensure you are able to get Medicaid to cover you when you need help. To find out more about how our firm can assist you with all of your Medicaid planning needs, give us a call today.

Concern About Medicaid Cuts

Medicaid is paid for by a partnership between federal and state governments. If federal funding for Medicaid is reduced, students may be unable to make up the shortfall in funding. In some cases, a reduction in federal funding could prompt states to cut benefits or could result in states limiting eligibility for benefits.

Many individuals reliant on Medicaid, either to provide for their own care or to help cover care costs for disabled or elderly family members, have expressed grave concerns over how their health and finances could be affected if Medicaid cuts take place. Proposed cuts could be damaging to the disabled, as well as to people suffering from mental illness, according to those who provided testimony. In some cases, those who are reliant upon Medicaid could find their lives shortened or at risk if they are not able to obtain needed services due to cost cutting that results in a benefits reduction.

Nursing home operators have also indicated some residents of their facilities would not be able to afford to continue living in their nursing homes if Medicaid cuts lead to patients losing access to coverage or if Medicaid cuts result in reimbursement rates for nursing homes being reduced.

Providers have expressed to lawmakers that they do not believe there are any other places where they could make cuts to costs if the Medicaid payments for nursing home care are reduced or eliminated. When seniors are forced to leave care facilities, this can cause a major disruption that could be damaging to their health and well-being as they lose their sense of community and purpose. Relatives could also be forced to pick up the slack in providing care to seniors who are no longer able to afford to stay in nursing homes.

Getting Help from Long Island Medicaid Planning Attorneys

These are just some of the big downsides that could result from cuts to Medicaid funding which results in available benefits changing. There have been repeated attempts on the federal level to cut Medicaid this year, as varying iterations of Trumpcare proposed Medicaid cuts. There is a continued possibility that cuts could occur as a result of upcoming decisions on the federal budget.

Seniors and their families need to make plans to protect assets, especially if there is a possibility that long-term care will become necessary and if there is a risk that Medicaid will not be able to provide full coverage. Mark S. Eghrari & Associates, PLLC can help with the creation of a Medicaid plan and can provide assistance in exploring different asset protection techniques to keep wealth safe in case costly nursing home care becomes necessary due to age and infirmity.

To find out how our Long Island Medicaid lawyers can help you, join us for a free seminar. You can also give us a call at (631) 265-0599 or contact us online at any time to get help with your personalized plans.

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About Mark S. Eghrari, Estate Planning Attorney

Mark S. Eghrari is an attorney in private practice in Smithtown, New York. He has been in practice since 1988. Mark S. Eghrari provides extensive estate and tax planning services to individuals and businesses. Mr. Eghrari’s primary focus is helping clients avoid probate, minimize or eliminate Federal and State Estate taxes and protect their assets from the high cost of nursing care, if they become ill.