Medicaid—planning ahead strategies

Medicaid—Planning Ahead Strategies

Although it may not seem possible there are ways that you can plan ahead for Medicaid. In many instances, it is a misconception that you must diminish all your assets and income in order to get Medicaid. This is not always the case to become eligible for Medicaid. To help plan for the future and make sure that your medical expenses will be covered here are some strategies to follow.

Nursing home costs On average the stay in a nursing home is 835 days according to the National Care Planning Council. The monthly cost can range from three to thirteen thousand dollars a month. Based on thirty months this comes to ninety to three hundred ninety thousand dollars. Looking at these figures you can see why it is smart to plan ahead because most likely the prices per month will rise instead of fall in the future. If planning is not done for receiving Medicaid the financial burden can be massive, especially if you do not have the funds to meet the monthly expenses because what you cannot cover will be covered generally by family members. Although each state has eligibility guidelines for Medicaid that could be slightly different, the most important eligibility factors will be income and assets. To become eligible to receive Medicaid benefits almost all of your assets and savings will have to be depleted.

Estate planning To make sure that your estate planning is done correctly it is best that you contact a Medicaid planning attorney Toms River. They are knowledgeable in what the exact requirements are in regards to Medicaid and will help you with your planning strategies. It is a personal choice if you decide to do estate planning but it will help you decide how you want to spend your money and divide up any assets instead of having the decisions made for you by others.

Irrevocable trusts These are trusts that generally cannot be changed by the one that created it. It is an asset that if properly structured and funded it can protect assets from being a resource for Medicaid. When planning for Medicaid Red Bank NJ they can be extremely useful; however, any transfers to an irrevocable trust is subject to the five-year look-back period. In some cases you can place real estate into an irrevocable trust that will preserve tax benefits but you do this the control over the property.

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