Thank you Diavalon12--i was worried sick that mom would lose medi - cal i think my mom has widows benefits--I don't care which it is as long as she remains on medi - cal...i was merely worried about her losing it...sigh. the information you provided is so helpful.
Dear DP - you have not indicated the state you live in either in your profile or in your question. Since what you're asking about me ultimately boil down to Medicaid, you could get more accurate suggestions if we knew your state.
I processed Medical for most of 20 yrs so here goes with the knowledge that I will share. A share of cost will increase as social security goes up however if the va benefits she receives is "aid an attendance" then no that portion would not increase the share of cost as that monies is indended to help pay for medical expenses such as transportation to medical appts, the soc for percriptions etc. However, if she is receiving widows benefits then yes that could increase the soc as it is considered income. If she is paying for outside medical insurance besides medicare/medical then she should report that to her worker as if may quilify to decrease the soc. Hope that helps I have been retired for a few years but with my contacts I understand the rules are still the same. This information is for California only, I have no idea if they are the same in other states. Good luck to you.
speaking of CA and medi - ca since mom's SS goes up periodically and we just got some va benefits is mom safe because she continues to pay share of cost which has gone up when SS increases and when we got the VA $$. I hope so!
It may be better that you are a volunteer live in caregiver then a lodger. That only makes sense because if you were renting a bedroom & bathroom with house privileges, rent would be substantially more than what your contribution is.
$125 additional income processed as a deposit through your moms account would not affect social security but might confuse Medicaid calculations. It would be better if you didn't call it rent but consider that you're contributing to the household by paying the $125 toward food and utilities directly through your own account rather than paying anything to your mom that goes through her account. That would not be a good idea.
I used to work medical in California. The fact you pay her rent would not necessarily loose her aid but could create a Share of Cost each month. It is called inkind housing. You might want to consider paying a portion of the rent and a portion of the utilities to equal the same amount each month.
Most states have Medicaid income maximum at 2K, so she should be OK with the extra $ 125.00. Google your state's Medicaid program to find out the exact amount.
If she or you are still worried about how to deal with this, maybe you could instead pay each month a set amount on her utilities, like $ 75 on electric and $ 50 on water and pay directly to the water dept, etc. That way it never is "rental income".
If she or you are still worried about how to deal with this, maybe you could instead pay each month a set amount on her utilities, like $ 75 on electric and $ 50 on water and pay directly to the water dept, etc. That way it never is "rental income".