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Gma4hbw Asked September 2015

How to get paid for taking care of my incapacitated Mother?

I have been taking care of my mom for six years now. I would like to go to work for many reasons however she has gotten worse. She is using six sometimes more depends and bed pads. Her pension is no longer enough. How can I get paid for taking care of her?

malloryg8r Sep 2015
I'm pretty sure cmagnum meant to say, MedicAID (as offered in your state), and not MediCARE. There are absolutely zero Medicare payments to caregivers. On the other hand, in some states, there may be a limited amount of state assistance thru the MEDICAID program. To find out about your state's programs go on the state government website, or visit your local dept of human services. Your mom will have to qualify for Medical Assistance which means having no more than $2,000 (or might be $2,500) in assets. She can "spend down " to this figure by pre-paying her funeral (up to the state allowed amount ). Be aware that the state will scrutinize 5 years of bank records, property transactions, her Soc Sec amount, any pensions, etc. All her assets must go towards her care - if she made gifts to anyone they may count it against her by awarding MedicAID but at a future date, calculated by dividing the amount of the gift (s) amount, by the monthly costs she would be receiving from the state. For example, if she qualified for Medicaid, and they authorized in home care services costing $900 per month, but she had transferred her $180,000 house to her grandson (or sold it to him for $180,000 under market value), she would be "penalized" for $180,000 divided by $900, which comes out to 200 months, or 16 years. But if she didn't do any gifting or transfers within the past 5 years, and has basically no assets or income, and your state offers in home care, she would receive that help, as soon as she is approved. Not all states will pay family members as caregivers, and the pay is only slightly above minimum wage, and taxes - Soc Sec - Medicare - unemployment insurance.- workman's comp will all be deducted from your paychecks. If you receive state aid right now (SNAP, subsidized housing, etc) or SSDI, your qualifying for those benefits may be adversely affected.
Another thing to keep in mind is that no state will pay more in in-home care, than it would cost them to pay a facility. So if her needs are "too expensive" for the state to perform at home, or if the state determines that she is not safe at home, they will only offer facility care. And that facility will not necessarily be in your city--I have more than one friend whose mom went on MEDICAID and was transferred to nursing home.care sseveral hours away from them.

notrydoyoda Sep 2015
This is one of the number one questions asked on this site. One way you can be paid is by your mother. You would need to write up a contract. There may be some money through Medicare in your state for being the caregiver of your mom. Other than that I did not believe there is any other money to pay a family member being a caregiver.

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