My parent lives with me, but I also have a full time job and have care for the three days I work. But I pay for everything else and her needs are getting to much for me to handle emotionally and physically.
Well-stated by others: call the Agency on Aging (likely senior community services) for your parent's county. The counties are the boots-on-the-ground for social programs. Skip elder attorneys for now. The County will likely start with an in-home assessment of needs. They may very well have some caregiver support groups for you.
Although its a federally funded program, its administered differently in each state. In Illinois, I applied online last October through our state's Department of Human Services (IDHS). I got it by Googling "(Name of State) Medicaid application". Although my husband had adequate Medicare and supplemental health insurance coverage, the first step in getting him long term care coverage for a facility started with getting approved for medical benefits (healthcare coverage, like insurance). They said once he was approved for that, it would be much easier to get approved for long term care (facility) coverage. In Illinois it was also easier at this point as covid policies were still in place and made it easier to qualify. A representative called me and went over different figures with me and within two weeks he was approved for the medical benefits with a spenddown, and when I applied for long term care recently, he was approved very quickly for that. I received a few different letters from IDHS with different information on them that I needed for the nursing home, so be sure you keep track of any correspondence you get. It was all done online except for one phone call.
That said, we have both been self-employed, so I keep track of all of our expenses for tax purposes. You will need to know income and medical expenses. Although I needed the household income figures, I needed only HIS medical expenses - prescriptions, co-pays, etc., anything out of pocket. It was my understanding that we needed the last five years of bank statements, but because of the covid policies, approval was easier to get and no one has asked to see them yet. In speaking with the nursing home about his approval, they seemed surprised I didn't have to supply the bank statements, but no one has asked for them YET and the nursing home said everything was approved through Medicaid and we were good to go.
Your local County Office on Aging often has an Elder Benefit Specialist that can help for free, unless it is a large estate/ assets or complicated family dynamics / divestment in the past 5 years.Usually has to be down to 2000.00 in total assets, and there may be a Cost Share if high monthly income.
Cataxsom: Perhaps you'll want to retain an elder law attorney well versed in Medicaid. The complexities of Medicaid may make it worth it in the long run.
I would ask for professional help with your question. First your local Social Security Office or Medicare Office should provide some help. They are often hard to reach. SO, I would start right here at Agingcare.com. The first three topics on their home page are assistance to: FIND CARE, FIND IN-HOME CARE, FIND ASSISTED LIVING. If they can't give you some direction/help, then try Organizations such as "National Council on Aging (NCOA)", American Association of Retired People (AARP), Catholic Charities of America, Salvation Army of America and Care.com (they advertise on television, and that is how I came to be on this website.
We had an assessment done by Agency on Aging (in her state), a social worker came out to her house and spent a couple hours maybe, talking to us about her needs, her possible future needs (Mom didn’t think she actually needed any outside help) and the things she might qualify for. In her state they have various gap programs that give assistance to those that don’t quite qualify for Medicaid and for those waiting on qualification. She also assessed that Mom met the requirements to qualify for Medicaid and filled out the initial application with us. Mom qualified for all the services up front based on that application and her assessment so she got those services pretty quickly just not the medical expense portion. Though it was retroactive once approved. In Moms state the Medicaid application can be done on line as well simply by going to the Health and Human services department on the state website and once they receive the application you are assigned a case worker who is in charge of getting things they need and processing the case. While it was time consuming it was also fairly easy. Once I submitted my POA I was mailed a copy of everything sent to Mom so able to get the things they needed to them. The thing that took the longest was getting my mothers divorce decrees, she was divorced twice and the first time was almost 50 years ago so before they computerized and too far back once they added things to the computer system. The more prepared you are the better because things move faster and the social worker did give us a heads up on needing the bank statements so we ordered those and then found out they only needed the last 12 months worth and then Dec from each year for 5 years. Once she was approved she had Medicare and Medicaid for medical coverage, SNAP benefits, rent help (not much) and full coverage for home assistance. It will be different in different states since Medicaid is a state run program using Federal funding as well as state. Also to be clear while a huge part of the process is done for us, Medicaid LTC (meaning residential care) and Medicaid are two related but different programs. Medicaid LTC pays all the expenses of NH care after the patient's income goes toward it each month so no more income other than a small spending stipend each month. Community Medicaid helps cover medical supplemental and then typically qualifies them for SNAP (food stamps) as well as other services depending on the state and what they offer. We are lucky that the state my mom lives in places a value on keeping people home or in the community and out of NH as long as possible. It’s a populated state however so some of the programs have long waiting lists while others have budgets that get used quickly so timing can be everything!
Long and short, if you have POA and Moms support get in touch with the Agency in Aging or equivalent in her area and they should be able to help guide you. You can also check out the states website usually the Health and Human services department but maybe it has its own button, to see if there are steps for applying for Medicaid on line. Other outside services usually charge for all of this and still need you to do most of the leg work so that isn’t the first place I would go. An elder or Medicaid attorney also charges and from my perspective is well worth it if there are really complicated circumstances but again simply fills out the forms and tells you what they need otherwise so unless you already have a working relationship with that attorney I would wait to see if you really need that help once you get started.
Your parents are still in the community but if one or both were in a NH or going into one the NH will often take on the responsibility of applying, with your help of course and be the middle man which to me makes the most sense for having a middle man because as long as they believe the person will qualify they accept the retroactive payment. Medicaid is retroactive to day of application.
Whether the Elder Law attorney or the Geriatric Social worker suggested by others on this thread I would hire someone, myself. Whatever you can take off your own plate will keep your parent's money spent down. The rules vary so much state to state that you need the help of someone in your own state. And need to know the rules. They can be found easily enough by contacting https://www.eldercareresourceplanning.org/ suggested below (and thanks, gabucks for that). Best of luck with all this. These jobs are a bear to handle with regular normal life.
Go To: https://www.eldercareresourceplanning.org/ Brochure will guide you. They will guide you too and its all done according to the state that you reside in. Very thorough and tedious but almost impossible without help. May be an expense that scares you but the alternative is doing it on your own or with an elder care attorney and that will not only be expensive but it will ruin your health. Good Luck! GABucks
Medicaid is a joint federal and state program that helps cover medical costs for people with limited income and resources. All states have Medicaid and they must follow the general rules that the federal government have in place, but each state runs its own program which means eligibility requirements can vary from state to state.
To qualify for Medicaid, your mother must have very limited income and resources. You can apply for the Medicaid program through your county office or you can apply through your state. My daughter works for the state of New Jersey Medicaid program that qualifies patients for group homes, nursing homes, etc. If she sees anything questionable in their application, answers are requested. Bare in mind, though, that states do a 5-year look back where they check the patient’s income, asset, and resources and if there’s anything questionable in the 5-year look back then they will need answers regarding this.
The amount of income allowed in California is now up over 100,000. Shows how much the states vary state to state and how much they differ. Our lookback is only 2 1/2 years.
It sounds reasonable to find out if your mother qualifies for Medicaid, but I am curious about three days a week being "full time" work. Maybe you just mean your work a full day on the days you work.
I would not do it yourself. I hired a geriatric social worker to do the paperwork and it worked out fine. Probably less expensive then an elder care attorney. My Mother received home help through Medicaid for 7 years...in the last year or so round the clock care. There is no way we could have managed otherwise financially. She recently passed away at 103.
Contact your county office of aged and disabilities.. my mom was in memory care . An assessment was done , then a case worker assigned.. case worker would actually do the application. My mom passed two days before our appointment…
My mom's pension was several hundred dollars more than the cutoff to qualify for Medicaid, so I hired an Elder Lawyer to help us set up a Miller Trust and navigate the Medicaid application process. It was still arduous. The constant shell game of moving money around...into the trust, out of the trust, paying her bills...it's ridiculous.
You get an appointment at the Social Service Dept and talk to a Medicaid caseworker. You tell them you need to apply for Longterm Medicaid. If parent is living with you, I would assume she has no house? Just her SS and maybe a pension? If so, her application should be pretty much cut and dry. As long as she is under the asset cap (my State 2k) and under the income cap (2523 in my State) you should have no problems. Be aware though, her SS and any pension will go towards her care. Medicaid will pay their share.
If you have a problem with Medicaid, then seek out an elder lawyer but I saw no need to for the initial application. Later yes because of the house and being able to get what was Market Value.
Whether you hire an attorney or not really depends on how much money your parents has. If your parent owns property or has 6 figures or more in savings, It may be well worth it to pay for an attorney. Of course, you may need financial POA or otherwise have access to her accounts to do this. The other way, for people with little to no assets, is to have a state or hospital social worker help you with the application OR apply yourself online. This is what I did. I applied for my father online, and within 24 hours a state Medicaid worker called me. Shortly thereafter I sent father to the hospital and also received support there from the social worker. So, I actually had 2 applications going. Then I had to contact the bank and get 5 years of bank statements. Once the State had all the required documents, it took a little over a month to get the approval, it was all very fast. From what I've heard, it depends on the state you live in as to how quickly and smoothly the process goes, fortunately I live in one of the bluer, wealthier states. So in your situation, if your parent has little assets and just receives, a SS check every month, i definitely would not recommend paying an attorney. If parent owns property and has assets in the bank, it may be worth it because the money is going to have to be spent down anyway in order to qualify for Medicaid. Visit your local Agency on Aging, they should be able to help, or if parent lands in the hospital, seek help from the social worker there. If you reach your breaking point (as I eventually did), get parent into the hospital and get them to help find placement in a Nursing home.
I hired an elder care attorney as well. I don't know how anyone can manage it on their own and work full-time. The hoops you have to jump through are mind boggling, not to mention missing even the tiniest detail can set you back. It's worth it.
I actually hired an elder lawyer and it was worth every penny. They helped with the Medicaid application and managed all the forms and questions. They gave me guidance on the best processes and helped with the approval. I would not have wanted to do it on my own.
My MIL was in a nursing home when she ran out of money and the facility helped us. Her finances were very simple so I'm sure that helped. It's a pain but it's doable, especially with a little help.
Hang in there!
That said, we have both been self-employed, so I keep track of all of our expenses for tax purposes. You will need to know income and medical expenses. Although I needed the household income figures, I needed only HIS medical expenses - prescriptions, co-pays, etc., anything out of pocket. It was my understanding that we needed the last five years of bank statements, but because of the covid policies, approval was easier to get and no one has asked to see them yet. In speaking with the nursing home about his approval, they seemed surprised I didn't have to supply the bank statements, but no one has asked for them YET and the nursing home said everything was approved through Medicaid and we were good to go.
Long and short, if you have POA and Moms support get in touch with the Agency in Aging or equivalent in her area and they should be able to help guide you. You can also check out the states website usually the Health and Human services department but maybe it has its own button, to see if there are steps for applying for Medicaid on line. Other outside services usually charge for all of this and still need you to do most of the leg work so that isn’t the first place I would go. An elder or Medicaid attorney also charges and from my perspective is well worth it if there are really complicated circumstances but again simply fills out the forms and tells you what they need otherwise so unless you already have a working relationship with that attorney I would wait to see if you really need that help once you get started.
Your parents are still in the community but if one or both were in a NH or going into one the NH will often take on the responsibility of applying, with your help of course and be the middle man which to me makes the most sense for having a middle man because as long as they believe the person will qualify they accept the retroactive payment. Medicaid is retroactive to day of application.
Best of luck with all this. These jobs are a bear to handle with regular normal life.
https://www.eldercareresourceplanning.org/
Brochure will guide you. They will guide you too and its all done according to the state that you reside in. Very thorough and tedious but almost impossible without help. May be an expense that scares you but the alternative is doing it on your own or with an elder care attorney and that will not only be expensive but it will ruin your health.
Good Luck!
GABucks
To qualify for Medicaid, your mother must have very limited income and resources. You can apply for the Medicaid program through your county office or you can apply through your state. My daughter works for the state of New Jersey Medicaid program that qualifies patients for group homes, nursing homes, etc. If she sees anything questionable in their application, answers are requested. Bare in mind, though, that states do a 5-year look back where they check the patient’s income, asset, and resources and if there’s anything questionable in the 5-year look back then they will need answers regarding this.
Good Luck.
If you have a problem with Medicaid, then seek out an elder lawyer but I saw no need to for the initial application. Later yes because of the house and being able to get what was Market Value.
My MIL was in a nursing home when she ran out of money and the facility helped us. Her finances were very simple so I'm sure that helped. It's a pain but it's doable, especially with a little help.