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I have been overseeing my mom's care for 19 years. Eleven years ago she was placed in a Nursing Home. It was our intention for her to remain in a Nursing Care facility as she requires 24 hr care. When we saw the threat of Coronavirus and what it could do to the elderly population in Nursing Homes my husband and I had her discharged in our care until this pandemic was under control. Mom was discharged March 10th. She had to pay most of her monthly Social Security each month as her portion. Since mom was not in the Nursing Home from March 11th thru March 31st can she receive a partial refund payed to the Nursing Home for the days she was not there? When contacting the Nursing Home Administrative Dept. I was informed that mom was most likely not entitled to receiving a reimbursement. Since mom is in our care and she requires Food ~ Shelter and Daily Assistance on a 24 hour basis why can she not receive this money to help with her care for the remainder of the month? Where can we get help to see if mom is entitled to receive a partial reimbursement?


Thank you.

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I don't think mom would be entitled to refund. She pays by the month at a reduced Medicaid rate. The nursing home expenses for the month are predetermined. Her room is paid for the entire month. Check the contract, notice was probably required.
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ProtectingMom Apr 2020
Thank you for your input.
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Nope, you don't ever get reimbursed for partial months occupied, even if you die you paid and they keep the money.

I would bet dollars to donuts that is spelled out in her contract. I have never read one that didn't make this abundantly clear.

One question, did you move her completely out? Taking all of her personal belongings? If not you will be charged for April as well. They can also charge you a moving and storage fee if you didn't clear out her room.
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ProtectingMom Apr 2020
Yes, the nursing home discharged her when I wanted to take her out for protection. Her furniture was picked up the next day. Nothing was left behind.
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she’s neither owed or entitled to a refund. It’s much the same as when you rent a house or an apartment, the contract with the nursing home likely requires you give notice and there’s no prorated discount if you move out early/before the end of the month. Also she’s required to pay all of her social security to the nursing home ( minus the personal needs allowance) As part of her Medicaid eligibility.
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I don’t believe she is eligible for a refund. It was your family’s decision to take her home and she is then required to pay the entire month.
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I think you have a bigger issue here than a partial refund of a SSI check your mother pays the NH for a portion of her rent. Since you moved mother out of her NH lock stock & barrel, what are you going to do with her after the virus situation is under control? Unless you plan to keep her with you for the remainder of her lifetime, she'll need to go back to a Nursing Home once again and a Medicaid bed can be quite difficult to acquire. Have you spoken to the NH she was in to see if she can go back there at some point? What happens with Medicaid in the meantime?

Making a spur of the moment decision like this can have far reaching consequences. That's not to say you made a bad decision........just that you need to consider what comes next.

Wishing you the best of luck!
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You need to refer to her contract with that facility, to discern if anything is reimbursed to CMS or to her. If anything is to be refunded or pro-rated Medicaid/CMS would be refunded/pro-rated before your mother. Overall, It's doubtful, since her contract likely requires a 30-day notice to vacate.

Eventually she will need to return to a facility , so you will need to remain on good terms with the facility.

In the meantime, Medicaid has home based services options through its various "waiver programs." Which is where you'll locate information about hiring/paying for home help, etc.

It's always a good idea to contact your state/county Medicaid office, to notify that office, about your mother being removed.Even though nursing homes are required to contact the county. It's always a good idea to contact the county office as a courtesy call, to make sure everything has been communicated in a timely manner.

All in all, even though it's doubtful that you'll be due anything, Do what you can to remain on friendly terms with the facility and your state/county Medicaid/CMS office.
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