My mother lives in an assisted living facility in another state and receives Medicaid. Can she receive New Jersey Medicaid if we move her here?

Geeves - ah yes but the devil is in the details..... Like the elder has to show residency. Which means they have a drivers license or state issued ID; perhaps show voters registration; have a in state address that their income goes into.

If your state is one that requires 2, 3 or so documents (in your name real property ownership, or utilities, or phone bill, or bank statements) in order to even get a DL or ID, this could be difficult for the elderly.

Could require advanced planning done. Like find a bank that is in both states, so switching address is easy.

As an aside on this, after H. katrina my MILs NH moved enmass to Houston. All on LA Medicaid went onto TX medicaid & seamlessly. But around 6 - 8 mos later all needed to requalify under TX eligibility. MIL went into a community based program (LA admit standards for NH were less medically stringent than TX). But for those ladies who still had homes or other property back in New Orleans area, they were now ineligible for TX Medicaid. The property back in LA was considered a non-exempt asset for Medicaid & took them over the 2k asset limit for TX Medicaid. So either they sold the property ASAP & did a spend-down to become re-eligible; or private paid; or moved back to LA wherever family could find a Medicaid bed.

JanelleB - please please PLEASE clearly find out:
- what the probability is for AL paid by NJ Medicaid and
- what medically is required to show "need" for AL and for NH
- what moms "awards" letters are (facility can ask to see these). These are annual letters that come in nov or dec that state what her mo income will be for 2017
- what mom needs to show for NJ residency and
- if she still has property (house, land, car) back in OH, just how are these assets viewed by NJ Medicaid. If there's a car, it might be worth keeping & registering in NJ, if it's low value so way under likely 2k non-exempt asset limit and "garaged" at whatever is moms new NJ address, but establishes property ownership (& taxation) in NJ.

You might want to speak with the SW at the AL & moms MD where she is now to get an idea of what moms status is medically and where she is on her ADLs. If mom could possibly be at the point of needing skilled nursing care in a NH, with MD orders on this, I'd suggest you try that route. You get mom into a NJ NH rather than AL. My reasoning is this..... for Medicaid, NH care is dedicated funding by law, unlike AL which are waiver funding (they can stop or just run for a set period). If Trumpcare goes through, the states are going to have to cut from the more costly Medicaid waiver programs. 1-on-1 AL is oodles more expensive than enrollment in a PACE or other day program. States who now do AL imo are going to shift to day programs as less cost but they do shift care to family to deal with all time outside of the day program.

It's a lot to deal with. Stay organized & keep your sense of humor going.

From what I have read, some states don't offer Medicaid for AL, just NH. I know that in my state, NC, the state has a plan that covers AL and Memory Care costs, for those who qualify financially and who need it by doctor's orders. (Usually disabled.) NH is handled separately, through regular Medicaid LTC. I'd double check with NJ to confirm they do cover AL, if that's what your mom needs.

Federal law prohibits a length of residency requirement. :-)

NJ offers medicaid to NJ residents. Hence there may be a waiting period. Have you discussed arrangements with the assisted living facility you are considering. Typically there is a social worker there who might help you navigatge the paperwork. BUT I found that true assisted living facilities ofte don't take medicaid residents or have a time period of required private pay. The one I am familiar with required 2 full years of private pay before they would take a medicaid resident.

Since Medicaid is different from state to state, your first step would be to contact Medicaid in NJ. Here is a link that contains very useful information. I hope all goes well.https://www.payingforseniorcare.com/medicaid/state-transfer-rules.html