Thank you for your time to respond to my question. I made a call and was told the car value limit of $4,500 was changed and your car can be of any value. However, owning a second car makes you ineligible for Medicaid.
Medicaid for NH allows for a (1) car even if there is a community spouse.
Also Medicaid does not necessarily "recover them all when you die". Medicaid is required by the feds to have in place MERP - Medicaid Estate Recovery Program. How MERP runs is very much dependent on your states laws on property, death and probate. Some state have MERP recovery at zero while other states have active recovery efforts. So if you are in a state that allows for liens to be placed on property, then MERP is in a much more power position than if you are in a state which has MERP as a claim against the estate and liens cannot be placed on property other than by mortgage holder or workman. For example, TX is a level of claim probate and MERP is a Class 7 claim, so although it can happen MERP recovery rates via probate are lower as all other claims in 1 -6 get paid first & foremost before MERP. If they die without a will, in most states all their assets escheat to the state so the state essentially controls their property and this situation makes it hard on family to get property passed to them.
MERP is done after the Medicaid recipient dies as any exempt assets - usually this is their home and perhaps a car - become non-exempt when they die. In order to qualify for NH Medicaid in the first place you are basically impoverished at about 2K in assets & 2K in income, so there is no real money if you are on Medicaid and their assets are limited to their homesteaded property and a car.
Now upon the NH Medicaid recipient's death, MERP sends out a letter of intent and you or whomever who has exemptions or exclusions from MERP have to respond to MERP's letter within the specific timeframe with whatever documentation needed to support the exclusion or exemption. The letter is sent to let MERP determine if there is an overall exemption to MERP and if it is an exclusion make a cost-benefit analysis based on the exclusion to see if it is worthwhile to do a claim or a lien. If you do nothing, then MERP can do whatever is allowed under your state laws to get repaid for what Medicaid paid for their care. It is critical that any heir file for exemptions or exclusions to MERP.
Now many states are outsourcing MERP and they get a % of the recovery as they are akin to debt collectors.
dogabone, there are limits on the car value, the house value, the bank balance and line of credit. and while you get to keep them while you are alive, Medicaid recovers them all when you die.
Much depends on the value of the vehicles. Medicaid may require you to sell one and spend down the money on care for the patient prior to approval.
1. Single Person a. $1,500.00 in cash b. House (for 13 months; up to $543,000 in equity) c. Car (up to $4,500.00 NADA value) d. Personal belongings e. Irrevocable Pre-paid burial plan No second car allowed. Keep the one worth less than $4500. Married couples have different rules, see ohioelderlaw.com
Also Medicaid does not necessarily "recover them all when you die". Medicaid is required by the feds to have in place MERP - Medicaid Estate Recovery Program. How MERP runs is very much dependent on your states laws on property, death and probate. Some state have MERP recovery at zero while other states have active recovery efforts. So if you are in a state that allows for liens to be placed on property, then MERP is in a much more power position than if you are in a state which has MERP as a claim against the estate and liens cannot be placed on property other than by mortgage holder or workman. For example, TX is a level of claim probate and MERP is a Class 7 claim, so although it can happen MERP recovery rates via probate are lower as all other claims in 1 -6 get paid first & foremost before MERP. If they die without a will, in most states all their assets escheat to the state so the state essentially controls their property and this situation makes it hard on family to get property passed to them.
MERP is done after the Medicaid recipient dies as any exempt assets - usually this is their home and perhaps a car - become non-exempt when they die. In order to qualify for NH Medicaid in the first place you are basically impoverished at about 2K in assets & 2K in income, so there is no real money if you are on Medicaid and their assets are limited to their homesteaded property and a car.
Now upon the NH Medicaid recipient's death, MERP sends out a letter of intent and you or whomever who has exemptions or exclusions from MERP have to respond to MERP's letter within the specific timeframe with whatever documentation needed to support the exclusion or exemption. The letter is sent to let MERP determine if there is an overall exemption to MERP and if it is an exclusion make a cost-benefit analysis based on the exclusion to see if it is worthwhile to do a claim or a lien. If you do nothing, then MERP can do whatever is allowed under your state laws to get repaid for what Medicaid paid for their care.
It is critical that any heir file for exemptions or exclusions to MERP.
Now many states are outsourcing MERP and they get a % of the recovery as they are akin to debt collectors.
1. Single Person
a. $1,500.00 in cash
b. House (for 13 months; up to $543,000 in equity)
c. Car (up to $4,500.00 NADA value)
d. Personal belongings
e. Irrevocable Pre-paid burial plan
No second car allowed. Keep the one worth less than $4500.
Married couples have different rules, see ohioelderlaw.com