When you are spending with this card you are strictly using it for his welfare, correct? And you are carefully keeping all receipts so that when Medicaid looks at this it is clear that all monies you spent using his money were for his benefit only. If this is not so, and you are using the card for things not for him, then he is gifting and this will cause huge trouble with the Medicaid application.
OK then Medicaid rules on gifting will come into play assuming he applies for Medicaid within the lookback period (5 years, or perhaps longer in some states). In that case there would be a penalty period in which Medicaid would not pay. Igloo, another poster, is very good for info especially in this area.
Nathan, you cannot use Grandfather's debt care for your own rent. That would cause a major disruption regarding Medicaid.
Who is Grandfather's financial Power of Attorney? Usually that person would be the one to handle all of the financial matters. If the POA says it is ok for you to use the debit card to buy things for Grandfather's care, I would check to see how much money is in the account to which the debit card is drawn. You wouldn't want an over-draft.
I agree with everyone. A debit card is like a check. It is drawn from his checking account. Medicaid looks at bank statements back five years. There is also a spend down where Gpa can only have $2000 (in NJ, each state is different) in his bank account. You need to hand the card over to the person who helped with the Medicaid filing. Even if it's a credit card. You are not entitled to use it.
Is it a debit card or a CC? If it’s a debit card, it’s going to show up in his banking Statements. Paying rent for others or buying anything for others is considered gifting by Medicaid and makes him ineligible.
This is beyond real bad idea. I’m guessing that gramps has some degree of dementia. He wants to do something for family but doesn’t realize the ramifications for Medicaid. He is considered a “vulnerable adult” and you can be found to be taking advantage of a vulnerable adult.
What will happen is that when Medicaid does a review of his financial, the gifting via the debitcard will surface. So he will be ineligible for CT Medicaid program. So for him to stay in the NH either family happily private pays for his care due to the transfer penalty issued due to $$$ Gifted; OR someone in the family files charges against you for stealing/ undue influence/ taking advantage of a vulnerable adult cause if there’s a police report the penalty can be lifted but your going to court....; OR family does a civil and sues you. Whatever it’s a hot legal mess. Don’t do it, & repay whatever $ given to you.
If it’s a CC is going to be it’s own special clusterF for both Medicaid and the CC company. CC isn’t exactly an asset, like debit card $ in the bank is. It’s credit that becomes a debt. And debt that grandpa will owe. Problem is once he’s in a NH and on Medicaid he will have no $ anymore to ever pay on his outside debts, like his home, credit cards, car, etc. all his monthly income must be paid to the NH as the required copay or SOC (share of cost). He will default on the debt and the CC can look to see if any fraudulent charges done with the card and go after whomever did them.
Who is DPOA? They have a fiduciary responsibility to manage funds appropriately.
Nathan, Another thought, you wrote “we are in the process..” So has a Medicaid application been started or done? If so, whomever was doing the application needs to carefully look at the fine print the state of CT has for changes to assets after application filed.
I have no idea how CT does this. But for the TX application if the dpoa or family do anything to change the items in the application, they must in writing notify Medicaid within 30 days or if not state can place a fine on them. Yea on them, not the elder. The dpoa could find themselves in their own personal hell due to allowing you to get gramps $ in addition to his transfer penalty if CT does something like this.
Who is Grandfather's financial Power of Attorney? Usually that person would be the one to handle all of the financial matters. If the POA says it is ok for you to use the debit card to buy things for Grandfather's care, I would check to see how much money is in the account to which the debit card is drawn. You wouldn't want an over-draft.
If it’s a debit card, it’s going to show up in his banking Statements. Paying rent for others or buying anything for others is considered gifting by Medicaid and makes him ineligible.
This is beyond real bad idea.
I’m guessing that gramps has some degree of dementia. He wants to do something for family but doesn’t realize the ramifications for Medicaid. He is considered a “vulnerable adult” and you can be found to be taking advantage of a vulnerable adult.
What will happen is that when Medicaid does a review of his financial, the gifting via the debitcard will surface. So he will be ineligible for CT Medicaid program. So for him to stay in the NH either family happily private pays for his care due to the transfer penalty issued due to $$$ Gifted; OR someone in the family files charges against you for stealing/ undue influence/ taking advantage of a vulnerable adult cause if there’s a police report the penalty can be lifted but your going to court....; OR family does a civil and sues you. Whatever it’s a hot legal mess.
Don’t do it, & repay whatever $ given to you.
If it’s a CC is going to be it’s own special clusterF for both Medicaid and the CC company. CC isn’t exactly an asset, like debit card $ in the bank is. It’s credit that becomes a debt. And debt that grandpa will owe. Problem is once he’s in a NH and on Medicaid he will have no $ anymore to ever pay on his outside debts, like his home, credit cards, car, etc. all his monthly income must be paid to the NH as the required copay or SOC (share of cost). He will default on the debt and the CC can look to see if any fraudulent charges done with the card and go after whomever did them.
Who is DPOA? They have a fiduciary responsibility to manage funds appropriately.
So has a Medicaid application been started or done? If so, whomever was doing the application needs to carefully look at the fine print the state of CT has for changes to assets after application filed.
I have no idea how CT does this. But for the TX application if the dpoa or family do anything to change the items in the application, they must in writing notify Medicaid within 30 days or if not state can place a fine on them. Yea on them, not the elder. The dpoa could find themselves in their own personal hell due to allowing you to get gramps $ in addition to his transfer penalty if CT does something like this.
Where is the dpoa in all this???