You’ve just come from taking your elderly mother to her doctor and learned that she needs to be admitted to a long-term care facility. Your mother isn’t a wealthy woman and you have no idea how she is going to pay for long-term care. This would be a good time to consult an elder law attorney and here’s why: A good elder law attorney can help you devise a plan to pay for your mother’s long-term care, make suggestions on ways your mother can preserve some of her assets and which assets need to be liquidated, sold, etc. If your elder law attorney determines that your mother will immediately qualify for Medicaid benefits, she will need to provide the following information as part of the Medicaid application process: 1. Non-Financial Documents a. Identification – picture ID (driver’s license, state ID) b. Social Security card(s) c. Birth verification (birth certificate, baptismal certificate or school record with date of birth) d. Marriage license or death certificate/divorce decree of spouse e. Health Insurance Identification Card (for all insurance coverage including Medicare, Medicare Supplemental, etc.) f. Military discharge records including original Form DD-214 g. Names, addresses, phone numbers of all children h. Listing of assets sold or given away in the last 5 years 2. Legal Documents a. Most recent Health Care Power of Attorney, Living Will, General Durable Power of Attorney, Will b. Trust documents c. Business entity/partnership agreements d. Resident admission agreement (if in assisted living or nursing home) 3. Non-Liquid Assets a. Deeds, land contracts, property agreements for all real estate b. Titles to all vehicles, motor crafts, jet skis and trailers c. Cemetery lot records (deed or certificate) d. Information on any prepaid funeral plans e. Stock certificates f. Savings bonds g. Promissory notes or loans (owed to her) 4. Liquid Assets a. Bank and credit union statements for the last 3 months (checking, savings, CDs, Money Market) b. IRA/401(k) account statements for the last 3 months c. Brokerage account statements for the last 3 months d. Personal needs account activity for the last 3 months (if in nursing home) 5. Insurance and Annuities a. All life insurance policies (including annual statements and any cash balances) b. Annuity contracts and annual/quarterly statements c. Long-term care, cancer and accidental death policies 6. Income and Expenses a. Income tax returns and 1099s for the last 2 years b. Health insurance premiums and recurring or unpaid medical expenses c. Health Insurance Statements showing premiums 7. Debt Information a. Mortgage statement b. Credit card statements c. Loan documents While this may seem like an excessive amount of information and documentation, it is necessary if a Medicaid application is filed. Medicaid funding is a benefit that the State wants to ensure is distributed to those most in need of assistance. The State will examine all of your mother’s assets, debts, financial gifts, and sources of revenue to determine her ability to pay for her own long-term care expenses. If her assets are insufficient to pay for her expenses, Medicaid benefits will be issued to pay for a portion or all of her long-term nursing home expenses. A good elder law attorney will be able to examine your documentation prior to the formal Medicaid application and make this same determination. He or she can save you valuable time and effort by explaining whether beginning the complicated and time-intensive Medicaid application process will be beneficial in your mother’s situation. For more information on long-term care and Medicaid planning, contact Davis & McCann, P. A., Dodge City, KS. We are members of Wealth Counsel, a national consortium of Estate Planning Attorneys and the National Academy of Elder Law Attorneys (NAELA). We focus our practice on providing clients with the best legal advice on Estate Planning, Medicaid and Long-term Care Planning, Family Business/Small Business Succession Planning, Probate, Trust Administration, Real Estate Transactions, 1031 Exchanges and related matters. Comments are closed.
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