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7 days ago
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Disagreements with a nursing home can arise regarding any number of topics, including the quality of food, troublesome roommates, lack of privacy, or services not meeting what was promised. Many disputes can be resolved by speaking with a nursing home staff member, supervisor, or moving up the chain... [read more]
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3 weeks ago
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Medicaid long-term care benefits traditionally pay mainly for nursing home care, but the federal government can grant “waivers” to states allowing them to expand Medicaid to include home and community-based services. The downside is that receiving care in a nursing home is an entitlement, while ... [read more]
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4 weeks ago
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In order to be eligible for Medicaid benefits a nursing home resident may have no more than $2,000 in "countable" assets (the figure may be somewhat higher in some states). Note that Medicaid is a state-run program, so the rules are somewhat different in each state, although there are federal guidel... [read more]
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2 months ago
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The Senate Democrats' proposal for a $3.5 trillion spending plan includes expanding Medicare to provide dental, vision, and hearing benefits. The proposal is now being negotiated in Congress.
Currently Medicare does not offer much in the way of dental, vision, an... [read more]
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2 months ago
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Qualifying for Medicare hardly means free health care -- there are still premiums and deductibles. However, people who qualify for both Medicare and Medicaid (called “dual eligibility”) receive help paying their out-of-pocket costs.
Medicare is a federal program available to anyone 65 or olde... [read more]
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2 months ago
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In December 2018, the Social Security Administration (SSA) had a nasty surprise for Laura Marshall (not her real name), a 74-year-old woman just scraping by while living in senior citizen housing in New York City’s Harlem neighborhood: The agency demanded that she repay more than $10,000 in benefits... [read more]
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2 months ago
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Medicare prescription drug (Part D) plans can have a coverage gap—called the "donut hole"--which limits how much Medicare will pay for your drugs until you pay a certain amount out of pocket. Although the gap has gotten much smaller since Medicare Part D was introduced in 2006, there still may be a ... [read more]
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5 months ago
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For many Medicaid applicants, individual retirement accounts (IRAs) are one of their biggest assets. If you do not plan properly, IRAs can count as an available asset and affect Medicaid eligibility.
Medicaid applicants can have only a small amount of assets in order to be eligible to receive... [read more]
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5 months ago
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Netflix’s popular new movie, I Care a Lot, may be far-fetched in a lot of ways, but it does highlight some real weaknesses in the guardianship system that make it possible for an unscrupulous guardian to take control of an elderly person’s life and bleed their resources dry. Fortunately, steps can b... [read more]
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6 months ago
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Spring is definitely here, and in addition to enjoying the warmer weather, sunshine, and longer days, many of us are also Spring cleaning. Deep cleaning our homes, checking our refrigerators and pantries for anything out of date, clearing out clothing that doesn't fit anymore, weeding and removing y... [read more]
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9 months ago
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Buying long-term care insurance is one way to protect against the high cost of long-term care. However, this type of insurance may not be for everyone, so consider all your options.
Long-term care – care in a nursing home or at home -- may be paid for in four main ways:
Out-of-pocket. If y... [read more]
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1 year ago
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We're often asked if there are special considerations for creating Estate Plans for retirees. Our answer is that there are times in our lives that are considered significant events, when we are wise to create or revisit our Estate Plans, and retiring is definitely one of these times.
Whether you ... [read more]
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