Medicaid Planning

In recent years a number of non-lawyers have started businesses offering Medicaid planning services to seniors. While using one of these services may be cheaper than hiring a lawyer, the overall costs may be far greater.

In some states (called "income cap" states), Medicaid applicants who have excess income can qualify for Medicaid only if they put the excess in a special trust, called a "Miller" trust or a "Qualified Income Trust.

When hiring a caregiver, it is important to put the contract in writing. If you don't it can affect your Medicaid benefits.

The U.S. Supreme Court's recent ruling on marriage equality means that gay couples living in states that previously did not recognize their marriage will now be covered by Medicaid’s spousal impoverishment protections and asset transfer rules.  ...

A federal appeals court has ruled that Medicaid officials must accept applicants' short-term annuities, providing more certainty for Medicaid applicants' use of this important planning tool. ...

Annuities can be valuable retirement and longevity planning tools, but they are complex financial products that can be misused. ...

Planning for retirement and deciding whether to buy long-term care insurance would be a lot easier if you knew your odds of needing long-term care, as well as at what age and for how long.

A life estate often comes up in discussions of estate and Medicaid planning. It is a form of joint ownership that allows one person to remain in a house until his or her death, when it passes to the other...

A recent Louisiana case shows the harmful impact on Medicaid eligibility that the lack of a written caregiving agreement can have.  ...