Important Issues In New York Medicaid Planning

When one is planning their estate in Westchester County or Putnam County, one of the first things to address is what role, if any, that Medicaid will play in your long-term care plans. Medicaid is a federal program administered by each of the individual states, and if you worry about your health needs being met as you age, ensuring that you qualify for New York Medicaid is important. The right attorney can help.

Who Is Eligible?

The most important thing to keep in mind when determining one’s eligibility for Medicaid is that the program is ”means-tested.” Originally, Medicaid was designed as a program for people poor enough to qualify. Now, with the costs associated with long-term elder care in our country, it also allows elderly with more assets to rearrange their estates in a way that allows them to qualify for subsidized care.

It is important to know that these arrangements are completely legal and above board.  Structuring your estate in such a way as to put much of it in others’ names, for example, is perfectly legal if done in accordance with the law. It is common in this day and age for people to have some significant assets, but it is also common that those assets, while significant, are insufficient to cover to costs of their long-term care. Allowing people to rearrange their assets is essentially Medicaid’s middle ground – helping people get the care they need without leaving them destitute. 

Can I Give Gifts?

Many people learn about how to qualify for Medicaid and think they can simply transfer assets to their friends or family in order to meet the threshold. In reality, Medicaid penalizes any asset transfers that are not made properly.  Adherence to the proper procedures is crucial; when you don’t, the argument becomes if a person can give so many of their assets away, they should be using those assets to pay for treatment.

Certain transfers, such as those from one spouse to another, are generally exempt from penalty.  But if you are interested in giving gifts to other family members, it may be better to do so in a way that will not incur penalties. For example, many people create what are known as irrevocable trusts, in which assets can be placed ‘in trust’ for your children or other chosen beneficiaries. This way, the items will pass to your chosen beneficiary, but will also not adversely affect your eligibility for Medicaid – in fact, it will help.

Contact A Pleasantville or Mahopac Medicaid Planning Attorney

Planning one’s estate can be difficult and time-consuming, and Medicaid planning is only one aspect of this process. A Medicaid planning attorney from Meyer & Spencer, PC can help answer your questions and to establish the best estate plan possible for you and yours. Call or text our office today at (914) 741-2288 to schedule a consultation.