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Medicaid Planning

**Attention**

As of October 1, 2020, new applicants for Home Care Benefits from Medicaid in New York City will be subject to a financial look-back period of 2.5 years during submission. Applicants before this time will be exempt from the look-back.


Brooklyn Medicaid Planning/Asset Protection Attorney

Residents of Brooklyn, Queens, the Bronx, Manhattan and Long Island who want information about how to protect assets when preparing to use Medicaid assistance for nursing home or other elderly related financing have a valuable resource in the lawyers at Polizzotto & Polizzotto, LLC.

You want to pass as much of your estate as possible onto your children and spouse. We can help you preserve much of your estate and properly plan to qualify for Medicaid assistance when the time comes. However, it is essential to plan ahead. Contact our Brooklyn Medicaid planning attorney for a confidential consultation and advice on how to properly plan for old age, sickness or disability.

We can help you understand how to legally transfer your assets to preserve your hard-earned property for future generations of your family, regardless of your state of health.

Medicaid Changes In The Deficit Reduction Act Of 2005

In February 2006, the Deficit Reduction Act of 2005 was signed into law by President Bush. The DRA affects your ability to obtain Medicaid benefits and protect your assets. Now more than ever, prudent planning is a necessity to preserve the greatest amount of your estate for your family and provide the nursing home care you may require.

Lengthening The Look-Back Period

The Deficit Reduction Act lengthens the look-back period to five years from three years.

Change In Beginning Date Of Period Of Ineligibility

Previously, a penalty period for institutional (nursing home) care began the month after a transfer was made. The DRA changed this so the penalty does not begin to run until a person is institutionalized and otherwise eligible for Medicaid (by exhausting other funds). This means any transfer in the past five years would disqualify for a period of time for nursing home care.

There are still transfer exemptions and hardship provisions.

Annuities

To not be counted as a resource, annuities must be irrevocable and nonassignable, be actuarially sound, and have equal payments with no deferral or balloon payments. The state would have to be named as a remainder beneficiary, although it could be secondary after a spouse or a minor or disabled child.

Home Equity

Equity in a home would count as a resource if is over $858,000 (2018 limit). An individual could take a reverse mortgage or home equity loan to reduce the total equity.

Loans

For a loan or mortgage not to be treated as a transfer of assets, the repayment must be actuarially sound, and it cannot be canceled upon death of the lender.

Qualify For Medicaid Assistance

Many people misconstrue what the law is in the area of the transfer of assets for the sake of qualifying for Medicaid assistance legally and in a timely manner. They may have heard about a five-year period that prevents them from safeguarding property when a health crisis comes without ample warning. However, we can explain to our clients the “rule of halves” that can save their families thousands of dollars even if there was no planning done prior to the need for care.

We can explain the workings of interspousal transfers, which exemptions apply and how to put money in a place where it does not interfere with your eligibility for Medicaid, yet allows you financial flexibility.

We can explain how to cope with income limits that apply to Medicaid through pooled income trusts.

The law firm of Polizzotto & Polizzotto, LLC, is eager to share this and other valuable information about how to best prepare those who need Medicaid assistance, yet have assets to protect for their families.

Please contact our asset protection lawyers for a consultation, in person or by phone, about how your family can best prepare for Medicaid eligibility. In this area of law, we charge a reasonable fee for the initial visit. We are confident it will be the most valuable money you ever spend.