Q. My mother has been receiving Medicaid in a nursing home for four years. Now we want to bring her home (to her daughter’s) for the remainder of her days. What is the disadvantage in doing so? A. There should not be any disadvantage. Depending on your state, you may or may not be able…
We’ve all heard the advice “It pays to shop around,” but this has never been more true than with the current market for long-term care insurance. According to the latest industry figures, the spread between the lowest and highest cost for virtually identical coverage was as high as 243 percent. “This is the largest spread I…
Traditionally, Medicaid has paid for long-term care in a nursing home, but because most individuals would rather be cared for at home and home care is cheaper, all 50 states now have Medicaid programs that offer at least some home care. In some states, even family members can get paid for providing care at home….
Q. After my mother has been living in a nursing home for a year, the nursing home just asked me to provide receipts for how I spend my mother’s $60 a month allotment from her Social Security check. They say it has always been a government requirement. I am her guardian and have never heard…
Q. If a property appraisal was never obtained when a parent died (2016), how can we determine the cost basis in order to calculate the capital gains taxes? Four siblings inherited the home and plan to sell it. A. When you sell property that you inherit, you need to determine how much the property was…
The rules differ so much from state to state that it can be difficult to advise you. In general, assuming your parents are 65 or older, if both are seeking Medicaid coverage, they must spend down their savings to $3,000 (this number may be different in some states). If only one is seeking coverage, the other may be able to keep all of the savings.
Having a loved one with dementia can be scary, but if you add in a firearm, it can also get dangerous. To prevent harm to both the individual with dementia and others, it is important to plan ahead for how to deal with any weapons.
We’ve all heard the advice “It pays to shop around,” but this has never been more true than with the current market for long-term care insurance.
This is the last year that spouses who are turning full retirement age can choose whether to take spousal benefits or to take benefits on their own record. The strategy, used by some couples to maximize their benefits, will not be available to people turning full retirement age after 2019.
Trustees of special needs trusts are increasingly relying on “administrator-managed prepaid debit cards,” such as True Link cards, when disbursing funds to beneficiaries. These cards offer trust beneficiaries greater independence and the ability to get what they need more quickly. But such cards existed in a regulatory gray area as far as the Social Security…
