When your family member is in a nursing home, it’s important to protect their assets, especially these two:

1. House
   The house is often the focus of asset protection. It’s typically the most substantial asset of an estate. You might be wondering, “Will my family member lose the house?” Usually you don’t have to sell the house in order to be eligible for Medicaid. However, after the Medicaid recipient passes away, the state will file a claim to help recoup their nursing home expenses. This is known as estate recovery. There are ways to protect the house from estate recovery. For example, if a spouse or dependent relative lives in the house, then the state won’t be able to file a claim against the property, regardless of its equity limit.
2. Life insurance
   Life insurance can be a sneaky asset. Most people don’t think about it. However, you could be disqualified from Medicaid, simply by having a life insurance policy that’s of a certain type or cash value. And it can take 3-4 months for Medicaid to give you an answer regarding eligibility. During that waiting time period, your $10,000 nursing home bill could inflate to $40,000.

Although asset allocation varies widely based on the family, this is a typical allocation for Maryland residents.

Get Help Protecting Assets in Maryland

Even if you’ve already accrued a $40,000 nursing home bill that you can’t afford, it’s not too late to get help. As an elder law attorney firm in Maryland, we’re here for you and your family.

We’ll help you understand the best ways to protect the house from estate recovery. And we’ll discuss how to prevent a life insurance policy from hindering Medicaid eligibility.

We’re just a phone call away. (410) 296-8166 x292

It’s scary how expensive nursing homes can be.

And it’s even scarier when you have more than one elderly family member to consider.

You just got the first nursing home bill. Yikes! Now what?
The average cost of a nursing home in Maryland is about $10,000 a month, according to Genworth’s Cost of Care Survey 2019. After you receive the first nursing home bill, you might worry how your family will ever be able to afford this kind of ongoing care—especially if the Medicaid application is denied.

Assuming an annual 3% inflation rate, the median cost of a private room in a Maryland nursing home will rise to $13,500 per month in the next ten years, according to Genworth.

No need to panic. It’s not too late to protect your assets.
The good news is that it’s never too late to plan. Our expertise is in protecting your family’s assets—even after your loved one has entered the nursing home. And even when you don’t know what the assets are.

Hire Medicaid experts.
Medicaid can make long-term care more affordable. However, Medicaid eligibility rules change constantly and are difficult to understand. A mistake could cost you tens of thousands of dollars, or more. That’s why you need an elder law attorney who specializes in Medicaid and nursing home asset protection. Don’t settle for an attorney who merely dabbles in it.

Get the nursing home contract reviewed first.
The nursing home might pressure you into signing the contract to let your parent into the facility. However, we strongly advise you to minimize your risks and have an elder law attorney review the contract first. If the Medicaid application is denied, the nursing home will want immediate payment. They’ll seek out whoever signed the contract.

Create an asset protection strategy.
There are many ways to protect assets. During an initial consultation, we strategize with you and come up with a written plan. We want to give you time to consider our recommendations, so you won’t need to make any decisions on that day.

Give us a call.
Trust us to help protect you from:

• Needing to sell your parents’ assets to pay for their nursing home care
• Being liable for all the nursing home bills yourself
• Having your loved one become involuntarily discharged from the nursing home

If you’re feeling burdened by hefty nursing home expenses or overwhelmed with confusing Medicaid issues, then let us ease your mind. Call us at (410) 296-8166 x292.