The Minimum Monthly Maintenance Needs Allowance (MMMNA) is a spousal impoverishment rule affecting one’s eligibility for Medicaid benefits. It allows a married Medicaid nursing home applicant or HCBS Medicaid Waiver applicant to transfer a portion, or in some...
If you need a lot of cash on hand upon retirement, Social Security offers a lump-sum payment option that’s worth six months of benefits. However, it comes at a cost. It is important to understand the details before agreeing to the payment. If you have waited beyond...
It depends on the state rules around retroactive benefits. Some states allow Medicaid recipients to receive retroactive benefits for up to three months before the date of the application. Other states have limited retroactive benefits. To find out the rules in your...
The Social Security Administration (SSA) advises you to apply for retirement benefits three months before you want your benefits to begin. And even if you have no plans to receive retirement benefits, you should still sign-up for Medicare three months before age 65. ...
Although people are willing to voluntarily care for a parent or loved one without any promise of compensation, entering into a caregiver contract (also called personal service or personal care agreement) with a family member can have many benefits. It rewards the...
Rejecting an attorney’s assessment of a Medicaid applicant’s competence, a Connecticut appeals court holds that because the applicant’s estate did not prove he was incompetent and unable to withdraw funds from his revocable trust, the trust was an available asset and...
A trust is a legal arrangement through which one person (or an institution, such as a bank or law firm), called a “trustee,” holds legal title to property for another person, called a “beneficiary.” The rules or instructions under which the...
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...
Qualifying for Medicare hardly means free health care — there are still premiums and deductibles. However, people who qualify for both Medicare and Medicaid (called “dual eligibility”) receive help paying their out-of-pocket costs. Medicare is a federal program...
ABLE (Achieving a Better Life Experience) accounts offer people with disabilities a great, tax-free way to accumulate money without jeopardizing their qualifications for Supplemental Security Income (SSI) and other means-tested programs. Withdrawals are tax-free as...
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