If you have a low-income parent, grandparent, or other family member receiving round-the-clock nursing care at a Medicaid-eligible facility, you may be discouraged after hearing of new treatments and therapies that you know won't be made available to your family member under the limited Medicaid reimbursement system. Depending upon your relative's current level of care and the effectiveness of the treatments offered, you may even be tempted to pay out of pocket for these treatments. In other cases, you may desire to provide your relative with cash so that he or she is able to purchase the little treats and luxuries that can improve his or her quality of life. What are the limits on your ability to supplement your relatives's income? Read on to learn more about your ability to financially assist a relative receiving Medicaid assistance in paying for a nursing home.
Can you give cash payments to a relative receiving Medicaid?
Because Medicaid eligibility is premised on an individual's low-income, low-asset status, giving a large sum of cash or a valuable asset to someone who is receiving Medicaid could either result in a period of ineligibility for payments or even later seizure and sale of the asset in question from the recipient's estate. As a result, you're usually better off making minor purchases yourself and providing the items to your relative rather than handing over cash.
What is your ability to pay out of pocket for private rooms, personal therapies, and other amenities not available under Medicaid?
Because Medicaid rules are set on a state-by-state basis, the answer can vary widely. Some states permit family members to pay for nursing home amenities like private rooms, while others prohibit anything but payments for private care (like having a chiropractor or physical therapist come in to the nursing home to provide treatment to your relative). If you're confident that private care could help your relative, you'll want to consult an attorney to determine whether your state's laws will permit you to help in this manner.
If you'd instead like the ability for multiple family members to regularly assist your relative with toiletries, clothing, assistive devices like motorized wheelchairs and hearing aids, and other needed items, you may want to consult an attorney to discuss setting up a special needs trust. This type of trust can permit a trustee to make purchases on behalf of (and for the benefit of) the special needs individual without allowing the assets of the trust to be used for Medicaid elimination purposes. Having a special needs trust set up to benefit your relative can help you and your other family members contribute toward the cost of care while preventing you from going into debt by paying out of pocket for full-time nursing care.
For medicaid assistance, contact a company such as Senior Solutions of Long Island, Inc.
