New York’s Medicaid program increased the limits of income and financial assets with which an applicant can qualify for benefits in 2023. The new higher limits provide welcome relief to people struggling with the inflation that raged through much of 2022 and expand the pool of New Yorkers who can now qualify for needed coverage....
Unless you take some steps to protect your home, ideally more than 5 years before you need Medicaid, the biggest asset most New Yorkers ever own, the source of their wealth, will not be fully or at all available to leave to their children or grandchildren....
A Supplemental Needs Trust (SNT) is a legal instrument used to permit people with disabilities to remain eligible for Medicaid and other public benefit programs while keeping financial assets or income that would otherwise disqualify them from those benefits....
Soon, the New York Community Medicaid program will implement a new eligibility requirement that you need to know about. The new eligibility test will apply a look-back period to Medicaid applicants seeking community-based or in-home care and assistance. I say “soon” because the date it will go into effect was delayed several times and may be delayed again. ...
While Medicaid disapproves of applicants transferring valuable assets in anticipation of applying for Medicaid benefits, some pre-application transfers or gifts are permissible. Medicaid identifies the asset transfers that will not trigger a penalty when reviewed by program eligibility assessors....
The New York Medicaid Estate Recovery Program may place a lien on property owned by benefit recipients at the time of their death when it is part of an estate being administered in the Surrogate’s Court. That means that any property that is transferred either through a last will and testament (Will), or through the law of intestacy (if the deceased Medicaid recipient made no Will), is subject to being attached....
By invoking spousal refusal, only the income and assets of the spouse who needs care is considered in the Medicaid eligibility examination. The refusing spouse can keep or distribute assets to family members, or otherwise dispose of the financial assets as they please....
The predominant “Half-a-Loaf” strategies used in New York and New Jersey are called: Promissory Note Planning (New York), and Annuity Half-A-Loaf Planning (New Jersey)....
The New York Medicaid Consumer Directed Personal Assistance Program (CDPAP) is an innovative program that enables disabled and elders who live in the Community but who need in-home healthcare or personal assistance to recruit family member or friends to provide their care as they direct. The work they perform will be paid for by the state Medicaid program....
Applying for Medicaid in New York can be confusing because of the numerous programs. The two most confused programs are Chronic Medicaid and Community Medicaid. Each program implements different eligibility criteria and offers different coverage....
Legal actions against community spouses seeking reimbursement for the care of the other spouse were infrequent years ago. Now, state budget pressures have substantially increased the likelihood that community spouses will face Medicaid recovery claims. Ely J. Rosenzveig & Associates has an impressive track record of defeating or minimizing these claims....
Is there a difference between inheritance tax and estate tax? Yes. Confusion about these two terms is understandable because some people mistakenly use the terms interchangeably. ...
Everyone receiving Medicaid benefits in New York should keep fully informed and up to date on all the changes that became effective on January 1, 2022. The New York Office of Health Insurance Programs (NYOHIP) recently released their “2022 Medicaid Levels and Other Updates,” announcing the new income and resource limits for NY Medicaid eligibility....
The law firm of Ely J. Rosenzveig and Associates has extensive experience creating estate plans that preserve the wealth that you accumulated through decades of effort for those whom you choose to benefit. Through the creation of appropriate legal instruments, the tax burden borne by your estate can be minimized instead of suffering from New York’s Estate Tax “Cliff.”...
The general rule in New York for Medicaid applicants is that any gifts or transfers of assets (money or property) within the “look back” period will trigger a “penalty period” of ineligibility for benefits for that applicant....
When people think of an estate plan, many first think of a Last Will and Testament, or Will. The Will is truly the hallmark document of any estate plan. This is a document that allows a testator (or, a person who has created a Will), to designate beneficiaries who will inherit property such as cash, real estate, personal property, and other assets such as bank and brokerage accounts, from their estate. ...
The key to understanding New York’s Medicaid program coverages and services is to remember that there are two levels of Medicaid: Institutional (Chronic) Medicaid, or nursing home care, and Community Medicaid or home care. The income limits and resource caps for eligibility are a bit different for each plan....
The law provides many different methods of protecting your valuable assets. Some of the most common examples include the federal Employee Retirement Income Security Act (“ERISA”)-qualified retirement plans established by an employer, including 401Ks, deferred compensation plans, and plans for profit sharing. ...
When a person applies for Medicaid, the New Jersey Family Care Eligibility Determining Agency (EDA) verifies the information. The EDA examines each transfer made by a Medicaid applicant within a five-year “look-back period.” If an applicant violates this rule and is found to have gifted or sold an asset for less than fair market value, the agency will impose a penalty period (“a period of Medicaid ineligibility”)....
The MLTC plan assumes the task that local CASA (“Community Alternative Systems Agency”) or Medicaid offices did previously, which is to determine if an individual requires Medicaid home care....
Medicaid Asset Protection Trusts, also called Irrevocable “Income Only” Trusts or Medicaid Trusts, are used to help those who are getting older shield some of their assets and permit them to meet the eligibility requirements for Medicaid long-term care in New York. ...
Spousal refusal is a legal Medicaid planning strategy in New York. Spousal refusal, also known as “just say no,” is when a non-applicant, or “community” spouse of a long-term care Medicaid applicant refuses to assist with the cost of long-term care for their spouse....
Under the new NY Medicaid look back rules, those who completed their asset protection efforts prior to that date have been grandfathered into the old community Medicaid rules, no matter when they actually apply for benefits. ...