Alzheimer’s- Me on Medicaid?

payingforalzheimerscare
BRIAN WILLIE
I often have families come to me and proclaim that they would never need to go on Medicaid. “Isn’t Medicaid for poor families or families with limited resources?” Consider this: A spouse has $200,000 in savings, a home worth $300,000, a car and some personal property. The husband has had Alzheimer’s Disease for 6 years now, and unfortunately, it has steadily progressed to the point where his wife must place him in a skilled nursing facility. That facility charges $5,000 per month. The wife believes that she has too many assets to qualify for Medicaid, and so continues to pay privately, month after month, year after year.

You can guess what happens can’t you? Only 3 years into his stay, their savings is now gone. Four years later, the wife who has had a stroke and has burned through what Medicare will pay, needs to be in a 24 hour skilled nursing facility. How will she pay? Unless she has very high income (which most people at her age don’t), she will be required to use Medicaid paid nursing care. Let’s assume further that the couple has a 45 year old daughter with special needs who cannot care for herself. Had they considered Medicaid as.....click here to read the whole post

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