State funding and investment for mental health services have significantly decreased in recent years, even as demand for these services has increased. But there may be a glimmer of hope for advocates of expanded access to mental health coverage. In participating states, the upcoming Medicaid expansion under the Affordable Care Act will increase both the number of eligible enrollees and the list of treatments and services covered, including mental health coverage. Both the Medicaid expansion and the establishment of health insurance exchanges are scheduled to roll out Jan. 1, 2014. The federal government will pick up all the costs for…
President Barack Obama renominated one of his top health care advisers to lead the federal agency responsible for overseeing Medicare, Medicaid, and the implementation of his 2010 health care reform law. If confirmed by the Senate, Marilyn Tavenner would become the first official head of the CMS since 2006. She currently leads the same agency as acting administrator. As part of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, CMS runs the Medicare and Medicaid health care programs that serve about 100 million elderly, disabled, and low-income people at a cost estimated at $885 billion for this year. Both programs…
While Medicare gets most of the news coverage, Medicaid still remains a bit of mystery to many people. The fact is that Medicaid is the largest source for funding nursing home care, but there are many myths about exactly who qualifies for it and what coverage it provides. Here are five myths followed by the real story. Medicare will cover my nursing home expenses. Medicare's coverage of nursing home care is quite limited. Medicare covers only up to 100 days of "skilled nursing care" per illness. To qualify, you must enter a Medicare-approved "skilled nursing facility" or nursing home within…
Seniors dealing with rapidly rising personal medical and nursing home expenses are often dismayed to discover that even modest asset levels may make them ineligible for Medicaid i.e $2,500. Faced with the possibility of spending all their money on health care and leaving nothing for their heirs, they might be tempted to transfer everything they own to their heirs at once, qualify for Medicaid, and move into a nursing home states Forbes. Medicaid’s “look-back” and “transfer penalty” rules are intended to keep Medicaid spending under control by preventing or minimizing asset transfers having the sole purpose of allowing one to…
Do not think that just because you have a financial power of attorney drafted by a lawyer, that your financial agent has the authority to protect your assets and make these transfers. Your financial power of attorney must have been given the specific authority to make these transfers. The specific authority given to your financial agent in a financial power of attorney must comply with the recent changes in the financial power of attorney statute, which confirmed existing court case law. In order to make transfers to your loved ones and protect your assets, your financial power of attorney must…
Under the current Medicaid rules, if you are married and one spouse is in the nursing home, there are ways to protect your marital assets for the well spouse. By reallocating your assets to non-countable assets, none of those assets would have to be spent down on nursing home care before Medicaid starts paying for the care. If you are single and in the nursing home, there are also ways to protect your assets for your loved ones. Although you cannot protect all of your assets as you can with a spouse, you could save about half of your assets…
When a widowed or single individual seeks Medicaid benefits, Medicaid requires that they spend their available assets down to $2,500.00 before receiving such benefits. If a person enters a nursing home without a reasonable expectation to return to their primary residence, Medicaid will expect them to sell their residence to pay for nursing home care. Medicaid examines all gifts made within five years of a person applying for the program. As a result, if a senior tried to transfer a home outright to their loved ones before entering a nursing home they may be subject to a penalty period for…
Meals delivered to older adults help them avoid costly and unnecessary nursing home care, according to a new study. But it costs money which Friend of Meals on Wheels is trying to raise. Researchers from Brown University found states that invest in these programs under the Older Americans Act are successful in helping seniors remain in their homes. "Despite efforts to re-balance long-term care, there are still many nursing home residents who have the functional capacity to live in a less restrictive environment," wrote study authors Kali Thomas and Vincent Mor, both gerontology researchers. "States that have invested in their…
Maryland has received conditional approval by the federal government to operate a state-based health insurance exchange in 2014, Lt. Gov. Anthony Brown announced. Maryland is among the first six states to get the approval. The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services has certified the Maryland Health Connection to operate for the first plan year in 2014. The agency in the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services is responsible for overseeing the Medicare and Medicaid programs, the nation's largest health insurance programs. "Our progress has been the result of insurance producers, carriers, third-party administrators, health care providers, advocates, and consumers…
Everyone with elderly parents visualizes the day their parents become ill and need extended care – from a lengthy hospital stay to 24/7 nursing home care. Parental support laws, of "filial support" may leave the children of these patients with a hefty bill – in the event they should pass away. Many children of elderly parents fear being stuck with an astronomical bill should their parents need long-term health care of 24/7 nursing. The law currently on the books in 29 states and Puerto Rico allow long-term care providers to pursue payment from a parent's adult children. A professor of…
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