Long-Term Care

The Idaho Medicaid and Elder Law attorneys at Racine Olson will help you compose a plan to pay for your loved one’s long-term care needs – whether it’s a stay in nursing home or assisted living facility, or if your loved one needs in-home care. Understanding the nuances of the federal Social Security Act can be a daunting task for family and friends faced with the challenges of helping a loved one pay for their long-term care needs. We have the education, understanding, and experience to help.

The average monthly cost for a stay in a nursing home is approximately $8,000 in 2017 and these costs continue to increase year after year. The average stay in a nursing home is approximately twenty-seven (27) months which means the average person will pay approximately $216,000 for a stay in a nursing facility. At those rates it is easy to understand how the costs of long-term care can be financially devastating to any family. The Idaho Medicaid and Elder Law attorneys at Racine Olson can help you come up with a plan to ensure your loved ones receive the care they deserve.

Many individuals feel compelled to use their hard earned money to pay for their stay in a long-term care facility. These individuals spent the majority of their lives working hard to provide for their families, paid taxes, and provided assistance to their friends and family when needed. There is nothing wrong with depleting your savings to pay for your long-term care needs.

Married couples often face difficult decisions when one spouse requires long-term care (institutionalized spouse) while the other spouse remains in the marital home (community spouse). While the couple feels obligated to deplete their savings to pay for the care of the institutionalized spouse, institutionalized spouse does not want to impoverish the community spouse. As a result, married couples in this situation seek a balance between their two competing concerns. While the VA Aid & Attendance pension may provide some benefits to married couples in this situation, most married couples benefit far more from Idaho Medicaid’s long-term care benefits.

The Social Security Act as well as Idaho Medicaid regulations require a married couple to spend their assets down to a certain level before the institutionalized spouse becomes eligible for Idaho Medicaid’s long-term care benefits. With the assistance of proper guidance and correct information, a married couple can strike a balance between feeling obligated to pay for the long-term care for the institutionalized spouse on the one hand and ensuring the community spouse is not impoverished as a result.

In Idaho it’s possible for a community spouse to keep up to $120,900 in “countable resources” (2017) at the time the institutional spouse becomes eligible for Medicaid’s long-term care benefits. To be eligible, the institutionalized spouse may only have up to $2,000 in “countable resources.” The Medicaid Planning attorneys at Racine Olson will help you understand the eligibility requirements for Medicaid’s long-term care benefits.

Navigating the Idaho regulations (IDAPA regulations) governing eligibility for Idaho Medicaid’s long-term care benefits is as overwhelming as the federal statutes governing the same. Long-term care benefits are governed by the Idaho regulations for the Medicaid program known as the AABD program – Assistance for the Aged, Blind and Disabled. Our attorneys have valuable experience with helping clients understand the seemingly complex rules and regulations governing Medicaid eligibility.

The Racine Olson Elder Law and Medicaid Planning attorneys can help prepare and execute a plan to pay for the costs of long-term care. Whether you decide to pay for the care out of your savings or whether you seek Medicaid eligibility, we are available to discuss your options and answer your questions at an initial consultation. Call us toll free at 877.232.6101 or 208.232.6101 for a consultation with the Racine Olson team of Elder Law and Medicaid Planning attorneys in Idaho. You can also email us directly at racine@racinelaw.net.