“Will I need to pay for long term care in my lifetime?”

“Will I need to pay for long term care in my lifetime?”

This is a good question, especially when we’re planning for the future.

Let’s break this down into a few different thoughts.

“How bad is the cost of long-term care?”

One question that we’re often asked is, “How bad is it if you need long term care? How much money are we talking about?”

The average price in Alabama – and  of course, this can be less and it … (Read more)

“What is the 5 year look back and penalty period in Alabama Medicaid?”

“What is the 5 year look back and penalty period in Alabama Medicaid?”

5-Year look-back rule

What we do if we more assets than we’re allowed to keep?  That really leads us into this look-back period. This is probably the area that we spend the most time on when we meet with families who have a loved one in a nursing home. We have to make sure that they understand this.

When you’re qualified – and that’s important, you have … (Read more)

“What are the requirements to qualify for Alabama Medicaid to pay for nursing home care?”

“What are the requirements to qualify for Alabama Medicaid to pay for nursing home care?”

Requirements to qualify for Alabama Medicaid

There are three requirements:

• Health
• Income
• Assets

First Alabama Medicaid requirement: Health

The health requirement is very easy.

The basic concept is you need a nursing home.

I have not yet met anybody who has said, “I’m pretty healthy and I just want to pay $6,000 to live in a one-room place on a long hallway and eat the … (Read more)

“What is the Alabama Medicaid look back rule?”

“What is the Alabama Medicaid look back rule?”

With Medicaid, the look-back rule says if you are in a nursing home now and you’ve gotten your assets down to the right level, then you qualify for Medicaid.

But Medicaid’s going to look back in time five years.

Medicaid looks back and it asks, “Did you give any gifts? Did you give something away completely? Did you sell something for half its value?”

If you did, then Medicaid’s going to … (Read more)

“If I’m 40 should I buy long term care insurance?”

“If I’m 40 should I buy long term care insurance?”

This is a great question and we have to look at the answer from a practical viewpoint.

First, it is smart to consider preparing for the unfortunate event of needing long term care.

Second, is it something that you can afford?

If you can afford it and it’s a good logical thing for you to do, then sure buy the insurance.

But it goes with what I was saying before.… (Read more)