Carson City & Douglas County, NV Elder Law Firm

Elder Law encompasses estate planning, but also includes other types of law relating to the care of clients who are becoming less healthy and need additional health or legal services and who may be facing increased regulatory issues. Elder Law has generically become synonymous with planning for long-term care - whether it be planning for financial or physical control of loved ones who are no longer able to care for themselves.

Plan Early for Long Term Care: There are a few things to know about planning for long-term care:

• Medicare and medical insurance do not cover long-term care (although it usually covers an initial stay in a long-term care facility).
• If long-term care is on the horizon, the sooner the family plans, the better the outcome.
• If it is still an option, obtaining some form of long-term care coverage may provide significant peace-of-mind. More and more life insurance policies are providing a long-term care rider. And, long-term care insurance provides one major perk: it can be utilized for in-home care, postponing institutionalized care.

Long term care can be self-funded, insurance funded (if long-term care insurance was purchased) or government funded. When the government funds long term care, it does so through two different avenues. Veterans can obtain care through their VA benefit. Others must meet the needs based qualifications under Medicaid to be eligible for assistance.

Medicaid Eligibility
Medicaid is the single largest payer of nursing home bills in America and serves as the option of last resort for people who have no other way to finance their long-term care. Although Medicaid eligibility rules vary from state to state, federal minimum standards and guidelines must be observed.

The Deficit Reduction Act has made Medicaid eligibility more challenging and has resulted in complex eligibility requirements for those in need of Medicaid benefits. For truly poor individuals, a Medicaid application will not be too difficult, but, for the middle class, attempting to preserve assets and income for the living spouse or children, there are a myriad of regulations involving look-back periods, income caps, transfer penalties and waiting periods to plan around.

Our law firm can help you avoid the financial ruin associated with the high cost of long-term care. Contact us today to start the process of understanding the issues surrounding Medicaid eligibility and to implement the planning and application process.