I've be living in my mom's house for about a year. I can't hardly get out of the house since October of last year. I have my mom on Medicaid Waiver and I've been being paid some but not much. The job is 24/7/365 never any days off or uninterrupted sleep but I only get paid 15 to 24 hours per week. As it was explained to me, my mom was approved for 31 hours respite care, so those hours are really for a home care agency to come in to give me a break, but since the agency doesn't have somebody available for all 31 hours, I can get paid for the hours they don't work. Currently the lady who stops by here only has 3 hours per week.
To explain it further, the agency charges $30/hr self-pay, so those people get priority. Medicaid only pays the agency $20/hr, so they take the self-pay clients first, then my mom gets whoever happens to be available if they have extra time. Should they have the availability to work more hours, then I can only get paid for whatever hours are left if any. To make it more screwy, they approved me for up to $17/hr. but I'm only authorized to bill for $14/hr. They said that was so they would have room to give me a raise. I don't think it's right the agency gets $20 and I only get $14, but that's another story.
My big concern is right now, if my mom goes to a nursing home, my income stops. Also, if she would pass away, my income would stop as well. I would need a job like fast. I've been a family caregiver for the past year now and likely it will continue on a little longer. There is NO other family to help. According to a lawyer I talked to, if my mom is on Medicaid and goes into a nursing home, I would be expected to pay her fair market value for my rent which would go towards her care. Since I don't have a job, I wouldn't be able to pay rent and would have to move out with no place to go. The lawyer told me having another source of income from outside the house would be my best option. I tried for several part-time openings but each time they decided to go with another applicant.
I don't even know about getting my old job back, all of the managers over me have quit and they have all new people working there so I don't know anyone. It's 50 miles from my mom's place and we have to deal with a number of customers every day, so the chances of getting COVID-19 are really high and if I get exposed I can't go back to my mom's place.
Even if my mom passes away, there is still the problem with the life estate she did back in 2008. Her idea was to leave me her house, but a new law passed in 2017 prevents that. A second lawyer showed me a table, https://public-dhhs.ne.gov/nfocus/Manuals/APX469/apx469/life_estate_and_remainder_interest_table.htm My mom is 96 so you take the value of the house (all I know is the current tax value) which is showing as 25,000 x .22181 which gives you her share or $5,545.25. This would depend on the amount the house is appraised for which could be lower or higher, but with no job and unable to borrow the money, I would be forced to sell the house leaving me homeless.
Saving the house would only help me out a little bit because I would still need an income to support it.
Why havent you gotten PUA? I wish I could link or screen shot the questions. You would qualify.
Your lawyer sucks, he's not a elder lawyer, get a new one.
Your problem is you keep gouging for a few dollars in pay instead of getting a job where they need to cover the respite so you can work. You have not been a caregiver for 2 years, only one, so most exemptions are out the window.
If you dont know how to do anything, it'll be difficult findung work during the pandemic. Tons of low skilled workers are still laid off.
I hope you will consider continuing a job hunt, working at first for low pay as apprentice. There are so many skills that today are more rare and require learning as you go whether tile setting, building, plumbing or any other skill. You will be starting from scratching from scratch.
This is how it is done. You need a job and you decide what you want to do and you work your way up. I can't even tell you the number of years it took me to work from CNA to RN. Two kids, job, college course a year, and just devilish hard work. I sure wish you luck.
Maybe all of us here can look into what social programs are available in SGeorge24's state and federal ones.
They are out there if you know how to look. Sometimes a person has to be willing to work the system a bit too and shouldn't feel at all bad or embarrassed by it if they are in need.
I don't know what line of work you're in, or what you'd like to do next - how transferable are the skills you have, and would you consider using the skills you've built up as your mother's primary caregiver?
Good caregivers who show up, put in the time they are being paid for and are honest to boot are HARD to find.
And, nope, you will not get the full amt that the pts family pays as income. The agency has to run!
I made a roaring $9 an hour when I first started CG. But that was actually slightly higher than minimum wage at that time--after 6 months I inquired about a raise and was told 'we don't give raises, ever'. I replied "then that's why you have a 100% turnover every year!!" My client's family drew up legal contracts and tipped me out every month so I made more like $15 an hour. It was all done aboveboard and with 2 lawyers (the sons) drawing it up so it didn't look sketchy.
My agency would not allow more than 32 hrs, b/c at that point they had to pay health insurance and they did NOT want to do that. And, actually, 32 hours was about all I could handle.
You may make more at a NH, or ALF, than in private care. If I were to go back, I would have taken the CNA licensing classes and been qualified for better pay.
A nursing home CNA doesn't make much above minimum. For that money a nursing home CNA has to bust their ass. It's not worth it.
Private in-home care pays a lot more than any agency or nursing home. The downside is that the work and hours aren't guaranteed.
The lawyer told you your best option is to have another source of income outside the house. The lawyer didn't figure that you probably knew that already? I hope you didn't have to pay him much to tell you that. Talk to a different one.
Anyway, Medicaid does a five year look back on property and assets. Your mother's property could be protected. If it's not and she does have to go to a nursing home, you will not just get thrown out of the house that day. The nursing home will try to scare and intimidate you about what you will owe them, but you can't get blood from a stone and they know that.
Could it be a possibility for you to take boarders into the house? Or as they are more politely called 'paying guests'. This way you may have an option other than a homeless shelter or a park bench.
There are resources out there and I think you would benefit better from a social worker than from a lawyer. There are all kinds of programs people collect on. People who are far better off than you are getting. Programs like rent subsidy, food stamps, Medicaid, and disability (SSI or SSD). There are also federal programs called 'Basic Needs' which are for housing and other necessities. You may have to work a little bit of a hustle, but you wouldn't be the first or certainly the last to do so.
Please speak to a social worker through your state's Department of Social Services.
https://nebraskalegislature.gov/laws/statutes.php?statute=68-919
I'd find a better attorney to help you with this. A good social worker may also be able to help.
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I was caregiver for my mom for four years and wondered the same. I had to think outside the box and was able to find work in my field, but it was out of state, Kansas. After a year I returned to my home state, a rural area that I love and will retire from this job.
Just keep trying. Caregiving is an option that because of pay was not going to work. After four years with mom there was NO WAY I would have done that!
I have not been working the last year to take care of my Mom ( 95 ) who cannot be left alone and has lived with me the last 4 years. It was my house for over 5 years. But, although I receive social security, and no longer had my job income, I could not afford payments on my house.
So when Mom finally had her house in another town sold early last summer, we consulted her elder attorney and followed her advice. Mom purchased my home for fair market value. The attorney said that after my Mom lives in her new home
( mine ) for 2 years, she can legally gift it to me. And if Mom ever needs Medicaid for a nursing home, the home would not be able to come after the house.
Because I can afford it, I do not charge Mom for care. And luckily for her and me, she is still mostly physically independent with a walker, so it's more of a companionship and meals, laundry, and bathing assist.
We live in different states, so, I am unsure whether this may help you, but can your Mom legally gift you the house now? And then if you have social security income, would that be enough to help you for now?
Good Luck on the job hunt!
There are many people that have "reinvented" themselves this past year.
You have not mentioned what you did when you were working but many places are still hiring and employees are Working From Home. (I would be very surprised if that will not become the "norm" as many businesses are finding that the work gets done and they are not paying rent for multiple brick and mortar offices) Keep applying.
From the posts that I have read and the comments I agree that you need to find another lawyer.
What sort of work did you do before you became your mom's full time caregiver? Do you still keep in touch with the people there? Networking is a great help when it comes time to find a job; if you haven't kept in touch, you might want to reach out and start a conversation.
You can also use local resources. Do you have a Y near you? They often have job fairs, etc. If there are any sort of career counseling services near you, take advantage of their help, too.
Unfortunately, you are going to have to be a little aggressive in your job search; but it's not an impossible task. I hope you can find something that suits you well.
You can do this :)
Agencies always gets a few dollars more per hour than they pay each care giver. That pays for administrative costs, filing tax papers etc. Hiring yourself out privately might get you a few more dollars an hour, but be mindful of taxes and paper work or you or the person paying you could get in a lot of trouble.
Your greatest concern seems to be how to support yourself when you no longer have your mother's money coming in nor your mother's house to live in. Consider what kinds of work you are able to do, and start looking for opportunities. Maybe there ate some online resources available to teach you additional skills that will open up your choices for your next job.
However, consider transferable skills sets, i.e.:
coordinating
organizing
managing
research
writing reports (for MDs / medical staff) perhaps
Figure out what you did and plug into these categories.
After both my parents passed (Dad in 2019, Mom in 2020), we were in the midst of COVID-19. My business went under. I also have a second online business that may bring in a little spending money now and then, but surely not a living. During the time my father was dying, my significant other abandoned ship and left me to deal with this alone. I have no real "family" and only spoke with one cousin who, after my mother passed, also tossed me aside due to "political differences." So... over a year later I am unemployed, alone, and trying to figure out what to do. I plan to move and make a fresh start in another area. Not only for better work options, but for my mental health. This was all very traumatic and it's time to move forward and not remain sinking in a quicksand of misery, lonliness, and depleting funds.
My advice:
1. Get some counseling and sort out the emotional aspect of what you are experiencing. If your Mom is receiving hospice care, use their grief counselor and social worker for support (you can get grief counseling PRIOR to a loved one passing... it helps you to prepare).
2. I agree with a work-from-home business, but beware of scams. Don't invest a lot of $$ into some "get rich quick" scheme and go into it aware of the time and energy demands as well as whether you have the room or "down time" to properly provide the necessary services. I sell items online and have a shop; vintage and hand-made. I plan to expand on that as I find it relaxing, fun, and has potential to be profitable.
3. Reach out to local non-profit agencies, religious organizations, neighbors, etc. to help with respite. Sometimes, you just have to take some time out. Sometimes, this may happen suddenly when you reach your peak of emotional and psychological limits.
4. Finding work now is hard. With all the unemployment and young folks coming out of college, the competition is steep. It depends though on your work history/skills and credentials. Health care workers, including Home Health Aids, are in need and now you have the experience... it can tide you over.
5. Take time to do something you enjoy and takes your mind off all things negative. Even if it's watching a movie or going for a walk or planting some flowers.
Wish you all the best in your journey.