Is their any harm in waiting until Dad loses his leg, goes into a skilled nursing facility, and at that time applying for Medicaid?
My Dad had his Angiogram last week and there is nothing further they can do to save his leg. So now it's a waiting game until it has to come off. He already has one prosthetic leg, and has never come off the walker since losing that leg in 2015. If you remember me, my Mom met with the only Elder Care Attorney in her area last month, and their fee for Life Care Planning is $14,000 (that covers their services for one year), and $3,900 for years 2-5, if she wanted to keep them on. This is in Johnson City, TN. I am in Indiana. She told them the other day that she is only interested in them filing the Medicaid application and putting her house in the FAPT trust, not the whole "Life Care Planning". They said that is fine, but it will still cost $14,000 to retain them. Also, they want to start the application process right away, which as you know would also mean the "spend down" part of it. They would have to spend down $110,000, plus sell their 2nd vehicle that mom uses a lot.
So my question is, shouldn't my mom just wait until it's time for that leg to come off, to start the Medicaid application process? Or maybe the house needs to be in a trust before then? She plans to sell the house once dad is in LTC facility, which this attorney told her she could, even with it in that trust. She is really between a rock and a hard place. That fee is absurd!! But what else can she do? She cannot drive to Nashville, where there is another ELA, or to Asheville, NC. They will both be 75, this month and next month. It gives me anxiety trying to figure out what to tell her, how to help her with this. Plus, is there a chance he would be turned down for Medicaid LTC? And with that, she would be out the $14,000 fee. By the way, their only income is SS. This is crazy and scary!
You may need to schedule appointments and get down there to help her get this taken care of without being taken by this unscrupulous attorney.
You can't let her use them. This type of business practice can only survive when people believe that they have no choice. You have many choices, use a different one.
Medicaid will look at ur parents finances. The money will be split, lets say, in half. Dad getting half Mom getting half. Dads half will be spent down. His spend down can go towards his care in the LTC. Then Medicaid will take over.
Your Mom can own one car. I would ask if she can keep the car she likes and sell the other. Not sure how Medicaid determines which car u keep. She will get the house. A lean will not be applied until ur fathers passing. If sold, the lean will be satisfied at that time or upon Moms passing. If she sells before Dads passing half of it will go to his care.
I would not deal with a lawyer till u needed it. 14k isca lot. Office of Aging maybe able to help with application.
She or you will be doing the tedious work for the application. Perhaps downloading the application and sending mom a list now will help her not feel so overwhelmed with it all.
How are they holding up, is your mom taking care of herself? Is dad stabilized or erratic? I am so sorry that your family is running into this kind of "help".
I appreciate your comments.
Does she have any in home help?
I would encourage her to get someone in, keep meticulous records of the payments made, dad's half and all that. But getting someone else to help her and give her a break will help her not feel so overwhelmed.
I really do get being upset that I am having to clean your feces because you didn't take care of your health and you knew that you had a serious disease. Yeah, justifiable anger. I so get it.
Maybe someone that can take some of the work load off her. Cooking meals, doing laundry, cleaning up the house, bathing dad. He doesn't get to say no at this point it is for her wellbeing.