Is it possible to make financial plans for a parent who has no assets at all? What kinds of things should I plan for?

My mom is a stroke and heart attack survivor. She gets only social security, about $1,000 a month. She has Medicare and Extra Help covers her Medicare Part D. She has no home, car, or any assets and has about $15,000 in debts, most of it funeral expenses for my dad who passed away two years ago. All of her debts have gone to collection but we are now trying to help her pay them. She lives with us and we buy most of her food except extras that she likes. We haven’t been able to find a way for her to earn any money at home (she lost much of her vision).

As many others here did, I quit a good job to move so that she could live with us. I now work at home but my income has been drastically reduced and we can’t put aside anything for her ourselves beyond what we are already doing.

What kind of financial preparations, if any, should we be making? I don’t know what to expect but feel like I have a responsibility to prepare her as best we can. Currently her medical bills are manageable and very low (though she also has hospital bills from her open heart surgery and recovery.) I guess my biggest worry is that my husband and I will end up with big medical bills if she is in the hospital for another stroke or heart attack.