How to prevent Medi-Cal from getting my Dad's home when he passes?
My Dad has had his wishes written out saying he wants his house sold when he passes and my sister and i split the money. Recently we were told that Medi-Cal will get every bit of it when he passes. Is there a way of preventing this?
It Medi-Cal has taken care of him and paid his bills, sorry but they and more importantly, the tax payers are owed the proceeds from the home. What he owes Medi-Cal is a debt...and all debts are paid out prior to you and your sister "getting money". I would not sit around and wait for a pay out. The state will take what is owed through recovery and hopefully there is something left over. Not knowing the circumstances and amounts...he could owe a little or a lot, but his assets will be sold to recovery prior to being divided to family. This is what should happen and will.
Your father's assets stand for payment of his debts. Government programs like Medical amount to "debts" on the Senior's passing. His home will go to recovery almost certainly. The only way to have passed the home to you would have been to do so before collecting monies from a Government tax funded program. I don't know how long he has been collecting medical, but if not long, and if not much is owed, he can likely stop collecting it now, and most assets from the home will be yours. However, then who will pay for your Father's care? Will he out of other funds? Will you? This is a shock and disappointment for you, but this has been the way of it forever. California may have some differing in the medi-cal than other states. It is for sure different in the amount of "look back" time to qualify for governmental help; only 2 1/2 years compared to most State's 5 years.
In California, you are now able to avoid having the house recovered by Medi-Cal by placing it in a living trust (or using a TOD deed) while your dad is living. The key is making sure the house is not subject to probate (that is, it transfers automatically by a mechanism other than a will or default inheritance law). This is a recent change in the law. You can read about it here: http://www.canhr.org/publications/PDFs/Medi-Cal_Recovery.pdf
It's quite straightforward to place a house in a living trust, but I'd suggest you see a Medi-Cal planning attorney rather than a general estate planning attorney just to be sure you receive the result you are looking for.
Aside from what everyone else has said, medi-cal doesn’t care about wills. Wills don’t save assets from medi-Cal estate recovery. You and sister will inherit everything that is left after your dads outstanding debts have been paid and that includes what is owed to Medi-cal.
Estate Recovery amount will be for whatever the tally is that Medicaid (or Medi Cal for CA) paid for him if he’s on Medicaid after age 55. It’s basically a math problem. So if it’s like 5 mos in NH at 8k a mo, then he dies. its 40k. The house sells for 300k. State gets 40k at the Act of Sale as they can place a lien or claim against the Estate & heirs get the 260k left over. If his Medicaid tally is 150k & house sells for 80k, then all 80 go to Recovery. It’s a math problem.
Also you can look into exemptions and exclusion to Estate Recovery. Cause those can decrease the tally or eliminate recovery. Like some states have it that required or reasonable property costs can be deducted from the Medicaid tally. If 1 of the heirs is disabled, their % share is excluded. But you will have to provide in detail documentation as to these & in a timely manner to the state of the outside contractor who does Estate recovery. If you open probate, then rules for probate regarding Executor & Estate costs factor in.
If dad is new to medicaid, like he just went into a NH, realize that Medicaid has a required copay or SOC (share of cost). Whatever income he has - like his SS$ - must basically be paid to NH now. That $ is is copay. The costs to keep his house will fall to family to pay from here on out as dad has no $. Taxes, insurance, repairs etc will be on you all to pay & pay on property still in his name. Please look at property costs & see if it’s realistically affordable for all heirs. Think if - again realistically - if the heirs can truly be counted on to do & pay thier % from now till beyond dads death. Everybody’s all kumbaya at the beginning but that seems to stop once the property tax bill is due & when you find that new insurance is needed as no longer occupied. Enough of the family totally loose any concern on the place & they don’t have the $ from now till whenever to spend on house not in their name and with risk never to be in their name. You’d have to pay all to keep it without problems but realize whatever the terms of the will read means it must divide out that way.
Medi-cal estate recovery also applies to community Medicaid which it sounds like his dad is on dad is 83 and not in a nursing home. Home and community based services and hospitalization costs are what MERP will look to recover.
Are you dad's caregiver and living with him? If so, for how long.
How confusing is this? I tried to look up MERP (medical expense recovery program) for California. Turns out California also has a Medication Error Reduction Plan (MERP)!
Google Medical expense recovery program for California. There may be waivers. It makes no difference if dad willed his home to you. But, there may be a waiver, until you sell the house, if you provided 24/7 care for dad, for a period of two years, keeping him out of a nursing home
Your profile says Dad is living at home. Is this still correct? I think the rules for community based Medicaid are different than if he was in a nursing home. Hopefully someone from Ca will chime in.
The right thing to do is to reassure your father that all will be well with his estate when he passes away, and that you will make sure the correct process is followed to the letter.
The correct process is that MediCal will recover the money that they have *already* *paid* *out* for your father's care from the proceeds when his house is sold. Whether there is anything left for you and your sister to share will depend on what has been paid, and on what the house is worth. But there is no injustice to this, is there? The money goes to pay for services that your father has used.
Here in the UK, the sense of outrage over the state "taking" people's houses and legacies to pay for care is even worse because seventy years of the NHS have made people feel that they're entitled to all medical and social care free of charge. It just ain't so; but it does make me able to understand the grievance even if I don't agree with it.
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It's quite straightforward to place a house in a living trust, but I'd suggest you see a Medi-Cal planning attorney rather than a general estate planning attorney just to be sure you receive the result you are looking for.
Also you can look into exemptions and exclusion to Estate Recovery. Cause those can decrease the tally or eliminate recovery. Like some states have it that required or reasonable property costs can be deducted from the Medicaid tally. If 1 of the heirs is disabled, their % share is excluded. But you will have to provide in detail documentation as to these & in a timely manner to the state of the outside contractor who does Estate recovery. If you open probate, then rules for probate regarding Executor & Estate costs factor in.
If dad is new to medicaid, like he just went into a NH, realize that Medicaid has a required copay or SOC (share of cost). Whatever income he has - like his SS$ - must basically be paid to NH now. That $ is is copay. The costs to keep his house will fall to family to pay from here on out as dad has no $. Taxes, insurance, repairs etc will be on you all to pay & pay on property still in his name. Please look at property costs & see if it’s realistically affordable for all heirs. Think if - again realistically - if the heirs can truly be counted on to do & pay thier % from now till beyond dads death. Everybody’s all kumbaya at the beginning but that seems to stop once the property tax bill is due & when you find that new insurance is needed as no longer occupied. Enough of the family totally loose any concern on the place & they don’t have the $ from now till whenever to spend on house not in their name and with risk never to be in their name. You’d have to pay all to keep it without problems but realize whatever the terms of the will read means it must divide out that way.
How confusing is this?
I tried to look up MERP (medical expense recovery program) for California. Turns out California also has a Medication Error Reduction Plan (MERP)!
Google Medical expense recovery program for California. There may be waivers. It makes no difference if dad willed his home to you. But, there may be a waiver, until you sell the house, if you provided 24/7 care for dad, for a period of two years, keeping him out of a nursing home
The correct process is that MediCal will recover the money that they have *already* *paid* *out* for your father's care from the proceeds when his house is sold. Whether there is anything left for you and your sister to share will depend on what has been paid, and on what the house is worth. But there is no injustice to this, is there? The money goes to pay for services that your father has used.
Here in the UK, the sense of outrage over the state "taking" people's houses and legacies to pay for care is even worse because seventy years of the NHS have made people feel that they're entitled to all medical and social care free of charge. It just ain't so; but it does make me able to understand the grievance even if I don't agree with it.
Dad has an asset (his home) that will have a lien placed on it so that the State of California can be reimbursed for that care.
Care isn't free.