My mom is a medicaid long term resident in a skilled nursing facility. The family can't afford to cover the cost of moving from her current Florida nursing home to one in Kansas while waiting for Medicaid to kick in. How can we move her closer to family? I don't know where to begin. I've read that she'd have to stop medicaid coverage 1st in Florida, then apply for it in Kansas. But how can she be taken care of until Kansas medicaid can pay nursing home? We don't have the money to cover this nor can she live with anyone in the interim move. She needs to be in a skilled nursing facility. So, how do you transfer to a nursing home in another state? What states have medicaid pending openings?
I moved my mom by having her qualify for an acute rehab stay, using her Parkinson's diagnosis. She was mobile and well enough at the time to go by Southwest Airlines as a special needs pre-board assist passenger and they even had someone to stay with her while I returned the rental car. There were no extra fees. I was her companion and caregiver for it. I did NOT think we could have managed a 15 hour auto trip though.
The long distance medical transport services are a few thousand dollars depending on distance. You may get medical advice on how she could travel, private vehicle versus air versus that though. It may be hard to arrange, but it may also be the best thing you ever do for her if it means being near family, especially grandkids!
Find out who processes the application for Medicaid in the new county where she going to and see what instructions they give. FIRST, I would go online and find out what requirements they have, so that you have your ducks in a row before you talk to them.