Hello! I have read about an exemption for adult children moving in with their elderly parent to keep them from going to a nursing home. The parent can give child their home without violating Medicaid 5 year look back period. It states this is a Medicaid sanctioned method that enables the adult child to be compensated for their caregiving for otherwise the home would have to be sold to pay for nursing home. Is there any compensation for child caregivers who move a parent into their home because the parent doesn't own their own home? Possibly a credit of sorts for each month they are able to keep their parent out of a nursing home. For example if cost of nursing home in area is approximately $5000 a month and the parent lived with them for 24 months... Medicaid would give an exemption for $120,000 in their 5 year look back period in case there is no home but there any other assets left. Does anyone know if there is any help for caregivers that keep parents out of nursing homes by moving them into their home? Any information would be greatly appreciated! Thank you!
Estate Recovery aka MERP, what happens is very much interdependent on your states laws for property rights, probate and administrative code. What will be especially important within all this is IF your state does TEFRA (predeceased) lien or only is allowed placement of post death liens (or claim against the Estate if probate is opened).
Caregiver exemption is - in theory - a way to compensate the individual who lives in the elders home and provided full time care that kept the elder from being otherwise in a NH for a period of time. Usually it’s 2 years. You have to be a full time caregiver and not have another job. The care must be for an individual needing skilled care.
Now just how you establish this and have it qualify for an exemption, will not be simple. Medical records have to show there’s need. Just their being old and needing help living in their home isn’t enough. Some states require a letter from their MD or a SW that details the health problems with ICD-10 codes or other supporting documentation, like they have been on hospice for 2 years, or were discharged from a hospitalization 2 years prior and there is a detailed care plan cause their like bedfast.
The lien placement point of entry matters cause it will make a difference as to IF you can file the caregiver exemption & transfer title in tandem with their filing their LTC Medicaid application OR the caregiver exemption is filed after death. Filing in tandem is better as you then own the property. I have no idea which states do it this way, it’s an elder law atty question to ask & have them deal with. Not a DIY imo.
Whichever option, you will have to have the $ to pay all property costs from Day 1 of Medicaid as mom must basically pay all her monthly income to the NH less as smallish personal needs allowance.
If your state follows the post death lien / claim format, & your mom lives in the NH another 5 years, it’s totally on you to pay all property costs & keep detailed records of all this till beyond death as MERP can take a while. Plus you’ll need to get the documentation regarding your caregiving like from 7 years ago from her long ago doctors or SW.
caregiver exemption to me is kinda a unicorn..... sounds awesome but not as simple or straightforward as you imagined it would be.
there are other exemptions and exclusions to MERP. Low income heir is one, as is sibling living in the home or home is used within a family business (like home is on a farm or ranch, or 2 story where biz is below and living above). If there’s lots of heirs as per the will, it get quite complicated as some will not qualify for exemptions or exclusions. There also is a cost benefit requirement for recovery. There are also things that take the property outside of recovery, like for states that do Lady Bird Deeds or non-allowance Testamentary Trusts. Really none of this is a DIY. It needs legal for how your state runs.
To me the biggest hurdle is if you can totally on your own pay property costs for an indeterminate period of time. If there is a traditional Mortgage or a Heloc, monthly nut could be $$$. There have been a couple on AC who have gotten the caregiver exemption but have no $ to afford house. Your finances are critical in all this. That’s why it’s important to find out if you can file in tandem with mom or have to do the pay for all till beyond death system.
Dealing with a property that you do not own that is. costing 25k a yr probably manageable but one costing 50k+ maybe not.
What can happen is that you have moved in with a parent to care for them and because of this, Medicaid may allow you to stay in parents home once Medicaid is paying for there care in a nursing home. But you have to prove it.
If Mom is competent, then a agreement can be made that she pays so much a month for her care and room and board. I would have this drawn up by a lawyer. Otherwise, Mom just giving you money can be looked at as a gift and you will have to return it for Mom to qualify for any Medicaid.
"The Caregiver Child Exemption allows adult children to care for their parents at home as opposed to moving them into a Medicaid-funded assisted living residence or nursing home. It is a Medicaid-sanctioned method that enables the adult child to be compensated for their caregiving in the form of a transfer of the parent's home. The home would have otherwise have to be sold and the proceeds used to pay for nursing home / assisted living care."
I've been thinking about this since I posted my previous comment. Caregivers often feel uncomfortable requesting payment from their parents, and would feel more comfortable if the government would pay them somehow. But, unfortunately, in so many cases, the only way to get compensated is directly from the parents.
Are you going to pursue getting money from your mother now in the form of a caregiver contract? And prorating your monthly expenses so she pays her fair share?
I too know a rich man who owns 7 businesses and more houses and apartments then I can count, but guess what...the state will never see a dime of it. He made sure he could pass everything down to his kids and grandkids, so at the end he will be able to collect Medicaid! Ugh!!
Too many family caregivers get shafted when they wait for their compensation for caregiving (no proper recordkeeping, Medicaid qualification, etc.) until Medicaid enters the picture. The caregivers who move into their parents' home to take care of them do seem to be favored in the Medicaid exemption process.
I like your idea of giving credit for the time the caregiver kept the elder out of NH. But that seems to run counter to society's expectation that the elder's family take care of the elder for free.
Hopefully others more knowledgeable in this will come along.