Q. My wife may soon need nursing care and I will need to apply for a Medi-Cal subsidy to help with the cost. Our incomes are modest and, aside from our home, most of our savings is in the form of our IRA’s. A friend thought I would have to cash them out and “spend… Read More »
Posts Categorized: Medi-Cal Planning
Medi-Cal Myths Uncovered
Q. In talking with friends, my wife and I discovered that there seems to be a lot of misunderstanding about how the Medi-Cal program works if one needs help with the high cost of nursing home care. I wonder if you would clarify matters. A. I have likewise discovered a great deal of misunderstanding, even… Read More »
Understand Medi-Cal Recovery and Avoid an Unpleasant Surprise
Q. Mother recently died after spending two years in a nursing home on Medi-Cal. Medi-Cal just sent us a bill for about $150,000 and says it will file a claim against her home. Yikes! We thought her home was an exempt asset. What do we do about the bill? A. Unfortunately, your situation is all… Read More »
Preserving Emotional Well-Being When Choosing a Long-Term Care Living Situation for Your Loved One
Choosing a long-term care living arrangement is one of the most difficult challenges faced by aging adults and their loved ones. Most families try to avoid the nursing home option to the very end, believing that assisted living or small residential care homes provide a better quality of life. But this may not necessarily be… Read More »
News Flash! California Approves Medi-Cal for Same-Sex Couples and Registered Domestic Partners
In what may be the first state in the nation to do so, California has just approved Medi-Cal benefits for same-sex couples and Registered Domestic Partners ( “RDP’s”). Acting at the invitation of the federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (“CMS”) and pursuant to state Assembly Bill 641 (Feuer), the California Department Healthcare Services… Read More »
Preserving Your Low Property Tax For Your Children
Q. My wife and I have owned our home, and a rental duplex, for approximately 20 years and have a low assessed value on each. We would like to preserve the low property tax rate for our son. If we pass it to him by gift or by inheritance, would either transfer trigger reassessment and… Read More »
The “Spousal Protection Plan’: Creating A Plan For Each Other
Senior couples often ask how they might protect each other from the devastating financial cost of long term nursing home care. This is a real concern, as nursing home expenses average $9,500 per month in our community, and are likely only to increase over time. This concern is all the more real for those who… Read More »