Estate Recovery – What Can They Get After I Pass?

Accomplished Medicaid Planning Lawyers with Offices in Lexington and Winchester
While life is sweet, death is inevitable. You have worked your entire life to provide for your loved ones. Over the years, you have inevitably accrued assets, such as your home, your car, your furniture, your bank account balances, your life insurance, your investment income, and more. Your goal is to enjoy your assets while you are still alive and to pass them on to your loved ones when you pass away.

The wonderful thing about Medicaid is that it can assist you with costly nursing home expenses that are too burdensome to afford. The horrible thing about Medicaid is that Kentucky can and will come after your estate after you pass away. Kentucky is looking to be reimbursed for your nursing home costs and has the legal right to dip into your estate. This is known as estate recovery. You understandably wish to protect your hard-earned assets from Medicaid in order to leave something for your heirs. Medicaid planning attorneys are well-versed in protecting your assets and your estate from Medicaid, allowing you to keep your assets in the family while taking full advantage of Medicaid’s benefits.

The adept Medicaid planning attorneys at Goeing Goeing & McQuinn, PLLC will aggressively defend your estate from Medicaid by assisting you with devising methods of protecting your assets before you pass away. Our attorneys can counsel you on which assets are susceptible to Medicaid seizure and how to preserve these assets. Contact Goeing Goeing & McQuinn, PLLC today at (859) 904-2045 for a free consultation on Medicaid planning.

Qualifying for Medicaid Is Only Half the Battle
Your assets play two roles in the Medicaid process. First, your assets will be used to calculate your eligibility for Medicaid. Kentucky sets monthly income limits for enrollees as well as a limit on total assets. Your income includes your monthly salary, Social Security, and any other monthly income you receive. Your total assets are a combination of the value of any investment property, your checking and savings account balances, the value of any certificates of deposit, stocks, and bonds, the value of any second or third vehicles, life insurance policies over $1,500, and more.

Kentucky only allows you to retain $2,000 in total assets, so if you have assets greater than that, you have to utilize certain strategies to establish Medicaid eligibility. These strategies which may include transferring your assets by gifting or creating a trust, are complex and confusing. This process becomes even more cumbersome when you factor in all of the rules imposed by Medicaid, such as the five-year look-back rule.

The second role your assets will play arises when you pass away. Arranging your assets so that you can qualify for Medicaid is only half the battle. You also need to determine how to structure your assets to protect them from seizure by the state of Kentucky when you pass away.

When you die, your remaining assets become your estate. If you are not a Medicaid participant, your estate will simply be distributed according to your Last Will and Testament or your Trusts. However, if you are a Medicaid participant, the Department for Medicaid Services is legally required to try to recover some of the costs of your health care, as paid for by Medicaid, from your estate. This is known as estate recovery.

A crucial component of Medicaid planning is estate planning. While it may seem gruesome and depressing to begin thinking of your death already, structuring and transferring your assets in a manner that avoids estate recovery will protect your assets and ensure the viability of your estate. A well-educated and experienced Medicaid planning attorney will gladly aid you with understanding the planning process and will help you to explore your various options.

Aggressive Medicaid Planning Attorneys Prepared to Protect Your Estate
The time is now to begin estate planning. Formatting your assets today can help you become eligible for Medicaid and protect your estate from estate recovery. Our attorneys at Goeing Goeing & McQuinn, PLLC know how important your assets are to you. We will educate you on the Medicaid application and eligibility process and will devise a comprehensive Medicaid plan for you that will protect your assets for your loved ones. For a free consultation, call Goeing Goeing & McQuinn, PLLC today at (859) 904-2045.