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CORRECT! If you move the money around within like 10 years of taking Medicaid, the state can try to take the profits from the house even if you paid a bill with the money...Check out if your state has Medicaid for working disabled people as this will give you ability to put the money into retirement savings or move a bit more money around than usual $3k of assets allowed by medicaid. Can also check out buying Medicaid if your state extended Medicaid for low income by way of Obamacare. This may have some income limits too...You will get Medicare in 2 years after getting disability pay and it will not have income limits or asset limitations...Might hang onto your house until then.
I currently live in Uruguay and am trying to determine whether I can afford to return to the US at age 69. I've sold my little house here and will realized about $50K for the sale after expenses. I will park the funds in my bank account here temporarily. My inquiry about Medicaid is because my income is so low I would need a subsidy to help pay for Medicare premiums. I am not transferring the funds to family or friends, I am not going into a nursing home and I am not disabled.
Um, the article you cited deals exclusively with long-term nursing home care:
Here are the rules: To qualify for Medicaid nursing home coverage, the person must have very low income and assets.
[emphasis mine]
The rules for eligibility for long-term nursing home care are different than the rules for general medical coverage.
For general medical coverage excluding long-term nursing home care, you can have $2,000 in cash, a house valued at $500,000 or less, and only one vehicle, regardless of the value of the vehicle.
It is not illegal to transfer assets. What is illegal is transferring assets and then failing to disclose those facts in your paperwork.
I currently live in Uruguay and am trying to determine whether I can afford to return to the US at age 69. I've sold my little house here and will realized about $50K for the sale after expenses. I will park the funds in my bank account here temporarily. My inquiry about Medicaid is because my income is so low I would need a subsidy to help pay for Medicare premiums. I am not transferring the funds to family or friends, I am not going into a nursing home and I am not disabled.
I don't know exactly how Medicare and Medicaid interact. However, I do know something about qualifying for Medicaid. I will first try to answer the question of whether you qualify and address the ethical issue later.
The above posters appear not to be aware of changes to Medicaid eligibility arising from the ACA, and more specifically under Expanded Medicaid (hereafter, EM). Some state expanded Medicaid and some didn't. This should be easy enough to search for on the net. The idea of EM was to provide a gradual scale of cost and eligibility for Medicaid for income levels from 0 per year to about $17K per year (for a single person). Assets are not considered for ACA eligibility (income is considered, not assets) and this principle was extended to EM (in the states that have EM). There are articles online about millionaires who started qualifying for Medicaid once the ACA was under way. To my knowledge, the only test for Medicaid/ACA eligibility in states with expanded Medicaid one's MAGI income as entered on the IRS 1040 form.
Thus, the answer to your question is state specific. Moreover, the answer further depends on whether your assets generate taxable income in year in which you seek coverage. If your income exceeds the upper threshold for Medicaid eligibility, you will qualify for an ACA (Affordable Care Act) plan with a pretty high subsidy (and thus a pretty low premium). If you attempt to sign up for an ACA plan on the Exchange web site, and your estimated MAGI income is below the relevant threshold, you will get a message directing you to sign up for your state's Medicaid plan. At least, this is what happens in Washington state where I live.
Thus, you don't have to transfer or hide your assets, and you can qualify for Medicaid in several states(about 33 at last count). You have some research to do regarding which state you want to live in. At the other extreme, in some states, even having under $2,000 in assets won't make one eligible for Medicaid. I believe that in Texas, single adults without children cannot qualify for Medicaid under any circumstances.
Regarding the ethics of the situation, if I had an income of $1100 a month and total assets of $50K, I wouldn't have any qualms about signing up for Medicaid. That $50K would disappear fast if you got an illness not covered by a solid health insurance plan.
My impression is that the 50K would have to used up before Medicaid(Medical) would kick in. This is Calif. I qualified for an emergency health issue I had and here I set with a pile of "share of cost" bills.
My impression is that the 50K would have to used up before Medicaid(Medical) would kick in. This is Calif. I qualified for an emergency health issue I had and here I set with a pile of "share of cost" bills.
It would appear that the answer is state-specific. In Washington state, if a person qualifies for Medicaid, everything is free. The monthly premium, office co-pay, co-insurance, and out of pocket maximum are all the same: zero. At least this was the case in 2017. It's possible that the recent ACA changes have altered the situation. Again, the top poster will need to research this matter for the state(s) he is considering moving to.
Thank you for your thoughtful post. WA state is actually where I will be heading in another year. I am currently on some affordable housing waiting lists that will take that long to reach the top. I believe WA state has expanded Medicaid (Apple Health).
I am not trying to defraud the system. I just need to know in advance of moving back to the US whether I can get Medicaid and Medicare in WA. If not, I can stay here indefinitely. As you noted, $50K is little enough should I have a serious medical issue in the US.
Thank you for your thoughtful post. WA state is actually where I will be heading in another year. I am currently on some affordable housing waiting lists that will take that long to reach the top. I believe WA state has expanded Medicaid (Apple Health).
I am not trying to defraud the system. I just need to know in advance of moving back to the US whether I can get Medicaid and Medicare in WA. If not, I can stay here indefinitely. As you noted, $50K is little enough should I have a serious medical issue in the US.
Don't forget, American citizens are required to file US taxes yearly wherever in the world they live. There may be taxes to pay on that $50k when you file your taxes.
I don't know exactly how Medicare and Medicaid interact. However, I do know something about qualifying for Medicaid. I will first try to answer the question of whether you qualify and address the ethical issue later.
The above posters appear not to be aware of changes to Medicaid eligibility arising from the ACA, and more specifically under Expanded Medicaid (hereafter, EM). Some state expanded Medicaid and some didn't. This should be easy enough to search for on the net. The idea of EM was to provide a gradual scale of cost and eligibility for Medicaid for income levels from 0 per year to about $17K per year (for a single person). Assets are not considered for ACA eligibility (income is considered, not assets) and this principle was extended to EM (in the states that have EM). There are articles online about millionaires who started qualifying for Medicaid once the ACA was under way. To my knowledge, the only test for Medicaid/ACA eligibility in states with expanded Medicaid one's MAGI income as entered on the IRS 1040 form.
Thus, the answer to your question is state specific. Moreover, the answer further depends on whether your assets generate taxable income in year in which you seek coverage. If your income exceeds the upper threshold for Medicaid eligibility, you will qualify for an ACA (Affordable Care Act) plan with a pretty high subsidy (and thus a pretty low premium). If you attempt to sign up for an ACA plan on the Exchange web site, and your estimated MAGI income is below the relevant threshold, you will get a message directing you to sign up for your state's Medicaid plan. At least, this is what happens in Washington state where I live.
Thus, you don't have to transfer or hide your assets, and you can qualify for Medicaid in several states(about 33 at last count). You have some research to do regarding which state you want to live in. At the other extreme, in some states, even having under $2,000 in assets won't make one eligible for Medicaid. I believe that in Texas, single adults without children cannot qualify for Medicaid under any circumstances.
Regarding the ethics of the situation, if I had an income of $1100 a month and total assets of $50K, I wouldn't have any qualms about signing up for Medicaid. That $50K would disappear fast if you got an illness not covered by a solid health insurance plan.
But if he qualifies for Medicare, ACA rules do not apply. You can't get a subsidized ACA plan if you are Medicare eligible. At age 69 and if he had paid into Medicare during his work career in the US, he most likely is not eligible for ACA subsidy and its different rules for Medicaid. Assets will matter. Most states will have a spend down provision to qualify for non ACA medicaid.
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