These guidelines regarding
state medical
assistance can be confusing during the best of
times. In an effort to answer your concerns
regarding the effects of preplanning and pre-funding
funerals for someone on long-term care
and state medical assistance, we have contacted
the State of California to confirm the
guidelines currently in effect. The purpose of
this letter is to clarify these guidelines, and
hopefully, to alleviate some of the stress that
accompanies these difficult times.
The Department that sets these guidelines is the
California Department of Social Services. Not
all guidelines are the same; they vary from
state to state and region to region. Medical
assistance officials recognize that individuals
need certain basic property and assets, such as
a home and a car I or special purposes. As a
result, they have excluded certain items from being considered
as resources. In
other words,
the value of certain items is not counted when
the assets are totaled. In effect, this means that
individuals may retain $2,000.00 in total assets
(Additional rules apply for married couples),
PLUS any items in the exclusion category. All of
the following resources involved in Advanced
Funeral Planning contracts are excluded from
consideration as assets when evaluated for
long-term care purposes.
Awareness:
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1) Pre-Paid Funeral
Contract:
A pre-paid irrevocable (Non-refundable) funeral
contract(Unlimited with a California funeral home).
These funds would not be counted as an asset.
Currently, and in addition to the above, burial
items, such as a casket and a vault, may also
be excluded.
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2) Burial Plots
Either an existing burial plot or the cost of
one that needs to be purchased.
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3) Life Insurance
Any amount that has no cash surrender value,
such as Term Insurance or Insurance offered by
the funeral home for such a purpose. If a life
insurance policy has a present cash value, the
cash value counts towards the $2,000.00 in total
assets. However; if the face value of all of your
policies is less than $1,500.00, their cash value
does not count.
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Evaluating
long-term care:
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A widow or widower who is 60
or older;
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A widow or widower who is 50 or older and disabled;
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A widow or widower of any age
if she or he is caring for a child under the age
of 16 or a disabled child who is receiving Social
Security Benefits
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The Transfer of Assets:
The Dept. of Social Services can "Look Back" over the past thirty-six
(36) months to see whether you intentionally gave away money or property to
become eligible. They can also ask about certain transfers your spouse may
have made, even though your spouse doesn't need Medicaid. (Be sure to check
with an attorney who is well-versed in Medi-Cal law) These regulations are
very important. when you make the proper arrangements well in advance, (funeral
arrangements, home transfer asset protection, etc.), you will find the processes
much easier at a time of need.
