Medicaid long term care eligibility requirements for Virginia (attorney recommendation?)

[Anonymous]

How do I get information for long term care Medicaid program and does anyone have an attorney recommendation? My mom needs it and she was diagnosed with dementia and I'm afraid to have her live alone. She refuses to move in with my family.

[Anonymous]

Start with this quick test from the American Council on Aging to see if your relative is likely to be eligible for Medicaid for long term care.

It isn’t binding — it’s not an official application or anything like that — but it will get you started. Good luck. I am sure this is a stressful situation.

https://www.medicaidplanningassistance.org/medicaid-eligibility-test/

[Anonymous]

Member listings available on the site for the National Academy of Elder Law Attorneys.

https://www.naela.org/

Not a practice area for dabblers.

[Anonymous]

Does your mom already have Medicaid, which is needed for LTC approval. If you are in Fairfax county, you can contact Department of Family Services. Their social worker will walk you through the application process. Good luck!

[Anonymous]

You don't need an attorney. You can apply for her through the county program. Long term care medicaid is a separate program from medicaid. Just call the county and ask them.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:How do I get information for long term care Medicaid program and does anyone have an attorney recommendation? My mom needs it and she was diagnosed with dementia and I'm afraid to have her live alone. She refuses to move in with my family.[/quote

The Washington Group

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:You don't need an attorney. You can apply for her through the county program. Long term care medicaid is a separate program from medicaid. Just call the county and ask them.

DP here. Yes, this can work, but it is not always a slam dunk. I worked with someone through my parents' county. She was good, but she wasn't a slam dunk. Our dad was denied twice, but made it through on third time because we hired a lawyer. So I learned a lot about what I needed to do but she wasn't foolproof in knowing what might be possible obstacles to a successful application.

And as per another PP, this is not an area for dabblers. I talked to many on the phone while searching for one to take on my dad's case. It was clear that I knew more than some of them - they wanted to set up all kinds of stuff even though I made it VERY clear that we were long past that phase. Finally got a great person who was worth every cent.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:You don't need an attorney. You can apply for her through the county program. Long term care medicaid is a separate program from medicaid. Just call the county and ask them.

DP here. Yes, this can work, but it is not always a slam dunk. I worked with someone through my parents' county. She was good, but she wasn't a slam dunk. Our dad was denied twice, but made it through on third time because we hired a lawyer. So I learned a lot about what I needed to do but she wasn't foolproof in knowing what might be possible obstacles to a successful application.

And as per another PP, this is not an area for dabblers. I talked to many on the phone while searching for one to take on my dad's case. It was clear that I knew more than some of them - they wanted to set up all kinds of stuff even though I made it VERY clear that we were long past that phase. Finally got a great person who was worth every cent.

Do you mind sharing the recommendation? My mom lives in a different state and already has qualified and receiving services in that state. But it's really far away and I'm having to incur costs traveling to the state from VA. I would like to move her closer but wanted to understand whether she would be able to receive similar services here. A lawyer's referral would be really appreciated.

[Anonymous]

Call them directly and ask. You may have to move her to va and establish residency first. That’s what we had to do. Move her to you. It’s very hard to manage long distance and better to do it while she can travel.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:You don't need an attorney. You can apply for her through the county program. Long term care medicaid is a separate program from medicaid. Just call the county and ask them.

DP here. Yes, this can work, but it is not always a slam dunk. I worked with someone through my parents' county. She was good, but she wasn't a slam dunk. Our dad was denied twice, but made it through on third time because we hired a lawyer. So I learned a lot about what I needed to do but she wasn't foolproof in knowing what might be possible obstacles to a successful application.

And as per another PP, this is not an area for dabblers. I talked to many on the phone while searching for one to take on my dad's case. It was clear that I knew more than some of them - they wanted to set up all kinds of stuff even though I made it VERY clear that we were long past that phase. Finally got a great person who was worth every cent.

Why were they denied. We had no issues except proving the money was stolen, some I could prove, some not but they worked with us as the amount wasn’t much. There is no reason to get an attorney.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:You don't need an attorney. You can apply for her through the county program. Long term care medicaid is a separate program from medicaid. Just call the county and ask them.

DP here. Yes, this can work, but it is not always a slam dunk. I worked with someone through my parents' county. She was good, but she wasn't a slam dunk. Our dad was denied twice, but made it through on third time because we hired a lawyer. So I learned a lot about what I needed to do but she wasn't foolproof in knowing what might be possible obstacles to a successful application.

And as per another PP, this is not an area for dabblers. I talked to many on the phone while searching for one to take on my dad's case. It was clear that I knew more than some of them - they wanted to set up all kinds of stuff even though I made it VERY clear that we were long past that phase. Finally got a great person who was worth every cent.

Why were they denied. We had no issues except proving the money was stolen, some I could prove, some not but they worked with us as the amount wasn’t much. There is no reason to get an attorney.

Your good fortune in finding way to an approval on the third try is anything but proof that “[t]here’s no reason to get an attorney.” This can be a complex area; it becomes even more complex when well-intentioned amateurs begin dabbling.

[Anonymous]

We worked with this attorney to move my mom from out of state into Medicaid long term care (Norfolk area), she was very helpful https://www.manzlawfirm.com/

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:You don't need an attorney. You can apply for her through the county program. Long term care medicaid is a separate program from medicaid. Just call the county and ask them.

DP here. Yes, this can work, but it is not always a slam dunk. I worked with someone through my parents' county. She was good, but she wasn't a slam dunk. Our dad was denied twice, but made it through on third time because we hired a lawyer. So I learned a lot about what I needed to do but she wasn't foolproof in knowing what might be possible obstacles to a successful application.

And as per another PP, this is not an area for dabblers. I talked to many on the phone while searching for one to take on my dad's case. It was clear that I knew more than some of them - they wanted to set up all kinds of stuff even though I made it VERY clear that we were long past that phase. Finally got a great person who was worth every cent.

Why were they denied. We had no issues except proving the money was stolen, some I could prove, some not but they worked with us as the amount wasn’t much. There is no reason to get an attorney.

Your good fortune in finding way to an approval on the third try is anything but proof that “[t]here’s no reason to get an attorney.” This can be a complex area; it becomes even more complex when well-intentioned amateurs begin dabbling.

We got it on the first try no issue except they came back and asked for documentation for a few things I could not provide but I could show who took it. If there is no money it’s not complicated. If you are hiding money or person has a spouse who can keep assets it’s harder.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:You don't need an attorney. You can apply for her through the county program. Long term care medicaid is a separate program from medicaid. Just call the county and ask them.

DP here. Yes, this can work, but it is not always a slam dunk. I worked with someone through my parents' county. She was good, but she wasn't a slam dunk. Our dad was denied twice, but made it through on third time because we hired a lawyer. So I learned a lot about what I needed to do but she wasn't foolproof in knowing what might be possible obstacles to a successful application.

And as per another PP, this is not an area for dabblers. I talked to many on the phone while searching for one to take on my dad's case. It was clear that I knew more than some of them - they wanted to set up all kinds of stuff even though I made it VERY clear that we were long past that phase. Finally got a great person who was worth every cent.

Do you mind sharing the recommendation? My mom lives in a different state and already has qualified and receiving services in that state. But it's really far away and I'm having to incur costs traveling to the state from VA. I would like to move her closer but wanted to understand whether she would be able to receive similar services here. A lawyer's referral would be really appreciated.

Sorry for delay in responding here. It's not VA so it's not germane.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:You don't need an attorney. You can apply for her through the county program. Long term care medicaid is a separate program from medicaid. Just call the county and ask them.

DP here. Yes, this can work, but it is not always a slam dunk. I worked with someone through my parents' county. She was good, but she wasn't a slam dunk. Our dad was denied twice, but made it through on third time because we hired a lawyer. So I learned a lot about what I needed to do but she wasn't foolproof in knowing what might be possible obstacles to a successful application.

And as per another PP, this is not an area for dabblers. I talked to many on the phone while searching for one to take on my dad's case. It was clear that I knew more than some of them - they wanted to set up all kinds of stuff even though I made it VERY clear that we were long past that phase. Finally got a great person who was worth every cent.

Why were they denied. We had no issues except proving the money was stolen, some I could prove, some not but they worked with us as the amount wasn’t much. There is no reason to get an attorney.

Your good fortune in finding way to an approval on the third try is anything but proof that “[t]here’s no reason to get an attorney.” This can be a complex area; it becomes even more complex when well-intentioned amateurs begin dabbling.

We got it on the first try no issue except they came back and asked for documentation for a few things I could not provide but I could show who took it. If there is no money it’s not complicated. If you are hiding money or person has a spouse who can keep assets it’s harder.

We were not hiding money. When we went through this with our dad, the community spouse - our mom/his wife - was allowed up to $123K in assets (more or less - I can't remember the exact figure, which is a positive sign that I've moved past that very stressful time). I think the county person messed up and that the financials didn't align by month so ended up showing different amounts.

I was handling this long distance, so ended up being easier with the lawyer/paralegal.

The lawyer was rec'ed by the brother of a HS friend. The brother is a lawyer in our hometown. I hadn't lived there for over 30 years at that point. The lawyer was so so so much better than the ones I was cold calling, who, again, were trying to sell me stuff we didn't need.