Why save for retirement if medicaid will cover your costs!?!?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Medicaid pays for end of life type nursing home care. there are not a lot of places that take Medicaid anymore. the care is pretty poor.
people who have saved will be able to use the money to spend $2,000 - $3000 a month on an assisted living type place where a couple can live together in a hotel room type place, go to the dining room, play cards, go on little trips etc. food is taken care of in the dining room and staff is on site 24 hours to check on folks, doctors on site etc.

if they can stay in their home, they can pay for an aid to come to the house to help with bathing etc. Medicaid pays for very little aid and it is often very very limited. folks on MCD really need to rely on family to pick up the slack.

saving for retirement and elder care is really smart and absolutely does not put you in a bad position. those hoping medicaid will just pay have no idea how it works. sure if they are dying, have zero money and need a place to go, there is a facility BUT it is a scary place.

my grandpa went to a Medicaid facility just for a bit to recover from an illness (too sick to go back to assisted living for a couple weeks). the place was horrible. people half out of it just sitting in wheel chairs in a room with 50 people and the TV on. it was so awful I couldn't go back and certainly kids couldn't see it. the people were treated like cattle and hoarded into rooms.[/quote

My grandmother went to a facility that Medicaid paid for to recover from a stroke. And it was actually a nice facility. She had her own room and television. The care she received was very good.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Medicaid pays for end of life type nursing home care. there are not a lot of places that take Medicaid anymore. the care is pretty poor.
people who have saved will be able to use the money to spend $2,000 - $3000 a month on an assisted living type place where a couple can live together in a hotel room type place, go to the dining room, play cards, go on little trips etc. food is taken care of in the dining room and staff is on site 24 hours to check on folks, doctors on site etc.

if they can stay in their home, they can pay for an aid to come to the house to help with bathing etc. Medicaid pays for very little aid and it is often very very limited. folks on MCD really need to rely on family to pick up the slack.

saving for retirement and elder care is really smart and absolutely does not put you in a bad position. those hoping medicaid will just pay have no idea how it works. sure if they are dying, have zero money and need a place to go, there is a facility BUT it is a scary place.

my grandpa went to a Medicaid facility just for a bit to recover from an illness (too sick to go back to assisted living for a couple weeks). the place was horrible. people half out of it just sitting in wheel chairs in a room with 50 people and the TV on. it was so awful I couldn't go back and certainly kids couldn't see it. the people were treated like cattle and hoarded into rooms.[/quote

My grandmother went to a facility that Medicaid paid for to recover from a stroke. And it was actually a nice facility. She had her own room and television. The care she received was very good.

I was wrong. It was paid for by Medicare, not Medicaid.

[Anonymous]

hy save for retirement if medicaid will cover your costs!?!?



....because YOU are responsible for taking care of yourself - not other people!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Medicaid pays for end of life type nursing home care. there are not a lot of places that take Medicaid anymore. the care is pretty poor.
people who have saved will be able to use the money to spend $2,000 - $3000 a month on an assisted living type place where a couple can live together in a hotel room type place, go to the dining room, play cards, go on little trips etc. food is taken care of in the dining room and staff is on site 24 hours to check on folks, doctors on site etc.

if they can stay in their home, they can pay for an aid to come to the house to help with bathing etc. Medicaid pays for very little aid and it is often very very limited. folks on MCD really need to rely on family to pick up the slack.

saving for retirement and elder care is really smart and absolutely does not put you in a bad position. those hoping medicaid will just pay have no idea how it works. sure if they are dying, have zero money and need a place to go, there is a facility BUT it is a scary place.

my grandpa went to a Medicaid facility just for a bit to recover from an illness (too sick to go back to assisted living for a couple weeks). the place was horrible. people half out of it just sitting in wheel chairs in a room with 50 people and the TV on. it was so awful I couldn't go back and certainly kids couldn't see it. the people were treated like cattle and hoarded into rooms.[/quote

My grandmother went to a facility that Medicaid paid for to recover from a stroke. And it was actually a nice facility. She had her own room and television. The care she received was very good.

I was wrong. It was paid for by Medicare, not Medicaid.

My grandmother very very limited assets and before she got too old she gifted my mom and my uncle all her cash (I think it was 60k). She was then able to qualify for Medicaid and my mom used the money to pay for some home nursing care over a long slow decline and then eventually for pocket money while she was in a Medicaid facility. She also was I a lovely nursing home run by an order of nuns.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Medicaid pays for end of life type nursing home care. there are not a lot of places that take Medicaid anymore. the care is pretty poor.
people who have saved will be able to use the money to spend $2,000 - $3000 a month on an assisted living type place where a couple can live together in a hotel room type place, go to the dining room, play cards, go on little trips etc. food is taken care of in the dining room and staff is on site 24 hours to check on folks, doctors on site etc.

if they can stay in their home, they can pay for an aid to come to the house to help with bathing etc. Medicaid pays for very little aid and it is often very very limited. folks on MCD really need to rely on family to pick up the slack.

saving for retirement and elder care is really smart and absolutely does not put you in a bad position. those hoping medicaid will just pay have no idea how it works. sure if they are dying, have zero money and need a place to go, there is a facility BUT it is a scary place.

my grandpa went to a Medicaid facility just for a bit to recover from an illness (too sick to go back to assisted living for a couple weeks). the place was horrible. people half out of it just sitting in wheel chairs in a room with 50 people and the TV on. it was so awful I couldn't go back and certainly kids couldn't see it. the people were treated like cattle and hoarded into rooms.[/quote

My grandmother went to a facility that Medicaid paid for to recover from a stroke. And it was actually a nice facility. She had her own room and television. The care she received was very good.

I was wrong. It was paid for by Medicare, not Medicaid.

My grandmother very very limited assets and before she got too old she gifted my mom and my uncle all her cash (I think it was 60k). She was then able to qualify for Medicaid and my mom used the money to pay for some home nursing care over a long slow decline and then eventually for pocket money while she was in a Medicaid facility. She also was I a lovely nursing home run by an order of nuns.

There is a five-year look-back rule.

http://www.djplaw.com/what-is-the-five-year-look-back-and-how-does-it-work

Why do people think that the state should pay their way if they have the means to do so themselves?

[Anonymous]

See also

http://www.forbes.com/sites/bernardkrooks/2012/12/17/how-gifts-can-affect-medicaid-eligibility/

[Anonymous]

This is a depressing thread.

Instead of OP's frustration, mine is more that middle income people are put in a rough spot. They have saved enough to not qualify for certain programs, but they still don't have enough for good options. So their only course of option is to find a mediocre facility and ride it out until their money runs out and hope medicaid then picks up the rest.

Given how much it took to scrimp and save what they did save, it feels like a disappointment that all the sacrifice they made still only gets them to the same place as people who didn't save at all -- a facility covered by medicaid.

But no, the solution isn't to NOT save. Because then it might be harder to get in the door to that medicaid facility. At least if you have something saved, you can get in the door. But I agree that it must be disappointing to realize that is what you sacrificed for all through life.

But I'm inclined to think that part of the problem is expectation. I think for my parents' generation, there was way too much emphasis put on retirement as the goal of working. Early retirement. Retirement and traveling. RVs. Retiring to Florida. et cetera, et cetera. I listened for years to people pine away for retirement. Honestly, I think it's better to see retirement as a stage of life, not a goal. Plan and prepare for it, but don't live for it.

[Anonymous]

The plan from the house is to make people pay for more of their healthcare once in Medicare. That amount is about 200k. Shhhhh it will be applied only to people under 55. So make sure you put an additional 200k away on top of your other retirement savings.

[Anonymous]

This is so depressing. I'd take a handful of pills before I lived out my final days in a Medicaid facility.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

This what we are planning on doing - it is incredibly expensive and we will have to modify our home. They still feel that it is a waste of money. neither my brother or I need their money and we are trying to convince them that we want them to age happily rather than be placed in a nursing home. Assisted living is out as my father is not self sufficient. I had no idea that there is a difference in care/faciliteis for self pay vs. medicaid. I don't thik they know that either so this may be the way to convince to use thier savings for better care.

Another disadvantage of relying on Medicaid/Medicare is that if one person needs nursing home care, the pair will be separated. The spouse who needs the nursing home goes to a nursing home, the other stays on their own. For some couples, this may not be a problem, but some don't want to be separated. Also, if the non-nursing home bound spouse doesn't drive, even visiting each other can be difficult.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Medicaid pays for end of life type nursing home care. there are not a lot of places that take Medicaid anymore. the care is pretty poor.
people who have saved will be able to use the money to spend $2,000 - $3000 a month on an assisted living type place where a couple can live together in a hotel room type place, go to the dining room, play cards, go on little trips etc. food is taken care of in the dining room and staff is on site 24 hours to check on folks, doctors on site etc.

if they can stay in their home, they can pay for an aid to come to the house to help with bathing etc. Medicaid pays for very little aid and it is often very very limited. folks on MCD really need to rely on family to pick up the slack.

saving for retirement and elder care is really smart and absolutely does not put you in a bad position. those hoping medicaid will just pay have no idea how it works. sure if they are dying, have zero money and need a place to go, there is a facility BUT it is a scary place.

my grandpa went to a Medicaid facility just for a bit to recover from an illness (too sick to go back to assisted living for a couple weeks). the place was horrible. people half out of it just sitting in wheel chairs in a room with 50 people and the TV on. it was so awful I couldn't go back and certainly kids couldn't see it. the people were treated like cattle and hoarded into rooms.[/quote

My grandmother went to a facility that Medicaid paid for to recover from a stroke. And it was actually a nice facility. She had her own room and television. The care she received was very good.

I was wrong. It was paid for by Medicare, not Medicaid.

Medicare will pay for rehab. nursing home but will not pay for long term care. There is a difference.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:This is a depressing thread.

Instead of OP's frustration, mine is more that middle income people are put in a rough spot. They have saved enough to not qualify for certain programs, but they still don't have enough for good options. So their only course of option is to find a mediocre facility and ride it out until their money runs out and hope medicaid then picks up the rest.

Given how much it took to scrimp and save what they did save, it feels like a disappointment that all the sacrifice they made still only gets them to the same place as people who didn't save at all -- a facility covered by medicaid.

But no, the solution isn't to NOT save. Because then it might be harder to get in the door to that medicaid facility. At least if you have something saved, you can get in the door. But I agree that it must be disappointing to realize that is what you sacrificed for all through life.

But I'm inclined to think that part of the problem is expectation. I think for my parents' generation, there was way too much emphasis put on retirement as the goal of working. Early retirement. Retirement and traveling. RVs. Retiring to Florida. et cetera, et cetera. I listened for years to people pine away for retirement. Honestly, I think it's better to see retirement as a stage of life, not a goal. Plan and prepare for it, but don't live for it.

You described the situation exactly. I am having a terrible time finding a medicaid facility with a bed available. They want at least a year of private pay to consider us, not just a month as we offered to pay for a month. It sucks. We are caring for a relative in our home as we have no options right now and are not sure how we are going to make it all work.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This is a depressing thread.

Instead of OP's frustration, mine is more that middle income people are put in a rough spot. They have saved enough to not qualify for certain programs, but they still don't have enough for good options. So their only course of option is to find a mediocre facility and ride it out until their money runs out and hope medicaid then picks up the rest.

Given how much it took to scrimp and save what they did save, it feels like a disappointment that all the sacrifice they made still only gets them to the same place as people who didn't save at all -- a facility covered by medicaid.

But no, the solution isn't to NOT save. Because then it might be harder to get in the door to that medicaid facility. At least if you have something saved, you can get in the door. But I agree that it must be disappointing to realize that is what you sacrificed for all through life.

But I'm inclined to think that part of the problem is expectation. I think for my parents' generation, there was way too much emphasis put on retirement as the goal of working. Early retirement. Retirement and traveling. RVs. Retiring to Florida. et cetera, et cetera. I listened for years to people pine away for retirement. Honestly, I think it's better to see retirement as a stage of life, not a goal. Plan and prepare for it, but don't live for it.

You described the situation exactly. I am having a terrible time finding a medicaid facility with a bed available. They want at least a year of private pay to consider us, not just a month as we offered to pay for a month. It sucks. We are caring for a relative in our home as we have no options right now and are not sure how we are going to make it all work.

Find a facility that will take them "Medicaid pending"
And do not sign anything, nothing saying you are responsible for any finances. They will come after you.
Just went thru this with a recently deceased indigent relative.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This is a depressing thread.

Instead of OP's frustration, mine is more that middle income people are put in a rough spot. They have saved enough to not qualify for certain programs, but they still don't have enough for good options. So their only course of option is to find a mediocre facility and ride it out until their money runs out and hope medicaid then picks up the rest.

Given how much it took to scrimp and save what they did save, it feels like a disappointment that all the sacrifice they made still only gets them to the same place as people who didn't save at all -- a facility covered by medicaid.

But no, the solution isn't to NOT save. Because then it might be harder to get in the door to that medicaid facility. At least if you have something saved, you can get in the door. But I agree that it must be disappointing to realize that is what you sacrificed for all through life.

But I'm inclined to think that part of the problem is expectation. I think for my parents' generation, there was way too much emphasis put on retirement as the goal of working. Early retirement. Retirement and traveling. RVs. Retiring to Florida. et cetera, et cetera. I listened for years to people pine away for retirement. Honestly, I think it's better to see retirement as a stage of life, not a goal. Plan and prepare for it, but don't live for it.

You described the situation exactly. I am having a terrible time finding a medicaid facility with a bed available. They want at least a year of private pay to consider us, not just a month as we offered to pay for a month. It sucks. We are caring for a relative in our home as we have no options right now and are not sure how we are going to make it all work.

Find a facility that will take them "Medicaid pending"
And do not sign anything, nothing saying you are responsible for any finances. They will come after you.
Just went thru this with a recently deceased indigent relative.

Any suggestions in MoCo? We actually are through the process and paperwork is in. The county worker has been helpful with their paperwork side of things. One I have spent months working with and now we need a bed asap, they are playing games saying none are available and they have a waiting list of up to one year, if not longer (one of the really big ones). We would not have moved our relative here, into our home, had we had known it would be a year. We would have made another plan. Others just outright refused to accept the application and some accepted it but made it clear no beds were available or would be available.

I have no intention of signing anything. Thanks for that warning. I'll have another family member who is a lawyer look over anything we would have to sign.

[Anonymous]

This thread is terrifying.