Are you caring for an aging loved one who may need to enter a nursing home in the future? As you begin to plan for nursing home care someday, who can you reach out to for good, accurate and professional advice and assistance? A qualified Florida elder law attorney will be able to help you and your aging loved one wisely choose among the options available to pay for the costs of nursing home care. In addition, he will be sure you and your loved one understand what each option costs and whether there is anything you can do to shield your loved one’s life savings from being immediately depleted. This topic is exactly what elder law attorneys want everyone in their community to know as we celebrate National Elder Law Month.
Together, are you and your loved one concerned that there will not be enough money to pay for long term care? Are you and your loved one planning for Medicare to pay any long-term care costs? As your Florida elder law attorney will explain, Medicare is often available to all senior and disabled adults, but it does have a limited nursing home benefit. In fact, it will pay for only 100 days of care. However, once you and your loved one are at the point where long-term nursing home care is being considered for your loved one, you will not want to rely on Medicare alone.
Therefore, your qualified Florida elder law attorney will begin a discussion on Medicaid and how to apply. Your loved one’s income level and assets are one of the primary qualifications for receiving Medicaid benefits. If your loved one qualifies, Medicaid will cover nursing home costs.
By reaching out to your elder law attorney, he can help you with the process of obtaining Medicaid services for your loved one. Working with and going through the steps needed to apply for Medicaid with the assistance of your elder law attorney, he can advise you of whether Medicaid may seek to recoup costs from your loved one’s estate once he or she passes away. If they do, your attorney can help you with estate planning strategies on behalf of your loved one that may minimize the depletion of his or her life savings due to Medicaid. It is important for you and your loved one to know that an elder law attorney can counsel you and give you assistance on how to proceed with your loved one’s best interests in mind.
Planning for the future when a nursing home might be required is critical to ensure that your goals are achieved. We know this article may raise more questions that it answers. We do telephone, computer, and face-to-face appointments. Our face-to-face appointments are held outside in the open air (frequently selected by clients for document signing) and inside our office conference room. We follow all CDC guidelines. Our office procedures adhere to COVID-19 safety protocols and are designed and enhanced by medical review and air quality engineering.