You may feel as though you will have a safety net when you achieve senior citizen status in the form of Medicare. A lot of people are under the impression that this entitlement program will pay for just about everything when they become eligible so they don’t worry about budgeting for possible future medical expenses.
In reality there are gaps that must be filled. One of these involves assisted living expenses. Medicare does not pay for a stay in a nursing home or assisted living community, and these facilities are extraordinarily expensive.
However, Medicaid will pay for long-term care but it can take careful advance planning to qualify for the program. Because Medicaid is intended to provide health care to people who have little to no financial capabilities there is an upper resource limit which is $1600 ($2400 for a married couple) as of this writing.
Before you turn the page assuming you will never be able to qualify valuable personal possessions like your home and your vehicle don’t count toward this figure. And, if you are married and your spouse needs living assistance you would be able to keep half of shared assets that are countable up to a limit that stands at $117,640 at the present time.
The best way to develop a comprehensive plan for aging is to sit down and discuss all of your options with an expert. If you would like to do just that, take action right now to arrange for an informative consultation with a licensed and experienced Hartford elder law attorney.
- Can You Give Inheritances in Advance to Limit Estate Taxes? - August 11, 2026
- Do Trusts Pay Taxes on Capital Gains? - July 9, 2026
- How Does a Trust Differ From a Will? - July 7, 2026
( By appointment only )