An application for Medicaid benefits cannot be approved before the applicant (and spouse, if any) has completed the spend-down, because benefits are not payable unless the applicant is financially eligible. It is not uncommon for someone to initiate an application for Medicaid without having any idea whether they are eligible or not. The nursing home may start the process; a nonattorney representative may start the process; a hospital social worker may suggest that they apply. They may leave the intake interview with a List of Required Documents, but not be told that they have to spend down to “X” level before the application can be processed. Sometimes, months go by and the hapless applicant is running up nursing home bills without actually being Medicaid eligible because they didn’t “spend down.”
Despite the fact that the regulations of the State Medicaid Manual at N.J.A.C. 10:71-2.2(c) specifically obligate the County Welfare Board to assist the applicant in this process, all government agencies are reticent to provide advisory opinions on what measures will comply with a program’s rules. There may be substantial opportunities to shelter assets for the family, but the CWA cannot be counted on to provide that sort of advice. Also, given the huge volume of cases, there may be many procedural tangles that prevent the applicant from receiving necessary advice through the CWA. Unfortunately, if the applicant sits back and waits for guidance, they may discover that they and their spouse are incurring tremendous financial obligations that they have no good way to pay.
The spend-down may be a combination of expenditures, exempt transfers and replacement of existing assets. The math is precise and until the spend-down is completed, there can be no eligibility. By getting individual legal advice early in the process, an applicant can take advantage of the opportunities that the rules provide to protect his family and achieve eligibility at the soonest possible time.
Call for representation regarding Medicaid eligibility spend down planning …. 732-382-6070