New Medicaid Health-care ‘Penalties’..

Hearing Focuses on New Rules

HAGERSTOWN - At a recent hearing on Medicaid changes, a 67-year-old Boonsboro man said he had heard that new rules would penalize older Americans who give away some of their wealth before requiring medical care. So he is now thinking about researching long term care insurance to protect his assets and to “keep control of the nest egg”.
For him, the speakers’ arguments in favor of long-term health-care insurance made sense, though he admitted that he is not yet been shopping for a policy.

“No, we haven’t worried about that. The time comes, you go,” this man said, as he and his wife left a panel discussion about changes to Medicaid rules. Simplistic and unrealistic as this response seems, most Americans have yet to maturely address the real issues of aging, which most certainly include financial planning for a 50/50 chance of needing long term care.

According to U.S. Rep. Roscoe Bartlett, R-Md., the vice chairman of the hearing, some people have tried to cheat the system by spending down their wealth ahead of time, making themselves “artificially impoverished” to qualify for Medicaid funding for services they might otherwise be able to afford. Shame on them for such an anti-social, no, criminal act.

Do have they any idea how poorly Medicaid users can be treated in the long term care system? They are welfare cases, pure and simple. Welfare recipients can find themselves getting worse treatment than full-paying folks. It’s sad, but welfare has a stigma attached to it in this country. Those who receive welfare, in any form, are likely to be treated with less respect, compassion and care. Who wants that kind of experience in one’s last years?

Due to the cheats, our Medicaid program has grown to over $300 billion and is increasing 8 percent every year, Bartlett said.

“Clearly, this will just consume us if it continues. Right now, it is just increasing a debt that we pass on to our kids and our grandkids,” said Bartlett, 80. He said he believes the explosive increase would be contained if insurance companies included long-term care benefits in their standard health insurance policies.

“If that was an invariable part of the health-care plan, it would cost literally pennies,” he said.

I wouldn’t hold my breath for “pipe dream” solutions, said Frand Goldworthy, “I got my long term care insurance quotes though the Buyer’s Advocate.

According to information provided by Stephen A. Moses, president of the Center for Long-Term Care Reform Inc., the Deficit Reduction Act of 2006 closed some of the loopholes by extending to five years a “look back” at asset transfers. People who transfer assets at less than their market value for the purpose of qualifying for Medicaid can incur penalties and delays in getting benefits.

People who have made a practice of giving money to charities would not be penalized, and nobody would be denied essential care, Bartlett said.

Bartlett said he is concerned that the people who most need help would not get services if Medicaid is not reformed.

A Bartlett opponent and a woman who said she was representing a candidate for U.S. Congress both criticized Bartlett’s assertions that private insurance coverage would hold down Medicaid costs.

“What they’re doing is chipping around the edges instead of dealing with the real meat of the problem,” said Andrew Duck, a Democratic contender for Bartlett’s job.

Duck said the country is facing a “health-care crisis.” People need long term care insurance - That’s the answer.

Maldo Schmidt, who is coordinating Democrat Barry Kissin’s campaign for the Sixth District, said including long-term care coverage in insurance policies would only increase the number of uninsured Americans. She said Kissin supports single-payer national health-care coverage.

Bartlett said he has met senior citizens who are depressed that their health-care costs will drain their estates, making it impossible for them to leave anything to their heirs. If they had long-term care coverage, they would have been able to support themselves and leave an inheritance, he said.

“I have talked to a lot of seniors. They worked hard all their lives, and they love their kids and grandkids, and they wanted to pass their home down to them, and now it is being consumed by them being in a nursing home,” Bartlett said. But this is life. Just because they “want” to give assets to family, does not exempt them from paying for their own care or anything else they need. This is a free market economy, and we pay our own way, right?

The reforms will not help folks avoid paying, but the new rules will encourage younger people to better prepare for their future health costs, Bartlett said.

---

Rules prevent hiding assets

According to information provided by Stephen A. Moses, president of the Center for Long-Term Care Reform Inc., in Seattle, the Deficit Reduction Act of 2006 included new rules to prevent people from trying to hide their assets to qualify for Medicaid benefits, as well it should.

The law extends from three years to five years a “look back” at asset transfers when considering a person’s Medicaid eligibility. Mose said he supports a window of at least eight years - the average amount of time between onset of Alzheimer’s disease and death, and we agree. Folks with assets should not be able to give them away just to get taxpayers cover their care - That’s shameful.

The rules provide for penalties for people who have transferred funds at less than their market value for the purpose of qualifying for Medicaid. Under the 2006 changes, the penalties begin when the person involved applies for Medicaid services. If a penalty would deny medical care, food, shelter or other essentials, the applicant or nursing-care facility can apply for a waiver.

In any case, if you have assets to protect and descretionary income, then you need long term care insurance quotes right away. Do it now.