Caring for a special needs child is a big responsibility and can be time-consuming and stressful for the caregiver. It is more than a full-time job; it’s often 24 hours a day, every day.
Personal care assistants (PCAs)...more
Social Security benefits will rise only slightly in 2017. This follows no increase in benefits in 2016 and small increases for many of the previous years. The small bump in 2017 will likely be eaten up by higher Medicare Part...more
If you transfer assets within five years of applying for Medicaid, you will likely be subject to a period of ineligibility. There is an exception, however, if enforcing the penalty period would cause the applicant an "undue...more
Medical care is one of the most important services, if not the most important service, that a person with special needs may need over the course of her life. The transition from a parent's health insurance to an individual...more
The rules for how income will reduce a Supplemental Security Income (SSI) beneficiary's monthly benefit can be very confusing. Here is a quick look at how the Social Security Administration (SSA) treats an SSI beneficiary's...more
Medicaid law provides special protections for the spouses of Medicaid applicants to make sure the spouses have the minimum support needed to continue to live in the community while their husband or wife is receiving long-term...more
Many seniors consider transferring assets for estate and long-term care planning purposes, or just to help out children and grandchildren. Gifts and transfers to a trust often make a lot of sense. They can save money in taxes...more
The Internal Revenue Service has reversed a long-standing policy and agreed to allow parents of people with disabilities who receive Medicaid waiver funds in return for caregiving services provided to their children to...more
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has released the 2014 federal guidelines for how much money the spouses of institutionalized Medicaid recipients may keep and the limit on how much a home can be worth for...more
When one member of a couple moves to a nursing home, we expect that spouse will be the first to die, but this isn’t always the case. What happens if a Medicaid recipient's spouse dies first? If planning steps aren't taken,...more
When one spouse qualifies for Medicaid to pay for a nursing home stay, the spouse who is at home is often left without many resources. While Medicaid has rules to prevent community spouses from impoverishment, the protections...more