There can be many reasons that a nursing home resident might default on their bills. For example, they might refuse to pay. I assume if that were the case, if the "responsible party" had POA they could pay from the person's accounts. However, it could get messy. Often the wording of a POA gives the grantor the authority to revoke. All kinds of wacky things are possible, though not very likely.
I assume here that the main issue of concern would be the circumstance of the person running out of money, applying for Medicaid, going on "Medicaid Pending" status for awhile and not being billed, and then unfortunately not being approved. In this case, the nursing home is probably going to discharge. In most states, they can't just throw a person out on the streets but have to first document that a suitable placement has been identified. Once that's been done, they're probably going to seek back payment for the unbilled period of time.
So, it's important to make as sure as possible that you understand the Medicaid process where the person will be applying and that there aren't any "gotchas" lurking that might lead to Medicaid denial or delay. Things were pretty clear cut with my mother's finances. The main issue was making sure that my purchase of her condo was handled correctly so we wouldn't get snagged on that, and the EL attorney detailed just what I had to do when I bought it from her 2-3 years before she did need Medicaid. It all turned out OK.
I assume here that the main issue of concern would be the circumstance of the person running out of money, applying for Medicaid, going on "Medicaid Pending" status for awhile and not being billed, and then unfortunately not being approved. In this case, the nursing home is probably going to discharge. In most states, they can't just throw a person out on the streets but have to first document that a suitable placement has been identified. Once that's been done, they're probably going to seek back payment for the unbilled period of time.
So, it's important to make as sure as possible that you understand the Medicaid process where the person will be applying and that there aren't any "gotchas" lurking that might lead to Medicaid denial or delay. Things were pretty clear cut with my mother's finances. The main issue was making sure that my purchase of her condo was handled correctly so we wouldn't get snagged on that, and the EL attorney detailed just what I had to do when I bought it from her 2-3 years before she did need Medicaid. It all turned out OK.
Statistics: Posted by RationalWalk — Mon Jun 10, 2024 2:11 am — Replies 67 — Views 6358