• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer
  • Home
  • WHO WE ARE
    • About Our Firm
    • Attorney and Staff Profiles
    • News and Events
  • Areas We Serve
    • Essex County, MA
      • Andover
      • North Andover
    • Hillsborough County, NH
      • Manchester
      • Nashua
    • Middlesex County, MA
      • Concord
      • Lexington
      • Wakefield
      • Winchester
      • Woburn
    • Rockingham County, NH
      • Exeter
      • Londonderry
      • Salem
  • Services
    • Asset & Business Planning
    • Elder Law & Medicaid Services
    • Estate And Gift Tax Figures
    • Family-Owned Businesses & Farms
    • Legacy Planning Services
    • LGBTQ Estate Planning
    • Loss Of A Loved One
    • Pet Planning
    • Power Of Attorney
    • Probate and Trust Administration
    • SECURE Act
    • Special Needs Planning
    • Young Families
  • Elder Law
    • Coping with Alzheimer’s
    • Hospice Care
    • Medicaid Planning
    • Nursing Home Planning
  • Resources
    • Elder Law
      • Elder Law & Medicaid Definitions
      • Elder law reports
      • Elder Law Resources
        • Elder Law Resources – Londonderry, New Hampshire
        • Elder Law Resources North Andover, Massachusetts
        • Nashua, New Hampshire Elder Law Resources
        • Woburn, MA Elder Law Resources
    • Estate Planning
      • Estate Planning Articles
      • Estate and Gift Tax Figures
      • Estate Planning Checkup
      • Estate Planning Definitions
      • Estate Planning Reports
        • Advanced Estate Planning
        • Basic Estate Planning
        • Estate Planning for Niches
        • Trust Administration
      • Incapacity Planning Definitions
      • Is Your Estate Plan Outdated?
      • Top 10 Estate and Legacy Planning Techniques
    • Free Estate Planning Worksheet
    • Frequently Asked Questions
      • Asset Protection Planning
      • Business Planning
      • Charitable Gifting
      • Estate Planning
      • Elder Law
      • Frequently Asked Questions for Families Without an Estate Plan
      • Incapacity Planning
      • Legacy Wealth Planning
      • LGBTQ Estate Planning
      • Medicaid Planning
      • Trust Administration & Probate
      • Wills and Trusts
    • Medicaid Calculator
    • Newsletters
    • Pre Consultation Form
    • Presentations
    • Probate and Trust Administration
      • Bereavement Resources
      • How to Know if You Need Extra Help With Your Grieving
      • Loss Of A Loved One
      • Probate Resources
        • Nashua, New Hampshire Probate Resources
        • Probate Resources – Londonderry, New Hampshire
        • Probate Resources – North Andover, MA
        • Probate Resources – Wakefield, Massachusetts
        • Woburn, MA Probate Resources
      • The Mourner’s Bill of Rights
      • Things You Need To Do When a Loved One Passes Away With a Trust
      • Things You Need To Do When a Loved One Passes Away With a Will
      • Trust Administration & Probate Definitions
    • Published Books
  • Seminars
    • Live Seminars
    • Online Seminars
  • Videos
  • Contact Us
  • Blog
  • Reviews
    • Our Reviews
    • Review Us

DeBruyckere Law Offices, PC

Serving Southern New Hampshire & Essex Country, Massachussetts

Call us today(603) 894-4141

(978) 969-0331

Online Seminars
Attend Free Seminar
Home » Medicaid Planning » Will Massachusetts Medicaid Pay My Nursing Home Expenses?

Will Massachusetts Medicaid Pay My Nursing Home Expenses?

July 19, 2016Medicaid Planning

Massachusetts Medicaid

The cost of long-term care in the United States is high across the country – and is expected to continue to increase for the foreseeable future. If you find yourself (or a spouse) in need of nursing home care in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, you may be wondering how you are going to afford that care. Over half of all seniors rely on Medicaid to cover the high cost of nursing home care, which may lead you to ask “Will Massachusetts Medicaid pay my nursing home expenses?” The answer to that question depends on whether or not you qualify for Medicaid benefits.

The High Cost of Nursing Home Care

In the United States, the average cost of a year stay in a long-term care facility in 2015 was around $80,000. If you are a Massachusetts resident, however, you can expect to pay considerably more. In Massachusetts, the average cost of a year in a semi-private room was $135,000 in 2015, with the private room running, on average, almost $145,000 a year. Given that the average length of stay is 2.5 years it is easy to see how the cost of nursing home care is a concern for most seniors.

Why Medicaid May Be the Only Solution

Like most people, you probably relied on employer sponsored or private health insurance to cover your medical expenses during your working years. Unfortunately, most health insurance policies do not cover long-term care unless you purchased a separate long-term care rider at an additional expense. Don’t look to Medicare to cover the cost either as the Medicare program only covers long-term care under very narrow circumstances, and even then for only a very short period of time. Medicaid, however, will cover the cost of nursing home care – if you qualify for benefits.

Qualifying for Medicaid Benefits in Massachusetts

Although Medicaid (called MassHealth in Massachusetts) will cover the costs of nursing home care, you will first need to meet the program eligibility guidelines. Those guidelines include both income and asset limits that you cannot exceed. The income and asset limits change each year; however, if your income is at, or below, the federal poverty rate, or you already qualify for SSI, you will meet the income limit test. You may still qualify if your income exceeds the federal poverty rate under certain circumstances, such as if you have significant medical expenses or are already paying for nursing home care. For most seniors, the real problem is found in the asset, or resources, limit.

In order to qualify for benefits that will cover nursing home care you cannot have countable resources that are valued at over $2000 for an individual or $3000 for a married couple. Fortunately, some assets are exempt, meaning their value is not counted when determining eligibility. For example, in Massachusetts, one car of any value may be exempt, as long as a household member is using it. Personal belongings are also exempt. Your home is exempt up to an equity value of a specific amount that changes each year. You may also be able to exempt more equity if you have a spouse or a minor or adult disabled child living in the home. In addition to the exemptions, if you are married and your spouse plans to remain in the community, the spousal maintenance allowance may also allow you to keep more income and assets and still qualify for Medicaid benefits.

If the value of your countable assets exceeds the program limits you will have to wait through a penalty period before the program will start helping with your nursing home expenses. In essence, you will be expected to rely on those assets to cover your costs during the penalty period.

One more thing – the Medicaid five year “look-back” period also prevents you from transferring assets in an effort to qualify for the five-year period prior to applying for benefits. Any asset transfers made during that time period will likely be ignored and the value of the asset added back into your estate. Including Medicaid planning in your estate plan early on in your life will ensure that you do not find yourself in this situation.

Contact Us

If you have additional questions or concerns regarding Massachusetts Medicaid, contact the experienced New Hampshire estate planing attorneys at Debruyckere Law Offices by calling (603) 894-4141 or (978) 969-0331 to schedule an appointment.

  • Author
  • Recent Posts
Daniel DeBruyckere
Daniel DeBruyckere
Attorney Daniel A. DeBruyckere has been practicing law in New Hampshire and Massachusetts since 1998, and has helped hundreds of clients with their estate planning and elder care issues. He is very well respected in the area of estate planning, probate, trust administration, elder law issues, and business planning.
Daniel DeBruyckere
Latest posts by Daniel DeBruyckere (see all)
  • Understanding Your Life Insurance Options - May 12, 2022
  • Just When You Thought You Understood the 10-Year Rule, Think Again - May 10, 2022
  • Let’s Talk about Trusts…and Taxation - May 5, 2022

Other Articles You May Find Useful

Understanding the Medicaid Transfer Penalty
Londonderry Medicaid planning attorneys
How to Plan for Long-Term Care
Is It Too Late to Save My Assets If I Need to Qualify for Medicaid?
Londonderry Medicaid planning attorneys
5 Things You Should Know about Medicaid
Do You Qualify for Medicaid in New Hampshire?
What Is the Medicaid Minimum Monthly Maintenance Needs Allowance?

Download our free Estate Planning Worksheet

There's a lot that goes into setting up a comprehensive estate plan, but with our FREE worksheet, you'll be one step closer to getting yourself and your family on the path to a secure and happy future.
  • This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.

Follow Us

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Linkdin
  • Youtube

Blog Subscribe

  • This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.

Testimonials

I felt complete trust and confidence in Dan DeBruyckere and his staff. They have a caring, low-key approach and there is no pressure to add products to the estate plan; rather he makes me aware of changes in the law, etc. I always learn something new to assist me in our planning!

LN

Your seminar was the only seminar we attended without financial advisors wanting to invest our money instead of protecting it! The information this firm provided was easy to understand even though it is a difficult topic. Thank you for all of your help!

HR

We both felt so comfortable in they way our Estate Planning was handled. We felt like someone was watching out for our best interest. Everyone we worked with at the firm was thorough, and explained everything in a way where we could walk away feeling like everything was complete.

RS

A truly great experience all the way through. Felt like we were a part of the family! Thank you.

LW

We could not have picked a more qualified law firm. Everyone that we came in contact with made us feel at ease.

Happy Client

DeBruyckere Law Offices, PC footer

Connect with Us

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Linkdin
  • Youtube
footer-logo

© 2022 DeBruyckere Law Offices
All Right Reseved.

Attorney Advertisement

© 2022 American Academy of Estate Planning Attorneys, Inc.