Sidney, Ohio Medicaid & Nursing Home Planning Lawyer
Covering a bit more than 12 square miles, Sidney, Ohio is located in Shelby County, serving as the county seat. Sidney currently has more than 22,000 residents who enjoy the extensive parks and recreation system of the city. Sidney’s goal, back in the 1950s, was to have a park or recreation area within a half-mile of every residence. That goal has resulted in 14 neighborhood parks, the 180-acre Tawawa Park, softball, baseball, and soccer complexes, and a municipal swimming pool. Tawawa Park is a wildlife sanctuary, as well as a beautiful picnic area with bike and walking paths.
Sidney is known as the hometown of renowned scientist and Nobel Prize winner, Paul Lauterbur. Lauterbur helped in the development of the MRI machine. President Ronald Reagan visited Sidney on a train in 1984—the same train used by President Franklin D. Roosevelt when he visited Sidney in 1944. President George W. Bush visited Sidney in 2004, eating at the Spot Restaurant in downtown Sidney. The construction of the Miami-Erie Canal between 1825 and 1837 connected Sidney in the north/south direction with the major trade centers in Ohio, attracting an influx of settlers to the area. In addition to the railways and the canal, Interstate 75 connected Sidney with Canada to the north, and Florida to the South.
Today, Sidney is a growth-oriented community with a historic downtown area, a strong agricultural background, and lots of outdoor activities. Short drives from Sidney will take you to places such as the Airstream Factory Tour, GreatStone Castle, Marmon Valley Farm, “America’s Most Colorful Caverns,” the Honda Heritage Center, Shady Bowl Speedway, the IMAX Theater at the United States Air Force Museum, Fulton Farms, Ghyslain Chocolatier, and The Winery at Versailles.
Serving the Medicaid and Nursing Home Needs of Sidney, Ohio Residents
The legal team of Lovett & House has been helping those in the Sidney area for many years with all their estate planning needs, including Medicaid and nursing home planning. We can help you apply for Medicaid, VA Aid, and Attendance, and other benefits—we have the experience to address the broad range of concerns related to these issues. Whether you or a loved one is facing a permanent nursing home stay or considering assisted living, we can help you create an effective plan of action. In many cases, we can help your family retain much of your hard-earned dollars, rather than seeing it all go to a nursing home.
Why is Medicaid and Nursing Home Planning Important?
Unless you can afford to pay the costs of a nursing home out of pocket, you, like most people, will need to rely on Medicaid. As of 2018, the average daily cost of a private room in an Ohio nursing home was between $224 and $260 per day—more than $81,000 per year. Medicaid is a common source of funding for long-term care in the state of Ohio—and across the United States—particularly for those who have few assets or those who have already used all their own assets to pay for nursing home care. Private health insurance policies rarely cover long-term care, and few people can afford to purchase dedicated long-term care policies. Contrary to what many people believe, Medicare covers nursing home care only for a very short period of time following a hospitalization. Because of all these facts, it is extremely important to engage in Medicaid and nursing home planning—before you or a loved one will need it.
What Are the Basics of Sidney, Ohio Medicaid and Nursing Home Planning?
Residents of Ohio who are 65 or older, blind, or disabled, who need long-term nursing home care must have an income at or below $2,313 (as of 2019) to qualify for Medicaid. In some cases, even when your income is above the limit, you may still qualify for Medicaid nursing home care through the usage of a Qualified Income Trust, also known as a Miller Trust.
In addition to the monthly income limits, the resident in the facility may have no more than $2,000 in resources. Resources include property and money, although there is some property that does not count toward your resources—your car can be exempt, and your home is exempt so long as the spouse resides there.
Personal belongings are exempt, and retirement accounts are counted as assets only to the extent you are able to withdraw money from the account. If one spouse will continue to live independently, you will be allowed to keep more income and assets to support that spouse. The state of Ohio makes the assumption that half of the assets you had at the time of your first admission to a nursing home will continue to belong to your spouse, subject to a certain limit that changes annually.
The final caveat for Medicaid for nursing home care is that the sooner one acts, the greater the odds that more could be saved. Those who fail to engage in early Medicaid planning will find themselves unable to protect as many assets as those who planned earlier. The sooner one acts, the more that can be preserved. If the planning is not done, then every bit of money saved over a lifetime could be spent on nursing home care before Medicaid will kick in.
How a Sidney, Ohio Estate Planning Attorney from Lovett & House Can Help
The legal team at Lovett & House is highly experienced and ready to help you plan for a future nursing home stay. We have also helped hundreds of Ohio residents who found themselves in a nursing home crisis situation. We can assist you in setting up wills and trusts and applying for Medicaid and VA Aid and Attendance benefits. Our attorneys are able to address a broad range of concerns, including any you may have regarding your ability—or that of a loved one—to have Medicaid pay for your nursing home costs. Contact the Lovett & House attorneys today for a comprehensive evaluation of your Medicaid and nursing home outlook, as well as answers to all your questions.