Caregiver Tip of the Month
— When the money runs out —
What happens to your loved one?
If your loved one is in an assisted living facility when his or her money runs out, they (and your family) will have two options: (1) you can pay the monthly assisted living bills from your own funds; or (2) your loved one will have to move to a nursing home that accepts Medicaid patients. Medicare never pays, and Medicaid only rarely pays, for assisted living.
On the other hand, if your loved one already lives in a nursing home when he or she runs out of money, the nursing home cannot throw them out – in most cases.
In 1999, Congress passed Public Law 106-4, "Nursing Home Resident Protection Amendments of 1999." In summary, the federal law says:
1. If a private-pay or Medicare patient lives in a nursing home while the nursing home is a Medicaid provider (most are), he or she cannot be discharged for financial reasons, even if the nursing home later withdraws from the Medicaid program, but continues to provide nursing home care to other types of patients. HOWEVER, nothing prevents the nursing home from moving the patient, without his or her permission, into a lower-cost room, including a ward-type room for several patients, or a special Medicaid section of the facility. But, the nursing home cannot transfer the patient into another nursing home without his or her specific permission.
2. A Medicare or private-pay patient who enters a nursing home when the nursing home is not in the Medicaid program can be discharged [evicted] when he or she is no longer able to pay the charges of the facility, even if the patient then qualifies for Medicaid. But for this type of discharge to be allowed, the nursing home must have informed the patient of this discharge [eviction] policy in writing, and received the patient's written acknowledgment, when the patient began residence in the facility.
As you can see, there are several "ifs" involved, including whether or how soon your loved one should apply for Medicaid, the federal/state program that pays about half of all nursing home expenses. If your loved one is in this situation, or will be shortly, we recommend that you (or they) discuss all of this at your earliest opportunity with an attorney who specializes in elder law. Check the yellow pages in your local telephone directory, or go to the National Academy of Elder Law Attorneys' website. On their home page for the public, you'll find a link in the upper left corner (just below their logo) that will help you locate an elder law attorney.
A final word of advice: While you and other members of your family may be able to help your loved one financially, be very careful about accidentally becoming a co-signer for any of your loved one's debts, or signing any other type of document where you agree to become financially responsible for him or her. If you were to become a co-signer or become financially responsible, you would be legally obligated to use your own money to pay your loved one's bills.
If you do have to sign something for your loved one as his or her Power of Attorney, make sure that you include POA after your name AND that you also sign your loved one's name after yours. That isn't forgery as long as you do have a valid Power of Attorney. And, acting as his or her Power of Attorney does not obligate you to use your personal funds to pay your loved one's expenses.
Our visitors ask ...
Q. My father can't afford to continue paying the premiums for his Medicare Supplement insurance and the new prescription drug program. Do you know of any cheaper insurance policies he could switch to?
A. You father may not have to find cheaper Medical Supplement insurance and prescription coverage. Instead, his situation could be resolved by finding a way to get financial help to pay his premiums.
Millions of older adults are eligible for federal and state benefits, but are not receiving them, including assistance to pay Part B and Part D premiums for Medicare benefits. This is unfortunate because these programs can help with housing, meals, transportation, health care, prescription drug costs, legal services and utility bills, just to name a few. For your information, the new Medicare Part D for prescription drugs includes extra help for people with limited income and resources. Nearly 1 in 3 people with Medicare will qualify for extra help and Medicare will pay for almost all of their prescription drug costs.
Benefits CheckUp is a service of the National Council on the Aging, a non-profit organization. It helps older adults quickly and easily find out which benefits they qualify for, and how to get them (many are available regardless of income). This is a free service and is completely confidential. It does not require your father's name, address, phone number, Social Security number, or any other information that could be used to identify him.
Simply complete the online questionnaire. In a few minutes, he (or you) will have a list of programs for which he most likely qualifies, including phone numbers and addresses. It also includes step-by-step instructions on how to apply for the benefits. To visit Benefits CheckUp, click on http://www.benefitscheckup.org/.
Daily Living Solutions
— products for seniors —
As we grow older, it often becomes difficult to use many everyday products because of arthritis and other conditions. If you or a loved one needs a little help – or a lot – we've selected a group of practical and affordable solutions from our affiliated merchants to help overcome those limitations.
Whether you are looking for yourself, or to help an elderly senior continue living in their own home, you'll find a wide variety of supplies and accessories – raised toilet seats, safety rails, incontinence supplies, large-handle eating utensils, pain relief, diabetic supplies, pill splitters and crushers, big-button telephones, canes, walkers, rollators, wheelchairs – and much more.
Everything is sorted into convenient categories in our Solutions for Seniors section.
Caregiving – Finding the money for care at home
A variety of resources can help pay for care at home. We discuss these resources in some detail in our article 12 tips to help you find money (and free resources) for care at home.
Caregiver Tip #2
— Very Important Papers —
How to Replace Lost or Forgotten Documents
When a crisis hits and the responsibility of caring for a loved one suddenly descends upon you, you may not have all the documents and other important papers you need because they have been lost or forgotten. Here's how to replace them.
Adoption papers
Advance Directives
Birth or Death Certificate
Citizenship and Naturalization Documents
Driver's License / ID Card
Income Tax Returns
Insurance Policies
Living Will
Marriage or Divorce Papers
Medicare Card
Military Discharge Papers
Passport (U.S.)
Power of Attorney for Financial Affairs
Power of Attorney for Healthcare
Property Deeds
Social Security Card
U.S. Savings Bonds
Vehicle Registration or Title
Will
Important Note: Don't expect anyone to give you these documents if your only reason is curiosity. You must have a valid reason, as defined by law, to see your loved one's private papers.
If you suspect that your loved one has lost track of one or more of their bank accounts, bonds, stocks, mutual funds, income tax refunds, pensions, unclaimed life insurance benefits (including the Social Security death benefit), etc., start looking for their unclaimed money at "Is Your Money Missing?".
Our visitors ask ...
Q. My mother can't figure out the value of her savings bond. She doesn't know if she should cash it in or reinvestment it. It is a Series E with a December 1973 issue date. Hopefully you can help her.
A. You can find out what savings bonds are worth with the new online calculator from the U.S Treasury Department's Bureau of Public Debt. Their calculator will price Series EE, E, and I Bonds and Savings Notes. Features include current interest rate, next accrual date, final maturity date, year-to-date interest earned, and more. Click on
http://www.publicdebt.treas.gov/sav/savprice.htm
then click on Online Savings Bond Calculator.
Recommended Reading and Videos
Many excellent books and videos can help guide you through the caregiving process. For our recommendations, including a brief description of each one, click here.
For more helpful information from our website, click here. To see previous issues of this newsletter, click on Archives.
Aging Solutions is a free service of:
Solutions for Seniors, Inc.
1051 E HILLSDALE BLVD
FOSTER CITY, CA 94404
Your comments or suggestions for future issues are always welcome; email them to us at editor@aging-parents-and-elder-care.com
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