All too often people engage in ad-hoc Medicaid or Asset Protection planning without proper legal advice. The consequences can be severe.

The new year brings some important changes to the Oregon Medicaid eligibility figures. Effective January 1, 2019: The Supplemental Security Income (SSI) benefit standard is now $771/month for an individual and $1,157/month for a couple; The personal needs allowance remains $63.10/month for nursing home residents ($90/month for an individual receiving a VA pension) and $172/month for residents in other community based care settings; The OSIP maintenance standard for a person r

The new year brings some important changes to the Oregon Medicaid eligibility figures. Effective January 1, 2018: The Supplemental Security Income (SSI) benefit standard is now $750/month for an individual and $1,125/month for a couple; The personal needs allowance has increased to $61.38/month for nursing home residents ($90/month for an individual receiving a VA pension) and $167/month for residents in other community based care settings; The room & board rate for waivered

At long last the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) had provided guidance to states on how to treat “ABLE” accounts in Medicaid financial eligibility determinations. The Stephen Beck, Jr., Achieving a Better Life Experience Act of 2014 (the ABLE Act), enacted in 2015, created a program under which people with disabilities can save money for their disability-related expenses in tax-advantaged accounts. Because disability can serve as a basis for Medicaid eligibilit

The NYT article talks about ethics in the context of Medicaid planning. Those who plan ahead often fare much better than those who don't

I read this opinion piece in the New York Times about the proposed reductions in funding to the Medicaid program and how it will likely affect older and disabled Americans. The article is worth a read. Take a look here: "You're Probably Going to Need Medicaid" #Medicaid

If you or a family member are disabled (per social security standards) and the onset of the disability was prior to the age of 26 you may be eligible to set up and fund an ABLE Account. Funds placed into and withdrawn from an ABLE account do not count as resources (or income) for most means-tested federal benefits (SSI; SNAP; Section 8; Long-term care Medicaid) so long as the distributions are for qualified disability expenses. Oregon’s state benefit programs also exempt the

350,000 Oregonians Could Lose Health Coverage is the title of the article. Take a look here. The proposed line-item reductions can be seen on the Ways and Means Co-Chairs’ 2017-19 Target Reduction Lists. In addition to the headline cut of no longer covering ACA expansion populations there are other proposed reductions that would affect seniors and people with disabilities. Among other things, proposed cuts to Aging and People with Disabilities would eliminate the live-in prog

The House will not vote to repeal the ACA. Don't forget to keep vigilant about proposed changes to healthcare and Medicaid that will aff