When thinking of moving a loved one into assisted living in Midlothian, TX, one of the problems you may encounter is how to finance the costs. A retirement community that offers senior assisted living communities provides care for aging adults who need assistance with activities of daily living, instrumental activities of daily living, medical support, and many more. These services don’t come cheap and many families may not be able to afford them. Keep reading to learn about Medicaid, the benefits, and how to qualify for it.
What Is a Medicaid Waiver?
Medicaid waiver provides financial assistance for the cost of care for those with low incomes. Medicaid will occasionally cover care for people who want to age at home or residents of an assisted living community if it is more affordable there than it is in a nursing facility. The Medicaid Waivers are also known as Home and Community Based Services (HCBS) Waivers.
Benefits of STAR+PLUS Medicaid Program
With the help of STAR+PLUS, handicapped individuals and senior citizens in Texas who need nursing-level care can live at home, in assisted living communities, or in adult foster care and get care services there. Both non-medical care services and medical treatments/services are covered under this Medicaid waiver.
Personal emergency response systems, adult day care, help with house renovations, and other benefits are also available. The participant can select his or her own personal caregiver for certain of these services since they are allowed to be “Consumer Directed Services.” You can employ friends and certain members of your family to work as caretakers.
Eligibility Guidelines for STAR+PLUS Waiver
There are general eligibility requirements and financial restrictions for the STAR+PLUS Waiver program.
- General Eligibility Requirements
Applicants must be in need of the type of care services usually offered in nursing facilities. This indicates that they need full-time medical care or are incapable of handling their everyday tasks without a lot of help. An evaluation of each candidate’s requirements is necessary.
- Income Limits
The income limit applies to citizens of Texas who will be 65 or older in 2022. For a single candidate to be qualified for Texas Medicaid’s STAR+PLUS program, their monthly income must exceed $2,523. Applicants must have an annual income of not more than $30,276.
However, the maximums for married candidates depend if only one of them or both partners are applying for Medicaid benefits. The non-applicant spouse’s income is not taken into account for determining eligibility for an applicant that is married but the partner is not applying for this waiver.
Additionally, the spouse who is applying may transfer a maximum amount of $3,435 per month in income to the spouse who is not applying. This is referred to as “needs allowance” because it effectively decreases the applicant spouse’s accessible income for qualifying requirements while also ensuring the non-applicant has adequate monthly income.
- Asset Limits
Applicants who are widowed, divorced, or single are permitted “countable assets” of a maximum of $2,000 each. Many assets, including one’s house, are excluded, however only if the applicant or their spouse resides there and the equity in the residence is less than $636,000. The spouse that is not applying may also have savings, assets, and retirement accounts worth a maximum of $137,400 in these situations. A communal spouse resource allotment is what this is called.
What Happens to Persons Who Exceed the Financial Limits?
Texas has fairly strict eligibility requirements, so those with assets or income that are just a little bit beyond the cutoff point could think about placing their extra money into an eligible income trust. You need to understand that the development of both of these financial instruments may want support.
