Amber HindsWhat does “Actuarially Sound” Mean?In a recent blog post, we explained what a Medicaid Compliant Annuity is. To summarize, in order for an annuity to be “Medicaid...
Amber HindsA.M. Best RatingsWhen purchasing a Medicaid Compliant Annuity, we often reference the insurance company’s A.M. Best Rating. A.M. Best is an American...
Amber HindsWhat Type of Assets Can be Used to Purchase a Medicaid Compliant Annuity (MCA)? ANY! If your clients have money in checking accounts, savings accounts, CDs, brokerage accounts, stocks, bonds, whole life insurance...
Amber HindsMedicaid and Medicaid Planning DefinedMedicaid is the largest payer of long-term care expenses. With long-term care expenses continuing to rise, it is important to understand...
Amber HindsMedicaid Planning and Qualified Accounts Medicaid Planning with retirement/pre-tax IRA accounts can be confusing, especially because each state treats these accounts a little...
Amber HindsGifting & Medicaid Compliant Annuity Planning for an Individual ClientWhen implementing a Gifting & Medicaid Compliant Annuity (MCA) Plan for an individual client (no spouse), the goal is to maximize the...
Amber HindsDeficit Reduction Act outlines Different Rules for Retirement Annuities vs. Non-Retirement AnnuitiesA Medicaid Compliant Annuity (“MCA”) is an immediate annuity that converts excess countable resources into an income stream (i.e. a MCA...
Amber HindsPurchasing a Medicaid Compliant Annuity Pre-Snapshot vs. Post SnapshotWhen planning for a married couple in a state that has a minimum and maximum Community Spouse Resource Allowance (CSRA), the timing of...
Amber HindsName on The Check Beneficiary ExampleThomas and Barbara Smith are married. Barbara is the owner of an IRA valued at $100,000 and she is the spouse that is in need of care. ...
Amber HindsMedicaid Annuity Beneficiary DesignationsMost elder law attorneys are familiar with the fact that the Deficit Reduction Act of 2005 outlined specific requirements for annuities...
Amber HindsNew Jersey Medicaid Updates Penalty Divisor, Effective April 1, 2020New Jersey Medicaid recently released Medicaid Communication NO. 20-05 updating the Penalty Divisor to $357.67 per day as of April 1,...
Amber HindsMonthly Maintenance Needs Allowance (MMNA): What Does it Mean and How do Calculate it? In our previous blog post, we discussed how to calculate the Community Spouse’s Resource Allowance when dealing with a married couple...
Amber HindsHow to Calculate the Community Spouse Resource Allowance (CSRA)When working with a married couple wherein one spouse is applying for Medicaid and the other spouse resides at home, we typically refer...
Amber HindsMedicaid: Countable Assets vs. Non-Countable AssetsMedicaid is a means-tested, federal-state health insurance program for low income and needy people. As with any means-tested government...
Amber HindsWhat is Name on The Check Rule?For Medicaid planning purposes, income is attributed to the person whose “name is on the check”. If two names are on the check, income...
Amber HindsPlanning Options for the Medicaid Applicant/Institutionalized Spouse’s Qualified Retirement AccountWhen implementing Medicaid planning for a married couple, typically one spouse is in a facility and the other spouse remains at home or...
Amber HindsFactors to Take into Consideration When Determining How Long to Structure A Community Spouse's MCAIn a married couple situation when one spouse is applying for Medicaid benefits and the other spouse remains at home in the community,...
Amber HindsMedicaid Planning with Qualified/IRA Retirement AccountsMedicaid Crisis Planning is pretty simple when we’re dealing with post-tax accounts (checking, savings, CDs, etc.). Planning becomes...
Amber HindsTypes of Assets that Can Be Used to Purchase a Medicaid Compliant AnnuityPeople often ask what type of assets/account can be used to purchase a Medicaid Compliant Annuity (MCA)? The simple answer is ANY! If...
Amber HindsSECURE ActOn December 20, 2019, President Trump signed into law the Setting Every Community Up for Retirement Enhancement (SECURE) Act. Most...