Can I recoup caregiving costs?
I have been caring for my father alone since October 2006. My brother helped a bit and I have paid house payments, electric bills and personal care items for my father. I have lived in the house with my father and away from my husband since October 2006. It has almost cost me my marriage once. We have had my father's place on the market for sometime now. With the economy the way that it is we have had no luck at selling at this point. We are always told by the realtor that the clients love his place but, no one seems to be able to come up with the money. Due to our own finances we can't continue to pay his house payments, etc. I am also out of work on leave due to physical exhaustion. I am so tired that I am concerned for my own health. I am only 43 years old and have only been married for five years. My husband and I are at a lose and have looked into putting my father in a nursing home. He does receive Virginia Retirement, Military Retirement and SSI, which mainly covers the sitters so that I can work and a few utility bills. If we apply for Medicaid to cover his nursing home costs, will we be responsible for his debts? And is there anyway we can recoup the money that we have spent taking care of him and trying to keep him in his own home?
Expert Answer
Let's take your questions one at a time. There is probably good news for you about both.
First, if you apply for Medicaid for your father and he becomes eligible for Medicaid coverage for a nursing home, this does not place any obligation on you to pay his debts. His debts are his own, regardless of whether you take care of him at home or place him in a nursing home and help him apply for Medicaid. Be aware, though, that his creditors can try to collect their debts out of the value of the house, either by placing a lien on it or making a claim against your father's estate when he passes away.
Also, under most circumstances, Medicaid itself can seek reimbursement from someone's estate, out of the value of a house, for all the money it pays a nursing home to care for the owner of the house. But there's a special Medicaid rule that could protect you and your father from such a Medicaid claim against your father's house. Here's how it works. Since you have lived in the house for more than two years, and during that time you have taken care of your father, which has allowed him during that time to stay at home instead of entering a nursing home, he can now transfer ownership of the home to you and Medicaid will not make a claim against the value of the house. In order to qualify under this special rule:
(1) Your father has to transfer ownership of the house to you.
(2) You have to show that you've lived in the house for at least two years (with a driver's license or other documents with your name and that address, and if necessary by sworn statements by your father, brother, and husband, neighbor, or anyone else who has personal knowledge that you've lived there).
(3) You have to show that you have cared for your father during that time and that otherwise he would have needed to be in a nursing home. You can show this through a letter from his doctor indicating that he has been unable to care for himself during this time, as well as sworn statements about your father's condition from family members, neighbors and paid caregivers or other "sitters."
When you apply for Medicaid for your father, notify them of your intention to make use of this special rule, and ask them what specific proof they will need to see in order for you to qualify.