Will my income affect my father's chances of Medicaid?
My father has been fightng cancer for over a year. his health covereage through his employer is ending in a month and he will technically be unemployed, so he is apllying for medicade. He is recieving ssa in the amount of 1700 a month. i am living with them in order to help around the house. will my income and vehicles/assets count against him with his application???
Expert Answer
Neither your income nor your assets (such as your car) will be counted by Medicaid when it determines your father's eligibility. The only part of your finances that might be considered by Medicaid would be amounts that you regularly spend on his behalf. So, for example, if you regularly buy groceries for yourself and your father, Medicaid could consider part of that amount (an amount equal to the portion of food that goes to him) as income to your father. The same would be true if you regularly paid any household expenses (gas, electricity, insurance, rent or mortgage, taxes, etc.) -- the amount would be apportioned and the part that covers your father's portion of the expense could be considered as income to him.
One way to avoid this is to keep good track (including receipts and cancelled checks or other payment records) for the amounts both you and your father spend for household expenses. If you buy your food separately, or only pay enough on common purchases (food, utility bills) to cover your share, then Medicaid would not count any of that as income to your father and it would not affect his eligibility.