A person who has died without a will has died “intestate.” The Maryland laws of intestacy will determine how your property is distributed upon your death. The surviving spouse will receive one-half of the residuary estate and the children will receive the other half of the residue, or the decedent’s surviving parents. If the decedent has no surviving spouse, children, or parents, the residuary estate will be distributed to the decedent’s closest living relatives.

A Revocable Living Trust is a trust created during your lifetime to hold property that you transfer to it, which can be modified or revoked during your lifetime. Once the trust grantor becomes incapacitated or dies, his or her revocable trust is now irrevocable, meaning that generally the terms of the trust cannot be changed or revoked going forward. A Living Trust has a current serving trustee who manages the property for your benefit while protecting assets in case of incapacity. Upon your death, the trust may direct that the property be continued in trust or distributed outright to beneficiaries. A Revocable Living Trust is a very good tool for preparing for disability. In a Revocable Living Trust, you can name a successor or co-trustee who can manage the property for your benefit if you become incapacitated. A Revocable Living Trust also avoids probate.

A Special Needs Trust is used to hold the assets of a person with disabilities. The Special Needs Trust can provide for distributions to enhance the life of a person with disabilities and at the same time protect the assets in the trust from being considered a “resource” (which would disqualify the person with disabilities for state or federal benefits).

Medical eligibility for long-term care is determined on a case-by-case basis. An applicant must qualify medically and financially. To be eligible medically, the applicant must meet certain non-financial eligibility criteria. They will also be assessed by the nursing home facility or social services office. To be financially eligible, the applicant must meet the eligibility rules regarding income and resources. Income is considered funds that are received by the applicant monthly such as Social Security payments. Resources are considered anything owned by the applicant such as real property, bank accounts, and life insurance.

Yes, with the expertise of a Medicaid attorney there are ways you can protect your children’s inheritance from Medicaid. Our firm will develop an asset protection plan that may enable you to preserve your assets and obtain eligibility for Medicaid.

A penalty is a period of ineligibility for Medicaid, based on an amount of transfer of a gift.

A gift is an asset such as money and real property that were “gifted” to an individual in the last five years from the date of the application.

The answer is yes, but only if handled in the proper way. If your assets are given away at the wrong time or amount, then you could receive a penalty.

Not necessarily. Assets owned by a living trust are still vulnerable to nursing homes costs and are counted when determining financial eligibility. The look back period is five years from the date of the application. If the assets were titled into the trust period to the look back period they are protected. However, other types of trusts may be used to protect assets.