Louisiana Medicaid Planning Lawyer

Medicaid Planning Attorney in Louisiana

As you age, long-term care plans become essential. However, the costs of long-term care in Louisiana cause significant strain on a family’s finances. If you or a spouse currently needs or might need care in the future, it is important to plan ahead for how you’ll afford it while still caring for your estate. At Field Law, our Louisiana Medicaid planning lawyer can help you understand your options and create a plan that protects what matters to you.

Field Law: Trusted Medicaid Planning Services

At Field Law, our team has been helping families across Louisiana with their estate planning and Elder Law needs for years. We know that Medicaid planning can feel overwhelming and complex at first, which is why we’re here to help you through every step of the process. Whether you’re planning for yourself or helping a parent plan, Field Law is dedicated to helping you create a plan that helps you move forward with confidence and clarity.

Qualifying for Medicaid in Louisiana

It is important that you create an estate plan that addresses your long-term care needs in Louisiana before a health crisis occurs. This way, your loved ones and caretakers can follow your wishes, pay for your care, and handle your estate the way you request if something happens to you. If you qualify for Medicaid or plan to qualify, you should make certain this is discussed in your plan.

One in four people across the United States receives Medicaid assistance every year. For many, Medicaid is essential for them to maintain their quality of life and long-term care. However, in Louisiana, your ability to receive assistance via Medicaid is determined based on certain asset and income limitations. In order to qualify for Medicaid, you must meet the following requirements:

• Income Requirements. In order to qualify for Medicaid benefits in Louisiana, your income needs to remain below a certain level. Income limits may vary based on the size of your household and the program you are looking into. In Louisiana, where the median household income is around $60,756, meeting this requirement is not often easy, which is why planning ahead is essential.
• Asset Requirements. In addition to the limits imposed on your income, there are also asset limits in place. Assets, including savings, property, and stored cash, need to remain below a certain threshold in order to maintain eligibility for Medicaid.

How Medical Estate Planning Can Help You Get the Care You Need

Louisiana residents who own a considerable number of assets or earn an income that makes them ineligible for Medicaid often come into our offices concerned about their future. Thankfully, there are a number of legal strategies that can help you protect the integrity of your estate and also work to make certain you are cared for when illness or tragedy strikes. These strategies include:

• Creating promissory notes, drafted in legal compliance with Medicaid stipulations
• Establishing a Medicaid Asset Protection Trust (MAPT), an irrevocable trust that allows you to transfer certain assets from your name to another while maintaining some level of benefit or control over said assets
• Gifting assets to someone in order to “spend down”
• Spending down assets in other ways that are still beneficial to you, such as purchasing a new home or additional property, making improvements to your home, prepaying funeral and burial expenses, and paying off certain debts you may have

Hire a Medicaid Planning Attorney in Louisiana Today

At Field Law, we can review your financial circumstances and help you determine what legal strategies are appropriate for your situation. Without a plan, you may be forced to sell certain assets or spend down in ways that don’t align with your wishes. Let our attorneys help you qualify for necessary long-term care while making certain that your assets and your loved ones are protected.

FAQs

Why Should I Plan Ahead for Long-Term Medical Care in Louisiana?

Planning ahead for long-term care in Louisiana and how your qualifications for Medicaid may impact your future is essential. Long-term care can drain the entirety of your savings, and without a plan in place, your estate can dry up before any assets can be passed along to your heirs. Additionally, your Medicaid eligibility will depend on your limited access to income and assets, so without a plan, you may be forced to spend down assets before qualifying.

What Is the Medicaid 5-Year Look-Back Policy?

When a Louisiana resident applies for Medicaid, Medicaid has the right to review the applicant’s financial records from the last five years. This is to make sure that applicants are not hiding or attempting to lower the value of their assets to qualify for Medicaid benefits. You should consult a lawyer to better understand how to qualify for Medicaid in Louisiana and meet its strict requirements.

Why Do I Need to Hire a Medicaid Planning Lawyer in Louisiana?

You need to hire a Medicaid planning lawyer to make sure your assets are consolidated and protected in a way that allows you to meet Medicaid qualification requirements. This can help protect your retirement funds or individual assets if you need to be placed into an assisted living home or nursing home.

What Information Do I Need to Provide My Medicaid Planning Attorney With in Louisiana?

In order to successfully create a Medicaid plan that meets your needs, your attorney will need access to certain information. It is important that you provide your attorney with documentation that helps prove your identity, as well as your unique wishes when it comes to long-term healthcare. From there, you may need to disclose certain financial records so you and your attorney can determine your Medicaid eligibility.

Contact Field Law for Trusted Medicaid Planning Services in Louisiana

When it comes to planning for your future, it is better to have a care plan in place than to be caught off guard with hefty medical expenses. When you hire a Medicaid planning lawyer from Field Law, we can review your family’s financial circumstances and your goals to help you create a long-term care plan that meets your unique personal and Medicaid needs. Contact our offices today to learn more about our Medicaid planning services in Louisiana.