Watch Your Language: Attribution

Here’s how the Iowa Medicaid manual describes an attribution: “When one spouse enters a medical institution or applies for a home- and community-based services waiver, […] resources are attributed to the ‘community spouse’ to protect sufficient resources for the community spouse’s maintenance.” What does that mean in normal english? [Read More]

Watch Your Language: Non-countable Resource

Once you’ve disclosed all your resources to Medicaid, it’s up to the state to determine which ones are countable and which are non-countable. The term “non-countable resource” is defined quite narrowly. It only includes a very small list of specific assets that the federal government has said should be disregarded by the Department of Human Services. [Read More]

Watch Your Language: Countable Resource

If you’re asking Medicaid to help pay for nursing home care for a loved one, you’ll have to tell the state about everything they own. Everything. It’s the state’s job to determine whether they’re eligible based on the value of those assets that are considered countable resources. [Read More]