I used to just sign whatever mom put in front of me for elder care planning

Back in 2019 when my dad got sick I would just nod and sign any legal form my mom handed me about his care plan. After he passed we found out we missed a 5 year lookback period for Medicaid and it cost us about $12,000 in penalties we could have avoided. Now I record every conversation with her elder lawyer and read every single line before signing anything. Has anyone else gotten burned by not double checking the timing on these financial moves?

3 comments

3 Comments

max_cooper2111d ago

my friend trusted his brother to handle their mom's stuff and they lost like 8 grand on a missed deadline for Medicaid.

fiona_carr2611d ago

Actually that lookback thing is a bit more complicated than most people realize. It's a 5 year lookback from when you APPLY for Medicaid, not from when the person passes away. So if your dad died in 2020 and you applied later, you might have still been within that window depending on the dates. I'd double check with an elder law attorney just to be sure the $12k penalty was really from that mistake. Your mileage may vary but I've seen a few cases where families assume the clock starts at death and it messes up their whole timeline.

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carr.abby11d ago

Tbh that's such a great point about the lookback window. It reminds me of how so many official processes work - like trying to get a passport renewed or file taxes, the rules seem straight forward until you actually have to do it. I swear every family I know has some story about getting burned by a deadline they didn't understand. My aunt tried to help my grandma with her Medicare stuff and ended up paying extra for six months because she missed a window by like two days. It's wild how these systems that are supposed to help people end up being so confusing that normal folks just trip over themselves trying to follow the rules.