January 19, 2017
Michigan Medicaid Numbers for 2017
Medicaid planning helps potential applicants and their families receive the benefits they need while protecting and preserving their hard-earned assets. The new 2017 Medicaid numbers are in.
Medicaid Eligibility Rules in Michigan
To be Medicaid eligible, a single individual is allowed $2,000 or less in countable assets. Married couples are treated differently. If there is one spouse in the nursing home and one spouse living in the community, the State of Michigan does not force you to spend down all your money, only most of it. For married couples, a snapshot date is created when a spouse is in the hospital or nursing home for 30 days, from there DHHS (who administers Medicaid in Michigan) determines the Community Spousal Resource Allowance (CSRA). That number in 2017 is now between $24,180 and $119,220. They make the family spend down at least half of their assets to achieve this. Nevertheless, it doesn’t have to be this way. With proper legal planning, nearly 100% of the assets may be protected by working with a Certified Elder Law Attorney.
Not only does Michigan Medicaid require you to spend down your assets, but they also take all your income, leaving the Medicaid applicant $60 per month of their own income. However, the healthy (community) spouse can keep all their income. But, if the community spouse’s income is less than the Medicaid applicant’s income, then they can keep a Monthly Maintenance Needs Allowance (MMNA). The 2017 MMNA is now between $2,003 and $3,023 per month.
Michigan Medicaid Look-Back Period
The state of Michigan looks back five years to see if there have been any divestments. If a family has given assets away over the past five years for any reason, then the state of Michigan can assess a divestment penalty. The state looks at the amount of money given away over the past five years and divides it by the divestment divisor amount; the 2017 divestment divisor amount is $8,018. That number equals the number of months that a Medicaid applicant must private pay for nursing home care, even though they are below the asset limit of $2,000 in countable assets.
Next Steps if You Want Nursing Home Medicaid in Michigan
The next step would be to download our Medicaid Planning Guide to learn some of the basics of planning for Medicaid. In the short report, you will learn the basics around gifting and trying to qualify for Medicaid. If you’d like to learn more in person, then attend one of our weekly Life Care Planning Workshops, where we discuss Medicaid Planning in Michigan and gifting in more details.