re: Turning to the OT for some helpful advice as a 15 year poster

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$8000 a month.

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That seems high, my mom had Parkinson's and we had her in a nice assisted living facility at the highest level of care and I think it was around $6300. Her income was around $2200, but my father left her well off so money wasn't an issue.

They controlled her meds, brought meals when she didn't go to the dining rooms, when she ended up in a wheelchair they would wheel her around when needed, had a call bracelet she could use whenever, did her laundry, assisted her with showers.

I know it's not something you want to think about, but when it comes time look into Hospice, do your homework and find a good one.

If a nursing home is going to cost you $8,000 a month, I'm assuming she needs memory Care which is tough. We have looked at that route and it is very expensive but I can't believe they said Medicaid won't work with her income. I'm not sure where you live, but most nursing homes have people that specialize in getting the money from Medicaid so you may want to talk to another home.

I'm in a similar situation with my father for the last 2 years. I'm lucky enough to have three other siblings that help me with him at night and we have hired sitters to come during the day for 10 hours. It takes all of his income, social security and retirement to cover the sitters and then the rest comes out of savings.

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Look into a residential group home..they have them in houses where a caregiver or 2 watches 6 to 8 patients, serve them meals, etc. They live there like a nursing home, but it is a residential home and usually quite a bit less...

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Almost sounds like a Golden Girls situation, but with older residents since they require a caregiver.

I read somewhere that more older folks are starting to live like this.

They have a big house paid for or still on a fixed low interest note all kids are grown up, and they take up senior roommates to generate extra income and pay expenses.

$3,000 a month should cover a day time nurse to sit with her during the work week. Don't sell a house that has the ability to house everyone, thats bad business.

Not to be brutal but how this usually plays out is mom falls because someone can’t be with her 24/7. She needs surgery for broken hip, does to rehab, has to stay long term in nursing home. They’ll exhaust all her assets then Medicaid should step in.

I wouldn't sell the house to fund this. The house has been in your family for 40 years...does that mean it's fully paid off or has their been refinancing along the way? Regardless, I would assume you have a ton of equity in it now...I'd consider opening a HELOC before selling it. You are only going to find yourself in a worse situation as you try to find a new home at these prices and interest rates.

I am not up to date with the costs associated with elderly care, although I will be soon enough. But isn’t it possible to find an in home care giver for less than $96,000 a year? I have some general understanding that Medicare will cover some of this as well?

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We looked into a nursing home which is roughly $8000 a month. She’s 71 and her total retirement income is around $3000 monthly. I applied for Medicaid and even though she can’t even cover half a months stay at the nursing home, they said she makes too much to qualify.

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I work for a nursing home and the Medicaid applications fall under the my department and that’s not how Medicaid works. I would re-talk to them or go talk to another facility. Or you can call Medicaid yourself and talk to a rep. There’s two parts to Medicaid. Below is a brief but pretty accurate summary.

First thing they do is look at her assets that’s in her name, not counting a house or one automobile. So things such as bank accounts, 401(k), whole life, insurance policies, things that she can cash out. That all has a total below $2000 in Louisiana or she has to spend it down until she is below. Different states may have different limits, but it’s still works the same.It could be spent on fixing up her house she owns, burial insurance, burial plot, or at the facility you put her in. Those assets I mentioned have to be below $2000 before she becomes Medicaid eligible.

The second part of the equation is her income, things such asSocial Security, pension, or anything else that she gets paid monthly that has no cash value if she was to pass. If the nursing home bill is $8000, and her income is $3000, she gets a keep $45 of her income and the rest goes to nursing home. Medicaid pays the full difference of the nursing home bill less her payment. It doesn’t matter if her income is one dollar or $7999. They pay the difference of her income less the $45 of the total bill.

That is 100% fact as long as she has a reason to be in a nursing home such as she cannot take care of herself and needs 24 hour care. Again, this is for a nursing home, not assisted living.