Insurance and medicaid

kjw · ‎03-09-2010

Does anyone know if I am on medicaid, can I have life insurance? Can my children have insurance on me? I am 63 yrs old and don't want my kids to be stuck paying my funeral bills.

Mustang Shar · ‎03-24-2010

I would check with Medicaid . I don't see how it conflicts with them other than you will be paying for it. Good luck to you.

seaglass · ‎05-01-2010

Not sure about life insurance but If you can afford it you should do funeral pre-planning by paying for the funeral now. It goes into a trust -- the funeral home does this (this is New York) and when you die the money has already been paid and the funeral is already pre-planned. Family pays nothing because you bought it before you died. You can make it as simple as a simple cremation and choice of urn. Obituaries can be pricey but can be included. Anything you desire can be priced now and done as pre-planning with the funeral home of your choice. The cheaper walmart type of funeral homes get you on things like obituaries -- they don't tell you this. I like home town funeral homes. Not Newcomer type brand homes. There is usually a threshold medicaid amount of money in a bank account you can keep while you are on Medicaid -- as far as your own funds. I do not have the answer about paying for life insurance whether it is allowed. But funeral pre-planning before you go on Medicaid is a good idea to use your own funds and before you are limited to the medicaid threshold amount of money you can maintain while on Medicaid. Do not know for every state. You may also be able to use it to pay for funeral pre-planning while on medicaid. Check with your state. Good to do this advance planning. Too many are afraid to plan for these very real life events. Better to pre plan than leave it all on your family. Good luck.

millieshops · ‎03-09-2010

It may depend upon your own state's laws, but I will tell you that when I had finally to ask for Medicaid to pay expenses for my aunt's final few months of her life, I was allowed to prepay all of her funeral expenses. We were moving her body from NY to PA and even that expensive cost was allowed.

I'd think that it must mean you could have life insurance because it would be like prepaying, but I'm talking NY 15 years ago. You must check because Medicaid is a state function, so different states have different rules. You must follow those rules very carefully.

I'm pretty sure my memory tells me lots of my best information came from meeting with a funeral director.

surfk · ‎07-12-2010

@kjw wrote:
Does anyone know if I am on medicaid, can I have life insurance? Can my children have insurance on me? I am 63 yrs old and don't want my kids to be stuck paying my funeral bills.

Generally, in order to qualify for Medicaid your total assets cannot exceed $2000.

So life insurance, depending upon the type and the amount CAN be counted as an asset. It can affect your Medicaid eligibility.

You always want/need to check with your particular state for specifics. Unlike disability, a federal thing, each state administers its own Medicaid program.

In GENERAL, though, most states will permit a Medicaid recipient to buy TERM life insurance but not WHOLE life insurance.

TERM insurance doesn't carry with it a cash or monetary value so it isn't counted as an asset.

WHOLE life insurance, on the other hand, does or can hold a cash or monetary value. Therefore the state looks at it as an asset.

But some states make an exception regarding WHOLE life insurance. They don't count it if the policy is for $1500 or less. If its a policy for more than $1500 and has a monetary value (which you COULD cash in before you were to die), then, that cash would be counted as income or as an asset.

But again, you must check with your own individual state pertaining to most things Medicaid. Each state operates its Medicaid program in is own manner and according to its own guidelines for essentially every benefit it offers and every limitation or rule it imposes.

betteb · ‎03-09-2010

As everyone else has said, check your states guidelines, but it seems that they would allow a small burial policy. You could also just have one of your children take out a policy on you, and you just give them the cash to pay the premiums.

It's God's job to judge the terrorists. It's our mission to arrange the meeting. U.S. Marines

sissel · ‎08-13-2010

Life insurance & medicaid may be 2 different things. Don't know about medicaid but think that may be for health ins. Life ins is something different. My Dh has been in ins. for over 30yrs. I would suggest you to get in touch with an insurance agent. Explain what you want they deal with many ins. companies & will give you quotes. I would also tell you to get at least about $10,000 for funeral expenses. My in laws seem to let their children pay for funerals they never thought about it well between my sil & husband it costs them, cremation is cheaper you may want that or whatever you want but I will say right now a funeral is about $10,000. So happy you don't want your kids worried. Wish my in laws thought about it. My parents had a savings account just for funeral expenses. They thought it threw. Or if you have about $10,000 or more in a savings then you may not have to worry. maybe open a saving with acct title as funeral expenses. If not having $10,000 in an acct then get insurance for funeral expenses.

qualitygal · ‎10-04-2010

There are many articles on line on medicaid. I'm not totally sure, but you might want to check with an attorney on this one. We did and it helped a lot. Get someone who does Elder Law. They should know what is needed in your state and you'll learn things just not out there for the layman. I highly recommend it if you can afford it. Be sure of what they offer to do for you and $$ their cost(s).