Applying for Medicaid Long Term Care Benefits

By Fredrick P. Niemann, Esq. of Hanlon, Niemann & Wright, a Freehold Township, Monmouth County NJ Medicaid Application Attorney New Jersey’s Medicaid Communication guide book requires that during the initial face-to-face meeting between a County Welfare Agency representative and a Medicaid applicant, the agency representative must provide the applicant or his/her representative with a “checklist/missing information highlighting verification(s) and supporting documentation required to process the Medicaid application.”   Medicaid Communication No. 10-09. Where the requested information is not supplied within the timeframe provided in the initial notice, the County Welfare Agency “must” send the applicant or their representative “an additional request for information” detailing “what documentation is still needed in order to determine eligibility.” The second request must advise “that if the …

By Fredrick P. Niemann, Esq. a Freehold Township, Monmouth County NJ Appealing Medicaid Denial Lawyer Often applicants are denied NJ Medicaid or if approved, assessed with a significant penalty period because there is not a clear paper trail of asset and property transfers.  This means that a family will be liable for months of a nursing home bill at a total cost of approximately $9,000 – $12,000 per month. Most families insist that they have legitimately spent a parent’s assets on care costs while the parent was living at home.  The problem is that they don’t have the documentation to prove it when the State is evaluating their application.  Anything that can’t be proven will be treated as a transfer for …

By Fredrick P. Niemann, Esq. a Freehold Township, Monmouth County New Jersey Medicaid Application Attorney I’ve commented about the case of a resident denied Medicaid because in her Medicaid application she listed a Minor’s Account as a resource.   In this case, the client provided the Medicaid caseworker five (5) years of financial records and was told that his father (Granddad) still had to spend down the balance of $30,000.00 from 529 accounts that the applicant never knew existed. Upon further review of the statements given to Medicaid, it was clear that the $30,000.00 in question was in two (2) Uniform Gift to Minors Act accounts, which the applicant/grandparent was acting as custodian for his grandchildren.   She was asked why she …

By Fredrick P. Niemann, Esq., of Hanlon Niemann & Wright, a Freehold Township, Monmouth County New Jersey Medicaid Application Attorney The process of properly completing a Medicaid application and providing all necessary information and documentation to your county Medicaid agency is extremely labor intensive. The process is deceptive, in that it often may appear to be much simpler than it actually is. Filing the Application Federal and New Jersey state laws regulate the Medicaid application process. The federal law on Medicaid applications is found in the Code of Federal Regulations, 42 C.F.R. §435.900. The state regulations concerning Medicaid applications are found in the New Jersey Administrative Code, Title 10, and Section 71. Internal agency memoranda, called Medicaid Communications, from the state …

By Fredrick P. Niemann, Esq. a New Jersey Medicaid Application Lawyer Medicaid applications take a long time to prepare and an even longer time to be evaluated by the state.  Be prepared to wait at least 45-180 days for processing your Medicaid application. If your application is incomplete, you’ll wait even longer or be denied for failure to provided requested information. Make sure your Medicaid application and all other necessary documentation is complete and follow all instructions on the Medicaid application to avoid delays.  Keep proof of everything you send in.  Make duplicate copies.  Because of volume, many applications are lost or misplaced. If your Medicaid application is denied, you have a right to appeal the decision. You have a …

By Fredrick P. Niemann, Esq. a New Jersey Medicaid Application Attorney The Medicaid application process differs state to state. In New Jersey, the county Medicaid office is generally available to answer questions about, qualifying for Medicaid, as well as the ins and outs of the application process.  But good luck getting a live person or a call back, especially in Essex, Camden and Mercer counties. You have one option when completing a Medicaid application: You can mail in your application. Mail ins have recently been approved in virtually all counties. Complete an application in person at the county Medicaid office in Freehold, Toms River, Trenton, New Brunswick, Elizabeth, etc.. Check the address of your county Medicaid office. A phone application …

By Fredrick P. Niemann, Esq. of Hanlon Niemann, a NJ Medicaid Attorney New Jersey is allowed to file a lien against the assets of a deceased Medicaid beneficiary. Generally, the only available asset is the person’s home, often called their personal residence. When applying for Medicaid, the Medicaid claim form states that the state can file a claim and lien against the estate of a deceased Medicaid client to recover all Medicaid payments received on or after age 55 if there is no surviving spouse, no surviving child under age 21, and no child who is blind or permanently and totally disabled. Question #3 of the Medicaid application asks whether the deceased Medicaid beneficiary was survived by a child of …