Adult Illness, Alzheimer's and Dementia, Assisted Living, Long Term Care

Medicare Versus Medicaid

By Elder Law Attorney and Senior Estate Planner Rick Law, managing partner at the Estate Planning Center of Law Elder Law in west suburban Aurora, IL. Medicare is the federal medical insurance plan for senior citizens and individuals with disabilities, but Medicare does not cover the kind of long-term care that those inflicted with Alzheimer’s disease require. Medicare provides care for individuals who are blind, have disabilities, or are over the age of 65 and needacute medical care. “Acute medical care” means an individual has been diagnosed with an illness or other medical issue where there is a high probability that the individual can recover and return to a normal life. When Medicare was born in 1965, the average male died before ever reaching 65 years of age and the average female lived to be about 70. So when Medicare was first designed, it was created in a society where most people would never qualify for it or, if they did qualify, they would qualify for a relatively short amount of time. Looking to the other side of the equation, many people believe that Medicaid is just about paying for care for poor people. Medicaid was designed to be the part of the social safety net that provided health care for people who were too poor to be able to have their own health care. It was limited in what it was going to do because it was “means tested”, meaning that it was only available if someone qualified under certain poverty limitations. In 1965, there was no such thing as assisted-living facilities. Assisted living is for a person who has gotten to the point in life to have chronic care conditions—chronic meaning the person is never going to get well. That is an important difference between Medicare and Medicaid.  Medicare does not cover chronic medical care services for most individuals who are suffering from a long-term illness or medical problem where there is a high probability that they will not recover and will not return to a normal life. Many people believe that Medicare will provide them with long term care benefits if they need to be in an assisted-living facility or a nursing home, but they are mistaken! Too many families needlessly lose everything they have.  Don’t let that be you.  If you need help paying the overwhelming cost of long term care, give our office a call at 800-310-3100.  Your first consultation is absolutely free.  We’ll let you know what steps you need to take, right now, to protect yourself and your family.  Call now, because when you’re out of money, you’re out of options! Sincerely, Rick L. Law, Attorney, Estate Planner for Retirees. Rick was named the #1 Illinois elder law estate planning attorney by Leading Lawyer Magazine. He has been quoted in the Wall Street Journal, AARP Magazine, TheStreet.com, and numerous newspapers and articles. Rick is the lead attorney for Law Elder Law, LLP, focusing in Estate Planning, Guardianship, and Nursing Home Solutions. His goal is to give retirees an informed edge when it comes to dealing with an uncertain future.  Get flexible retirement strategies that work during good times and bad, plus information on how you can save your home and assets from being used to pay for long term care.    Call 800-310-3100 for your free consultation now!