Nursing home and long-term care costs can use up a lifetime of savings quickly. Florida Medicaid can help pay for that care, but its income and asset rules are strict, and mistakes can delay coverage. Sawyer & Sawyer, P.A. helps Horizon West families plan for long-term care, apply for benefits correctly, and protect as much as the law allows for a spouse and family.
How Florida Medicaid Helps Pay for Long-Term Care
Florida Medicaid covers nursing home care and, through its long-term care program, some care at home or in assisted living for people who meet the medical and financial requirements. Your income and countable assets must fall under set limits. Some assets don’t count, including your home in many cases.
The Five-Year Look-Back
Medicaid reviews gifts and transfers made during the five years before you apply. Giving assets away during that window can trigger a penalty period with no coverage. Planning early gives you the most options, but even when care is needed now, legal strategies are often still available.
When Income Is Over the Limit
If your income is above Florida’s limit for long-term care Medicaid, a qualified income trust (sometimes called a Miller trust) can allow you to qualify.
Benefits for Veterans
Veterans and surviving spouses may be eligible for VA pension benefits, including Aid and Attendance, to help pay for care. Cary Moss is VA-accredited and can help you apply.
Medicaid Planning in Horizon West
About 8% of Horizon West residents are 65 or older, and the typical home in Horizon West is worth about $562,000. Adding a child to a parent’s deed as a joint owner can seem like an easy way to avoid probate. For Medicaid, though, it creates a gift that could count against the parent during the look-back period.
A power of attorney matters as well. One signed in another state almost never includes Florida’s enhanced powers, and those powers are what allow long-term care planning for someone who can no longer manage their own affairs.
A useful first step is checking how assets are titled and whether beneficiary designations are up to date. We review both with you and recommend changes that fit your family’s plan.
Figures: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020–2024 5-year estimates.
From Our Podcast: Medicaid Planning Strategies to Reduce Nursing Home Costs and Protect Savings, Part 2
Well-meant moves can backfire when families handle Medicaid planning on their own. Elder law attorney Cary Moss shares real examples from her practice on Life, Legacy & Wealth, from gifting assets that triggered look-back penalties to relying on incorrect advice from friends or the internet. Her point for long-term care planning: well-intended decisions can create serious problems if they aren’t done correctly.
Why Horizon West Families Work With Sawyer & Sawyer
Sawyer & Sawyer, P.A. is a family firm that has served Central Florida since 1994. We treat every client as an extension of our family, and we focus on people before the paperwork.
- Cary L. Moss, Esq., Managing Partner. Concentrates on estate settlement, probate, trust administration, long-term care planning and estate planning. Served five years on the Board of Directors of the Academy of Florida Elder Law Attorneys, including a term as president.
- Thomas P. Moss, Esq., Senior Attorney. Focuses on estate planning, guardianship and estate settlement. Former Co-Chair of the Orange County Bar Association’s Estate, Guardianship and Trust Law Committee.
Our office at 8913 Conroy Windermere Road in Orlando is about 30 minutes from Horizon West.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is it too late if my parent is already in a nursing home?
Not necessarily. Crisis planning can still protect assets and help with eligibility in many cases.
How is a look-back penalty worked out?
Medicaid adds up any gifts or transfers made during the five years before applying, by the applicant or their spouse, where nothing of equal value came back. It divides the total by a published average monthly nursing home cost. The result is the number of months Medicaid won’t pay for care.
Won’t Medicare pay for nursing home care?
Not for long-term care. Medicare is health insurance for people typically 65 and older, and it offers only limited short-term coverage. Medicaid, a joint federal and state program, can pay for long-term care if you meet its income and asset requirements, and planning can make a real difference in qualifying while preserving your savings.
Related Reading
- Medicaid Planning and the Rising Cost of Nursing Home Care
- Florida’s Five-Year Medicaid Lookback Rule: What Families Need to Know Before It’s Too Late
- Medicare vs. Medicaid
Other Services in Horizon West
Estate Planning · Supplemental Needs / Special Needs Planning · Probate · Trust Administration · Guardianship · Horizon West
Medicaid Planning Across Central Florida
Orlando · Windermere · Winter Garden · Clermont · Ocoee · Winter Park · Orange County · Seminole County · Osceola County · Lake County
Directions to Our Office From Horizon West
Talk to a Medicaid Planning Attorney Serving Horizon West
Call (407) 909-1900 or send us a message to set up a consultation. Our office is open Monday through Thursday, 9 AM to 5 PM, and Friday, 9 AM to 12 PM.