Oklahoma elder law attorneys provide help to seniors in making plans to take advantage of benefits available to them. Many people will require more support and assistance as they get older, especially if they wish to try to continue living independently. Parman & Easterday can help those who are aging understand what benefits are available and ensure they are able to qualify for means-tested benefits such as Medicaid.
While Medicaid may be necessary to pay for costly care that seniors may require, such as when seniors require care in a nursing home, there are a number of different free programs and low-cost programs available in and around Oklahoma City. For example, the Edmond Sun recently wrote about the service that the Oklahoma City Community Foundation is helping to provide to seniors thanks to grant money that the foundation has made available.
Warm Meals Provided to Seniors Thanks to Grant Funding
According to the Edmond Sun, the Oklahoma City Foundation provided a grant of $65,400 to the Mobile Meals program that serves warm meals to housebound elderly residents. The grant money will go to pay for Edmond Mobile Meals, Meals on Wheels of Norman, Mobile Meals of Oklahoma County, and a total of 54 different churches that prepare meals and deliver them to homebound elderly residents of Oklahoma.
This grant was not the first that the Oklahoma City Community Foundation has made available to fund meals-on-wheels programs and other meal delivery services for seniors. Since 2008, the Oklahoma City Community Foundation has been providing funding to programs providing meal services. Over the course of this past decade, a total of $325,000 in grant money has been provided to help fund these services that provide essential nutrition.
The need for funding is expected to grow in upcoming years as the population in Oklahoma ages and there are more elderly people who require mobile meal services. The Oklahoma City Foundation recognized the growing demand for meal services, which is why it increased its contributions this year by a full 60 percent compared with the contribution that was made last year.
The executive director of Edmond Mobile Meals commented on the growing demand, indicating: “In 2017, Edmond Mobile Meals has seen an increase in the number of clients unable to contribute financially for their daily meals. The grant funding from the Community Foundation will help us remain committed to making sure no Edmond homebound senior goes without a meal, regardless of financial situation, and ensure service begins immediately upon enrollment without a waiting list.”
Mobile meal services not only provide nutrition to seniors but also provide an important social connection that improves the quality of life to older people who may not have a lot of visitors. Caring, personal contact comes with each meal delivery. These deliveries are available to those who are 60 and over who cannot prepare their own food. The program is a vital one for seniors who experience physical challenges who have little help at home.
Getting Help from Oklahoma Elder Law Attorneys
While Meals on Wheels and related programs provide very important support to seniors who wish to try to continue living independently even when they face challenges, this type of supportive service can only go so far to help seniors continue to live alone without paid help. When a senior becomes unable to cook, manage his or her hygiene needs, or otherwise take care of activities of daily living, that senior may require long-term care help at home or may need to move to a nursing home.
A move to a nursing home or hiring home healthcare aides can be very costly. Medicaid will pay for the costs of custodial care, or basic routine care, but only for people with minimal assets. Medicare and most private insurance will not pay for basic custodial care at all, so seniors will get no coverage for their necessary nursing home or long-term care services unless they can qualify for means-tested Medicaid.
Parman & Easterday can help you to become eligible for Medicaid without having to lose all of your assets first. To find out more about how our Oklahoma elder law attorneys can help you, join us for a free seminar. You can also give us a call today at (405) 843-6100 or contact us online for personalized advice. Call today to learn more.
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