Here is another denial zone for most people entering their retirement years. When you think about your retirement, it is natural that you would create a mental picture of a life of free time. You can travel, play golf or tennis, dine out, work in the garden, and otherwise enjoy your golden years in the way that you always envisioned when you were busy traversing a career path.
This is all well and as it should be, but at the same time it is important to consider the period of time that may follow your active retirement years. The numbers do not lie. A majority of senior citizens will need living assistance at some point in time, and a stay in a nursing home or an assisted living community is extremely expensive. Because of this, careful advanced planning is key.
Though Medicare does not pay for long-term care, Medicaid will pay for it if you can qualify. There is a $2000 upper resource limit which can lead you to thinking that there is no way that you will be able to qualify because of your financial holdings.
However, it should be noted that a lot of your most valuable possessions don’t count toward this figure, including your home and your vehicle. In addition, the healthy spouse of a senior citizen entering a long-term care facility can retain ownership of his or her half of the community assets up to a certain limit. In 2012, this limit is $113,640.
A lot of people will “spend down” in an effort to stay within the Medicaid limits. The tricky part is that there is a five year “look back” period and you can be penalized for divesting yourself of resources within five years of applying for Medicaid.
Given the intricacies of the qualification process expert guidance is crucial. If you would like to explore the possibility of angling toward Medicaid eligibility the wise course of action is to sit down and discuss the matter with a licensed and experienced Oklahoma City elder law attorney.
Larry Parman
Author, President and Founding Attorney
Parman & Easterday
Since founding Parman & Easterday in 1985, Larry has led over 1,000 free, community-service education programs and helped more than 10,000 Oklahoma families go from putting off their estate plan to getting it done. His goal for every client is the same: to become the person their family calls "the one who took care of everything."
Larry is the author of three books: The Straight Shooter's Guide to Estate Planning; Estate Planning Basics; and Guiding Those Left Behind in Oklahoma. He served as Oklahoma's Secretary of State and Secretary of Commerce, and his firm is the only member of the American Academy of Estate Planning Attorneys in the state.
- Can You Use AI to Plan Your Estate? - October 13, 2026
- Choosing the Right Successor Trustee: Key Considerations - October 8, 2026
- Aging in Place: A Medicaid Waiver Can Fill the Gap - October 6, 2026
