CounselElder Law & Medicaid Planning · New York
When a parent's diagnosis changes everything overnight, you need someone who has already seen this exact situation — and knows the next three steps.
The Reality of Elder Care
of Americans have no long-term care plan.
Most families discover this in the hospital hallway.
is the average annual cost of nursing home care.
A stay of two years can erase decades of savings.
is how far back Medicaid looks into your financial history.
Transfers made before that window may still be counted.
"The right conversation, at the right time,
changes everything."
The questions you're carrying into this page are the same ones every family brings. Here is what the law actually says.
"What happens to the house?"
Your family home is often exempt from Medicaid eligibility calculations — while the elder is alive. The complication arrives after death, through a process called Medicaid Estate Recovery, where the state may file a claim against the estate to recoup what it paid for care.
With proper planning — an irrevocable Medicaid Asset Protection Trust established before the look-back period — the home can often be transferred outside the estate entirely, shielding it from recovery claims.
Federal law requires states to seek recovery from the estates of Medicaid recipients who were 55 or older when they received benefits. State implementation varies significantly — New York, for example, limits recovery to probate assets only.
"Is it too late to protect assets?"
It depends on where your family stands in the timeline. If the elder has not yet applied for Medicaid and has not been in a facility for five years, there are still strategies available — including spousal protection rules that allow a community spouse to retain significantly more than most families realize.
Even in crisis situations — a sudden hospitalization, an unexpected dementia diagnosis — there are legal tools available. Medicaid crisis planning is a recognized specialty for a reason: the rules are complex, but they contain real protections that most families never discover because they never had a guide.
In 2026, a community spouse may retain up to $154,140 in countable assets (the "Community Spouse Resource Allowance") without affecting the institutionalized spouse's Medicaid eligibility. This figure is adjusted annually for inflation.
"The right conversation, at the right time,
changes everything."
Recognized by the institutions that govern this field
Twenty-two years of practice. Every case personal.
After the immediate crisis, families face a second layer of questions. These are the ones most attorneys don't have time to answer in a first call.
"Who makes medical decisions if she can't?"
Without a valid Health Care Proxy or Durable Power of Attorney for Health Care, that authority defaults to a court-supervised process called guardianship — expensive, slow, and public. The court appoints a guardian after a hearing; the family's wishes are considered, but not controlling.
A properly executed Health Care Proxy takes fifteen minutes and costs almost nothing. It names the person your loved one trusts most to speak for her when she cannot speak for herself. Done before incapacity, it works. Done after, it cannot.
New York's Health Care Proxy law allows any competent adult to appoint a health care agent. The agent's authority becomes effective only when the principal lacks decision-making capacity, as determined by the attending physician.
"What exactly is the Medicaid look-back?"
When you apply for Medicaid long-term care benefits, the state examines five years of financial transactions — every gift, every transfer, every asset that left your loved one's name. Transfers made below fair market value during that window trigger a penalty period: months during which Medicaid will not pay for care.
The look-back is not a criminal investigation. But it is thorough. Bank statements, deed transfers, retirement account distributions — all of it is reviewed. Understanding what counts as a disqualifying transfer, and what does not, is where experienced counsel earns its value.
The Deficit Reduction Act of 2005 extended the look-back period from 36 months to 60 months (5 years) for all asset transfers made on or after February 8, 2006. It also changed the start date of the penalty period to the date of Medicaid application rather than the date of transfer.
"The right conversation, at the right time,
changes everything."
Begin Here
Schedule Your Family Strategy Session
This is not a sales call. It is a structured conversation — sixty minutes — in which we review your family's specific situation, identify the legal tools available, and outline a sequence of next steps.
No intake questionnaire before the call
No retainer discussion in the first session
Plain-language answers to your specific questions
A written summary of options mailed after
Three questions. Thirty seconds. We use your answers to prepare before we call — so the conversation starts where it should, not at the beginning.