Medicaid in Oklahoma
Medicaid- two sets of financial eligibility rules in Medicaid;
Oklahoma is an income cap state which limits the amount of income an individual can have and still qualify for Medicaid.
The income limit only applies to the income received by the Medicaid applicant (Their spouse's income does not count). That means no matter what the spouse gets in income the Medicaid applicant can still qualify for benefits.
In Oklahoma, the Medicaid applicant can have a monthly income up to $3,000 per month and still qualify for benefits.
(Note: Although income is defined as all gross income received by the Medicaid applicant, it only applies to the applicants Social ecurity and defined retirement benefits. Defined benefits are retirement benefits which the Medicaid applicant must receive each month. They do not include any discretionary retirement distributions from 401(k) plans, 403 (b) plans or IRAs.
Some caseworkers and attorneys may believe that all gross income received by the Medicaid applicant, including but not limited to: interest, dividents, rents, royalties, etc. and not just Social Security and defined retirement benefits. Technically this is correct BUT--the Medicaid rules allow for income from assets to be transferred from one spouse to another without any penalty. The rules also allow a single Medicaid applicant to protect his or her income from assets by planning with the income.)
Social Security and defined retirement benefits are the only two types of income which cannot be altered or is not subject to planning.
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Some attorneys and caseworkers mistakenly believe the monthly income limit is $1,869 and not $3000 per month are not considering planning opportunities for clients. In 2007, the income limit for Medicaid applicant is $1,869 of Social Security and defined retirement benefits per month.
However, both the Federal and State rules allow the applicant to establish a Medicaid Income Trust to hold all income exceeding $1,869 but less than $3,000 per month.
By establishing a Medicaid Income Trust, the Medicaid applicant can qualify for Medicaid benefits even though his or her income exceeds $1,869 per month.
- The Medicaid Income Trust receives all of the applicant's Social Security and defined retirement benfits exceeding $1,869 per month but less than $3,000 per month. No other assets can be contributed to this trust and no income from any other person can be paid to this trust.
- The income from this trust can be used to pay for any medically necessary item for the applicant not covered by Medicaid or otherwise.
- The funds in this trust can also be used to pay all reasonable costs of administering the trust.
Only the Medicaid applicants income and not the spouse's income is considered in determining Medicaid eligibility so the couple's income must be divided between the two. (Both Federal and State rules say the income belongs to the person whose name is on the check. If the check is payable to both then, one half is considered availabe to the Medicaid applicant and the remaining half is considered as belonging to the spouse. )
To recap: There is no limit on the amount of income a spouse may have but the Medicaid applicant's income is limited to $3,000 per moht. A spouse's income will nto prevent a Medicaid applicant from qualifying for benefits regardless of the amount of income the spouse receives.
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