JWROS vs. Medicare/Medicaid (Calif)

[roesler]

When my mother died 25 years ago, my father soon married a woman 13 years younger. Ten years ago, she demanded to be added to the deed of his home (which is paid in full), and he agreed to do so contingent on me being added as well: so since then it's been held joint with right of survivorship by all three of us. He is now 85 and doing great, but she is 72 and has been in a nursing home the past 2 years. Right now, the home is sheltered because my father is a "spouse in the community", and he pays a small share ($100 per month, plus premiums) for her care. But, he's pretty old! If he predeceases her, what happens to the house? Is it exempt property and I just have to wait til I'm the sole survivor? Does Medicare or Medicaid (I'm not sure which one is paying for her stay) get to take the house, or can they force me to sell it and split the proceeds? If I rent it, can I just give Medicare 1/2 the income towards her care? Note that she is no blood relative to me, but her own 2 kids are no help: mention paying for her care and they run the other way, assuming I will sell my dad's house to cover it. The home is in California.

My dad also asked that I sign a "living will" or some such thing giving my stepmom the right to live in the home as long as she lives. Does that affect this situation?

 

[ALawyer]

As your father's marriage is a long term one, her request to be on the deed was not unreasonable and your father did the right thing. Stop trying to put the burden on her kids, as that they won't fly.

But keep sight of the objective -- to avoid losing everything to pay for her care. That is something that gets tricky as there is a fine line between planning and Medicaid Fraud. It takes an experienced lawyer to handle it.

Suuggest that the 2 of you see lawyer to protect your interests in the assets and keeping the government from getting it.

As to what he wants for her, he probably wants to give her a life estate in so she could live there, but the issue is could she or is the level of care she needs so intense that home care (and who would pay for that?) may not work.

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