In this Elder Law Minute, elder law attorney Wes Coulson discusses Medicare limited benefits and what they are in terms of long term care requirements.
Medicare Limited Benefits and Long Term Care Requirements
Transcript:
Hi, I’m Wes Coulson and this is your Elder Law Minute. You may know that Medicare provides a limited benefit for nursing home stays. One of the requirements for Medicare to apply is that you have to have at least a three-day hospital stay prior to the time that you receive nursing home care. When you’re in a nursing home you have to be receiving some sort of rehab care. Well, there’s been a recent development that’s something you really need to be careful about. In order to, if you will, keep people from having that three-day nursing home stay, there are some hospitals that are admitting people but not as an inpatient: rather, saying that they’re there “on observation.”
“On observation” does not get you Medicare coverage for a nursing home stay. So if you have somebody who is being admitted to the hospital and you know they’re going to the nursing home, and somebody says they’re going to be there on observation, you want to fight it. You want them there as an inpatient. Thanks!
For more on Medicare, visit these articles:
- Will Medicare pay for a Rehab stay in a Nursing Home?
- 4 Myths about Medicare and Medicaid Long-Term Care coverage
- Medicare and Nursing Home Care: Is it covered?
Dent-Coulson Elder Law is dedicated to providing families in the St. Louis area with their Elder Law needs. Our practice areas include Asset Preservation Planning, Veterans Benefits, Medicaid Eligibility, Alzheimer’s Planning, Special Needs Planning, Estate Planning and more. We understand the financial challenges you may face as you and your loved ones grow older. At Dent-Coulson Elder Law, our clients’ well-being is our number one priority. For immediate help, call (877)995-6876 or Contact Us and we will get in touch as soon as possible.
