Medicaid Planning in New York

Long-term care can be one of the most significant expenses a family faces. Medicaid planning helps protect your assets while ensuring you or a loved one qualifies for essential healthcare benefits, either at home or in a nursing home. At Reitano Law, we help families and clients throughout New York City navigate the complex Medicaid system with personalized strategies and compassionate guidance.

What Is Medicaid Planning?

Medicaid planning involves preparing your financial resources and legal documents to qualify for Medicaid, a joint federal and state program that pays for long-term care costs. In New York, Medicaid can cover nursing home care, home health services, and other critical needs—but strict eligibility requirements apply.

With the right planning, you can protect your home and savings while gaining access to the care you or a loved one needs.

Key Elements of Medicaid Eligibility in New York

To qualify for Medicaid long-term care in New York, applicants must meet specific income and asset limits. As of 2025, this generally includes:

• Asset Limit: $30,182 for an individual (varies for couples)
• Income Limit: $1,732/month for an individual (after allowable deductions)

However even if your assets or income exceed these limits there are legal actions that can be taken to create eligibility.

Certain assets, such as your primary residence (under specific conditions), may be exempt. Planning ahead is crucial to ensure you don’t unintentionally exceed these limits.

Common Medicaid Planning Strategies

• Spending Down Assets: Using excess resources to pay down debt, prepay funeral expenses, or make home modifications.
• Asset Transfers: Gifting or transferring assets strategically, with consideration of Medicaid’s five-year “look-back” period for nursing home care.
• Irrevocable Medicaid Asset Protection Trusts (MAPTs): Transferring assets into a trust to remove them from your estate while preserving eligibility.
• Spousal Refusal and Income Protections: Special rules allow a healthy spouse to retain more income and assets without affecting the other spouse’s eligibility.

Each strategy must be tailored to your situation and comply with New York’s specific Medicaid regulations.

Why Advance Planning Is Important

Planning early gives you the most options. Waiting until a medical crisis can limit your choices and potentially result in loss of assets. Even if you or a loved one is already in a nursing home, emergency planning may still preserve some resources.

At Reitano Law, we assess your situation and develop a strategy that aligns with your goals, whether you are planning years ahead or facing an urgent need.