Burlington Medicaid planning attorneys can provide assistance making sure that covering the costs of medical care is possible during your senior years. Seniors become eligible to receive Medicare coverage at the age of 65 and many people mistakenly believe that once they become eligible for Medicare, they will not need to worry about healthcare costs any more. Unfortunately, this is not actually the case — there are many types of essential care for seniors that Medicare pays nothing for at all and there are also premiums to pay and coinsurance costs associated with Medicare coverage. 
Because Medicare is not as comprehensive as many seniors expect it to be, people often save too little to cover the costs of healthcare. And, some types of care — such as nursing home care — are so expensive that it would be all-but-impossible for the average family to be able to save enough to provide sufficient coverage.
If you want to make sure you don’t end up having to impoverish yourself in order to get medical care you require as a senior, it is important to be proactive and make a plan to ensure your care will be paid for if you get very sick. For most seniors, this means working with Burlington Medicaid planning attorneys to make sure that Medicaid coverage is available. Unsworth LaPlante, PLL C can help you to determine if you will likely need care to be paid for by Medicaid in your old age and can assist you in taking steps to get the coverage that you need.
Medical Care is Costly Even with Medicare
Medicare consists of different parts, including Part A that provides hospital coverage; Part B that provides outpatient care; and Part D that provides prescription drug coverage. Seniors can also opt to buy an optional Medigap plan to cover additional costs. Coinsurance expenses with Medicare Part B can be very high, as seniors are expected to pay as much as 20 percent of their costs of care — and a Medigap policy can help to pick up some of this cost so seniors do not get stuck with thousands of dollars in bills.
Unfortunately, the coverage options available are typically insufficient to cover all of the costs seniors need to pay. In fact, researchers from Employee Benefit Research Institute recently conducted an analysis of how much seniors could expect to spend on healthcare services if they were covered by Medicare and also paid for a Medigap policy. The research factored in Medicare premiums, coinsurance expenditures, prescription drug expenses, and other routine healthcare costs seniors typically face. The research found that a senior couple who was in the 90th percentile for prescription drug use would need a total of $370,000 saved for medical care jut to have a 90 percent chance of being able to afford their care expenditures.
Obviously, saving this much money is almost impossible for many people, especially as most Americans have too little retirement savings as it is. And, the worst part is, the research from Employee Benefit Research Institute does not even factor in the biggest expense at all: nursing home care. As many as 70 percent of seniors will need nursing home care, according to Wall Street Journal, and this can cost more than $100,000 in a single year.
Obviously, making a plan to pay for care costs is essential unless you want to spend your entire life savings on getting healthcare services as a senior. For many seniors, the best plan is to make sure they can qualify for Medicaid to cover nursing home care or other very costly medical expenditures.
Medicaid is means-tested which can create problems when seniors have savings and assets they want to pass down to loved ones but not enough money to actually pay for the costs of medical care. Burlington Medicaid planning attorneys can provide help making sure seniors find a way to protect their assets while still qualifying to get Medicaid coverage when they need it.
Getting Help from Burlington Medicaid Planning Attorneys
If you are concerned about how you will pay for healthcare you need during retirement, you should join us for a free seminar to find out about the ways in which our Burlington Medicaid planning attorneys can help you to protect your assets while ensuring access to care. If you are ready to make your personalized Medicaid plan, give us a call at (802) 879-7133 or contact us online today to talk with a member of our legal team to get started.
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