Dad in NH got Medicaid & mom spousal diversion. He was moved to another facility. 4mths later told Medicaid wasn't filed, pay arrears or get out. NH then illegally garnished or redirected his social security check to their (NH) acct and demand payment of arrears from my mother's spousal diversion portion. Mom now does not have enough money to pay rent, or her other living expenses. What can I do to make the NH leave my moms spousal diversion money alone and return the ahc bank deposit status to like it was?
If he was approved for LTC Medicaid, they should have sent a letter with the specifics on his required copay to the facility and his PNA (personal needs allowance) and the amount from his income to go to his wife under CSRA / MMNA. Mom if still living at home is the “community spouse” and it’s Community Spouse Resource Allowance/ Monthly Maintenance Needs Allowance. That letter exists somewhere and is what he, her & the facility must abide by.
if you don’t have this, imho, you gotta get this ASAP. I’d contact state Medicaid first and request it. Second.... his old initial NH, if he left on good terms there, they will have it and all his initial medicaid application paperwork as it’s still just a couple of months ago, I’d try contacting them ASAP. They can email it over to him. Like you open a fresh gmail account for him today for everything to go into and have all snail mail go to either your home or you go and open a rented mail box like at a UPS type of store for his mail to go to.... for this you'll have to open it in your name & your DL but he’s a second name on the box.
On the NH redirecting his SS, to do this he would have needed to allow for this to be done. The NH will imply that this just must happen, but that is flat not true. But elders or family don’t challenge it. However he can change this back. If he’s still somewhat competent and cognitive he can ask for SSA to stop the change and have his monthly income go from that point on as direct deposit into his own bank account. Needs abt 3 weeks to get done. Does he have his own checking account? Not one that he & mom share, but his own? Like in just his name and SS#? He will need his own bank acct to get a fresh SS$ direct deposit done.
one biggie frustration with SSA is that they do NOT recognize DPOAs. So you will get nowhere trying to do any of this. He has to initiate the changes. You can help him go on line to do it, or you call local SSA office and put him on the phone to answer thier questions. But you on your own cannot legit do it. Comprende?
Now SSA can do something about all this if mom can show that she’s been awarded a waiver of his SS$ by the state, or she’s drawing her SSA benefit based on his employment. If mom is competent and cognitive to speak herself to SSA, I’d try to call SSA ASAP this week after you have the email, address and bank acct done. I’ll bet SSA will be quite responsive to her and probably do a suspension of payments till determination of benefits is re-established. Now this is sticky as it may take 2 mos to work thru & no $ getting paid till a determination done. So mom won’t have $ but neither will dads NH#2. They will be pissed.
what you may want to do with SSA is for you to be named both as his & her representative payee for both of their SS $. This way you control paying the NH his required copay (less moms spousal waiver and less his PNA), you pay moms bills. Representative payee has required annual reporting to be done, but if you write a check for everything, you go thru each of their checkbooks and fill out the SSA form. Google rep payee, lots of info on it on line. It’s not crazy to deal with.
SSA will likely suggest that rep payee be done. It seems to be the default position for SSA to take when oversight seems needed.
You are sure he’s been approved for LTC Medicaid, right?