OT: Nursing home payments

[Stormin]

If he has money, there's no reason you and I should foot the bill for him. That is exactly what you're proposing.

I see no reason why someone that has accumulated a lot of wealth should find a loophole that allows him to go on welfare.

It is half his money. "His" money will be spent on "his" care. "Her" money will be spent on "her" care. That is why it is called a "Division of Assets".

It really isn't a loophole at all. When it comes to your time, you can choose to use "Your" assets to pay your spouse's nursing home bill. Or vice versa. I will bet that you go with the "Division of Assets" when that time comes. Wanna bet?

[azepp]

Why should the tax payer foot the bill for any part of this "small fortune" that it may cost for care, before all of their assets are exhausted?

This is exactly the reason why people try to accumulate wealth. So they have security. However, there is no reason that their kids are entitled to this money, while the surgeon is in a facility at the tax payer's expense.

A major compenent of any wealth advisor's job is to find legal ways to transfer wealth between generations in the manner that is most adventageous to their clients. This generally involves avoidance of taxes or, in this case, the destruction of the family's wealth because of the unfortunate situation they find themselves in.

You can debate whether these practices are right or wrong until you're blue in the face, but you'd be a fool to not take advantage of the protections that the law allows.

[Stormin]

A major compenent of any wealth advisor's job is to find legal ways to transfer wealth between generations in the manner that is most adventageous to their clients. This generally involves avoidance of taxes or, in this case, the destruction of the family's wealth because of the unfortunate situation they find themselves in.

You can debate whether these practices are right or wrong until you're blue in the face, but you'd be a fool to not take advantage of the protections that the law allows.

Exactly. There is a reason why the law allows a division of assets. It means that one spouse's half goes for their health care if things go bad without subjecting the other spouse to abject poverty if that situation occurs.

If the couple is worth much at all, they will be paying a lot of money before Title XIX would ever kick in. It helps those most with modest estates. And eventually the surviving spouse might end up on Title XIX as well. It doesn't make people rich. It just allows the non-Nursing home spouse to live with some dignity rather than abstract poverty.