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Dupage, IL Estate Planning Blog

Wednesday, May 1, 2013

Joint Bank Accounts and Medicaid Eligibility

Joint Bank Accounts and Medicaid Eligibility

Like most governmental benefit programs, there are many myths surrounding Medicaid and eligibility for benefits. One of the most common myths is the belief that only 50% of the funds in a jointly-owned bank account will be considered an asset for the purposes of calculating Medicaid eligibility.

Medicaid is a needs-based program that is administered by the state.  Therefore, many of its eligibility requirements and procedures vary across state lines.  Generally, when an applicant is an owner of a joint bank account the full amount in the account is presumed to belong to the applicant. Regardless of how many other names are listed on the account, 100% of the account balance is typically included when calculating the applicant’s eligibility for Medicaid benefits.    

Why would the state do this? Often, these jointly held bank accounts consist solely of funds contributed by the Medicaid applicant, with the second person added to the account for administrative or convenience purposes, such as writing checks or discussing matters with bank representatives. If a joint owner can document that both parties have contributed funds and the account is truly a “joint” account, the state may value the account differently. Absent clear and convincing evidence, however, the full balance of the joint bank account will be deemed to belong to the applicant.  


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Attorney Leasa Baugher assists clients with Estate Planning, Medicaid Planning, Elder Law, and Probate throughout Illinois. We are based in the Chicago area serve all of Dupage County, Cook Couty, Kane County, and surrounding Chicago cities including but not limited to Medinah, Schaumburg, Bloomingdale, Itasca, West Chicago, Glendale Heights, Carol Stream, Barlett, Addison, Wood Dale, Wheaton, Glen Ellyn, Winfield, Arlington Heights, Mount Prospect, and Elgin.



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