Seniors escaping healthcare costs by divorcing

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I told my wife that she can divorce me when I get dementia. She can have the government foot my nursing home bill since I'm not going to get any social security in 2044
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excerpt from article below:

Christine Crawford of Aurora, Ohio, started divorce proceedings after her husband's care for dementia consumed more than $100,000 of their savings.

Crawford said she didn't want to divorce her husband, with whom she'd raised three children, but it was the only way to preserve what was left of their life savings.

"All along I kept saying, 'Absolutely not. I won't do that,'" said Crawford, whose husband died before the divorce was final. "I was so proud of the fact we'd been married for 42 years."

To understand why Crawford faced such a wrenching decision, you need to understand some background:

* Medicare, the government insurance program for people 65 and over, doesn't cover long nursing-home stays.
* But Medicaid, the federal health program for the poor that does cover such care, generally requires people to exhaust their financial resources before they can qualify for help.

When one spouse gets sick, many married couples face the uncomfortable prospect of having to "spend down" most of their assets to qualify for Medicaid, leaving little for the healthy spouse to live on.

http://articles.moneycentral.msn.com/Col...rceGrandpa.aspx
 
Originally Posted By: PandaBear
I don't know. When everyone takes advantage of the loophole by divorce, the loop hole would change.


Yeah. My position in the baby boom assures that any escape hatch has already been long welded shut by the time my part of the herd reaches it. The path will be well trampled.
 
I just think it was a smorgasbord where the supply just couldn't keep up with demand. The line was too long.


oily: Back end ...yep, that's where I get it.
 
Originally Posted By: oilyriser
Are you a "back end" Boomer, or a "front end" Boomer? It's much better to be front end.
I don't think that's an appropriate question...
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Originally Posted By: pickled
Interesting...I came to the revelation that my spouse was draining my finances as well. I guess I had a proactive divorce then LOL?!
But the question is, did the present value of alimoney and child support outweigh the future value of nursing home care?
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No kids, she's employed and I had a rocking attorney who is worth her weight in gold! Life is better here, but I don't know if I would actually care about myself if I had dementia...
 
It would not have worked. there is whats known as a 'look back period'.I believe it is 2-3 years. The assets have to be re-titled long before you apply for (medicaid) which is welfare. There insurance policies out there. but people refuse to buy them. They want the poor old tax payer to pick up the tab.
 
I'm sorry, call me old-fashioned, but what this woman did is wrong and so self-serving that it makes me sick. When you get married, it supposed to be for good, no matter what comes along, not "from this day forward, until I can't afford your medical bills, then I'll cast you out, save my own butt, and let the state take care of you."

I'm not particularly religiuos, but if there is a divine being, I hope he makes her pay for what she attemptted to do....sickening.
 
Originally Posted By: addyguy
I'm sorry, call me old-fashioned, but what this woman did is wrong and so self-serving that it makes me sick. When you get married, it supposed to be for good, no matter what comes along, not "from this day forward, until I can't afford your medical bills, then I'll cast you out, save my own butt, and let the state take care of you."

I'm not particularly religiuos, but if there is a divine being, I hope he makes her pay for what she attemptted to do....sickening.


I don't think she really divorced him and leave him to die, I think she just divorce him so that he can get welfare. They are probably still living together as before, and she pay for the living expense.

In other word, it is an insurance/medicaid/medicare fraud.
 
Still the wrong approach. You stick together and do what you have to. If you really believe in your marriage, if you go down, you go down together.

I'm probably just old-fashioned. Maybe a lot of people do this. Not a lot of commitment in todays society.
 
I think you're viewing it incorrectly. The situation isn't the abandonment of the commitment to the institution of marriage, but the oddity in penalty that it assesses against its participants.
 
Suppose it wasn't dementia? Suppose I get some condition that is 100% debilitating and 100% permanent? Am I shirking my responsibilities by divorcing my wife to assure that she's got a home to live in? ..or..if the situation presented itself, just throw any of the security that she may be afforded ..and just put her on the street? Assume, for the moment, that we had "typically American" children that sucked us dry and can't be bothered with taking care of the geezers.
 
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