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If you or a loved one is in need of long-term care and are wondering how you will afford the rapidly increasing medical costs, San Diego Law Firm can assist you in formulating and implementing a plan that will ensure your long term care and preserve your estate.

In California, Medi-Cal is a need based program that will pay for long term care expenses, including an indefinite period of skilled nursing home care in a Medi-Cal certified facility.

A Medi-Cal applicant must be financially qualified to receive Medi-Cal benefits. Although it is not difficult to qualify for Medi-Cal, the rules of Medi-Cal eligibility are quite complex. In a nutshell, a Medi-Cal nursing home applicant cannot have more than $2,000 in countable assets and their income must be limited. One caveat to this rule is that many of your assets, including your home, are “exempt assets” and are not considered countable assets. San Diego Law Firm can assist you in identifying your assets and, if necessary, restructuring or “spending down” appropriate assets to ensure that you or your loved one qualifies for Medi-Cal. After a Medi-Cal recipient's death, Medi-Cal may make a claim against any exempt property, including a home, owned by a Medi-Cal recipient as reimbursement for benefits that the state has paid on behalf of the recipient. Minimizing the effect of such claims can be accomplished but requires careful and timely planning.

The regulations governing Medi-Cal eligibility and planning are obscure and rapidly changing. You should certainly seek legal advice before proceeding with any program to qualify for Medi-Cal eligibility.

Please call San Diego Law Firm today to learn more about our Medi-Cal planning services.

He joined San Diego Law Firm in the Spring of 2004 while he was attending the University of San Diego as a visiting student. Daniel is now an associate attorney and assists William R. Simon, Jr. in various aspects of business law, real estate law and wills, trusts and probate.

Prior to law school, Daniel received a B.A. in Economics from Washington and Jefferson College, a private college outside of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. In his free time Daniel enjoys reading, working out, hiking and playing the guitar. If he could meet just one person, it would be the singer/songwriter, Bob Dylan. Daniel is an integral part of San Diego Law Firm's unique and service-oriented legal team. His positive attitude and good common sense, coupled with his excellent legal research skills, have made him a valuable asset to the clients of the firm. The next time you are in the office, be sure to say hello to Daniel Bonasso.