Social services – MassHealth – Trust – Condominium

Listen to this article

Where an application for long-term Medicaid benefits was denied, the plaintiff widow of the applicant must be denied judgment on the pleadings, as the applicant’s countable assets exceeded the $2,000 eligibility limit.

“The Office of Medicaid denied James Daley’s application for long-term Medicaid benefits, and his wife, Mary Daley, acting as his Personal Representative, appeals that decision. …

“… Over eight years ago, on December 19, 2007, Mr. and Mrs. Daley established the ‘James Daley and Mary Daley Irrevocable Trust‘ and appointed their son James Daley and their daughter Patricia Tubaj as its trustees. …

“That same day, Mr. and Mrs. Daley conveyed their interest in their condominium located at 215 Mill Street, Unit 103 in Worcester to the Trust. They retained life estates under the property’s deed and continued to live there together for about six years until health reasons required that Mr. Daley be admitted to the Millbury Health Care Center on December 20, 2013. …

“MassHealth provides nursing home benefits in the form of long-term care coverage for individuals who have $2,000 or less in ‘countable assets.’ 130 Code of Massachusetts Regulations sectionsection519.006(A)(2) and 520.003(A)(1). …  Here, it is undisputed that Mr. and Mrs. Daley are financially ineligible for MassHealth benefits if the Trust is considered a countable asset. This court is constrained to conclude that the Office of Medicaid Board of Hearings correctly determined that the Daleys’ Trust was a countable asset because: (1) their condominium property remained available for their use after they deeded it to the Trust; and (2) they had the right to condominium-generated income (a situation here that was theoretical only.) …”

Daley v. Sudders, et al. (Lawyers Weekly No. 12-142-15) (6 pages) (Curran, J.) (Worcester Superior Court) (Civil Action No. 15-CV-0188-D) (Dec. 23, 2015).

Click here to order the full text of the opinion.