Protecting Your Assets: Essential Medicaid and Long-Term Care Strategies for Hot Springs Families

Finding reliable long-term care—either for yourself or a loved one—is tough enough. But learning how to pay for it is usually the bigger challenge. Medicaid is designed to help with the high costs of nursing homes and assisted living, but getting approved requires meeting strict eligibility criteria. And those criteria differ from what many might expect.

In Arkansas, Medicaid can help cover:

• Skilled nursing care at a licensed facility
• Some in-home health services
• Assisted living and personal care, depending on the program
• Prescription medications and medical supplies

Income limits and asset restrictions apply, but there's more flexibility than most people think. For instance, not all assets count against you. If a spouse is still living at home, certain resources may be protected. Example: A man in Hot Springs helping his wife transition into a nursing facility thought he’d need to sell their home. After working through Medicaid planning, he learned their primary residence could be protected, and he was able to stay in the home while ensuring his wife received the care she needed.

To qualify, your income and asset levels need to fall within Arkansas Medicaid thresholds. That doesn't always mean you’re out of options if your resources seem too high. Legal planning can help you restructure assets to meet state requirements without jeopardizing your future or your family's financial stability. That’s what professionals try to do—preserve dignity, reduce stress, and make the system easier to understand.

Next, we’ll look at the most common struggles families in Hot Springs face when trying to plan for long-term care, and how to avoid common mistakes that can delay benefits or lead to avoidable financial setbacks.

Families in Hot Springs who try to handle long-term care planning on their own often run into avoidable problems. One of the most common mistakes is waiting too long to plan. Many people assume Medicaid planning begins only when someone is entering a nursing home. But starting early—before there’s an urgent need for care—opens up more legal options and protects more assets.

Another issue is misunderstanding how Medicaid views certain transfers. Giving money or property to children right before applying won’t help qualify for benefits and can actually trigger penalties. These rules are strict and can delay access to care when it's urgently needed.

Here are a few other key missteps to watch out for:

• Thinking Medicare will cover nursing home costs indefinitely
• Paying privately until funds run out, then applying for Medicaid too late
• Creating trusts or gifting assets without legal advice
• Assuming a will or power of attorney will impact Medicaid eligibility
• Believing each state has the same rules (even within regions of Arkansas, there can be some administrative differences)

An example of this came from a woman in Hot Springs who paid for her mother’s care out of pocket for over a year, believing she could transfer the home and then qualify for Medicaid. Unfortunately, the timing caused a delay in benefits that could have been avoided with earlier planning. She later worked with a professional to correct the course, but it cost time and unnecessary expenses.

Having the right plan in place helps reduce stress and confusion. There are legal tools available that can protect assets and prepare for future care without breaking the rules or rushing through decisions when emotions are high.