Business & Professional SERVICE Home Sweet Home New Medicaid funding provides for elderly at home. Alison Schwartz Special to the Jewish News A fter nine years of caring for his wife, who suffered from demen- tia, a client of attorney Don L. Rosenberg had gone through $700,000, which was all his life's savings. "He had nothing left by the time he came to me. It really was heartbreak- ing and it did not have to be that way:' said Rosenberg, principal partner of the Center for Elder Law, a division of Barron, Rosenberg, Mayoras & Mayoras P. C. in Troy. It's a devastating scenario that elder- law attorney Rosenberg hears about all too frequently when he meets with fami- lies and a situation that plays out day after day across Michigan. Last year, the American Alzheimer's Association esti- mated the value of unpaid care provided to people with dementia or Alzheimer's disease in Michigan was more than $5.2 billion. Until recently, families often had to choose between placing aging loved ones into nursing homes in order to access state funding, or care for them at home at their or their families' expense, which can take a tremendous emotional and financial toll. But that dilemma just became easier for Michigan's 1.3 million caregivers of elderly family members. State Support Thanks to a dramatic increase in state government funding, $147 million has been allocated to in-home care for seniors and disabled adults who meet eligibility requirements. Those families will now be able to protect the lifetime of savings they and their loved ones worked so hard to accrue. Better yet, instead of waiting years for any type of financial assistance, help can be available in a few months through the MI Choice Waiver Program. Unraveling Medicaid's complicated maze of strict laws, guidelines and regu- lations governing the financial require- ments, however, is far from easy. And so Rosenberg, who is also chair- man of the board of directors and public policy chair of the Alzheimer's Association-Greater Michigan Chapter, and his law partners, Ronald Barron, 44 November 11 • 2010 Andrew Mayoras and Danielle Mayoras, have created the Home Sweet Home Initiative to help families get the finan- cial help they are entitled to receive under the law. "The state government now real- izes they it can save significant dollars. Instead of spending approximately $4,500 a month to keep someone in a nursing home, it can pay $1,500 to $2,000 for in-home care explains Rosenberg. "If I had the choice, I know I'd rather stay at home than be put in a nursing home and I think most people share that sentiment:' This is why the state has established certain priorities to "leap frog" the wait- ing list (which can be two years or more for the general public) for in-home waiv- er or nursing home transition services. Real Example One of Rosenberg's current clients is an elderly woman who suffers from dementia and needs full-time care at the Jewish apartment where she lives. "She recognizes family members, but really can't care for herself:' said her son, who prefers to remain anonymous. "She isn't able to cook, clean or dress herself. If I go out of the room, she'll be surprised to see me when I walk back in." Keeping his mother at the apartment has cost his family tens of thousands of dollars. "Her income from Social Security and other sources are insufficient to cover rent, utilities and her caregiver:' said her son. However, her family was reluctant to put her in a nursing home because they felt her care would suffer. They are work- ing with Rosenberg to get her accepted into the MI Choice Waiver Program to receive the financial help she needs to stay at home. "My mother is very familiar with her apartment, her building and her care- giver:' said her son. "I am so relieved that Don has been able to help us because I really believe it would have been a ter- rible trauma for her to move into an unfamiliar environment." Rosenberg, a resident of Oak Park and a 25-year member of Congregation Beth Shalom, believes that many people are suffering unnecessarily because they "If I had the choice, I know I'd rather stay at home than be put in a nursing home and I think most people share that sentiment." - elder-law attorney Don L. Rosenberg are unaware of, or don't understand, the myriad changes in Medicaid funding. For example, the individual trying to receive home care and not be placed in a nursing home, or the one who is already in a nursing home and wants to transi- tion back to their home, cannot have a household income exceeding a certain amount. Also, if services are needed for a spouse, the ill spouse's income is assessed, not their caregiving partner's income. "This program can really make a huge difference said Rosenberg. "The influx of Medicaid funds is one of the most exciting developments I've seen in my more than 25 years practicing law. It could be that someone whose spouse is in a nursing home could actually get to bring them home with the support they need." Funds can be used to pay professional caregivers or family members, cover per- sonal care, homemaking, respite for care- givers, adult day services, home-delivered meals, transportation, private duty nursing, personal emergency response systems, chore service, counseling, home injury control, medical equipment/sup- plies and client-caregiver training. Another Example Rosenberg has another client who was concerned that if she accessed services to remain in her home, she would go through her savings of $60,000, which she hoped to pass on to her daughter who has multi- ple sclerosis. He helped the woman qualify for Medicaid and her money can remain for her daughter. Finally, Rosenberg understands that not everyone who resides in a nursing home who wants to go home is a candi- date to receive in-home Medicaid waiver services. For those families that are paying privately at nursing homes right now, Rosenberg wants the public to under- stand the popular belief that you have to spend it all to receive nursing home Medicaid benefits is simply not true. In fact, married couples can save most, if not all, of their life savings and assets and single persons can save at least 50 percent and still qualify for Medicaid. Feeling Good Not surprisingly, Rosenberg takes great pride in his work. "It is very rewarding — I know I am helping people all day long, giving them peace of mind and financial security," he said. Providing hope, when people believe there is none, gives him much personal satisfaction. Rosenberg, who is also chair of the Elder Law and Disability Rights Section of the State Bar of Michigan, knows that family caregivers need to focus on their own health and well being. "It's very easy to get so wrapped up in caring for a loved one that you neglect your own needs:' said Rosenberg. "Caregivers need to remember to focus as much on themselves as the person they are caring for." And that is what Rosenberg pledges to do, one family at a time, through the Home Sweet Home Initiative. ❑ For a complimentary consultation and more information about the Home Sweet Home Initiative, contact the Center for Elder Law in Troy at (248) 641-PLAN (641-7526) or www.thecenterforelderlaw.com .