My parents need to go to a long term care facility in Texas. How much does Medicare cover, I wonder?

My siblings & I cannot afford to help in this financially & they have no retirement. I KNOW!

Medicare does not generally cover long term care. Depending upon the circumstances they may cover for a short period but then only for a day or two. This is why people need a long term care policy.

Here is the website for Texas Medicaid: http://www.hhsc.state.tx.us/medicaid/med... which will probably be the only way. It may take a couple of months to get them on so don't delay.

There are strict limitations to qualifying for Medicaid which vary from state to state. They must fall within income and asset limitations. If they make over those amounts they will still qualify for the care but they'll need to pay part of facility charges. If they own a home they probably won't have to sell it if there is any chance that one might move back but be aware that some states are going after the assets of a deceased person. I'm not sure whether Texas does or not.

They may be required to sell some of their assets to help pay for the facility. As a general rule Medicaid will count any cash, stocks, bonds, and cash value in life insurance policies.

There are many more rules and regulations that we can't go into here.

Medicare generally doesn't pay for long-term care. Medicare also doesn't pay for help with activities of daily living or other care that most people can do themselves. Some examples of activities of daily living include eating, bathing, dressing, and using the bathroom. Medicare will help pay for skilled nursing or home health care if you meet certain conditions.

You could look at the "Paying For Long-Term Care" section on RetirementCommunity.com

http://www.retirementcommunity.com/Long-...

The section list financing option for long term care.and may be of help.