Coos Elderly Services

11/03/2026

The state cannot take your home while your spouse is living in it, and federal law says so.

Several readers asked about the lien and the bill after a parent's nursing-home stay on Medicaid, so this card lays out the program as the statute writes it.

For anyone 55 or older who received nursing-home care or home-based care through Medicaid, the state is required to seek repayment from the estate after death. The amount is what Medicaid paid. It comes from assets owned at death, never from the children's own money.

Four things stop or delay it. A surviving spouse: nothing is collected until after the spouse's death. A child under 21, or a child of any age who is blind or disabled: nothing is collected while that child lives. A protected person living in a home the state has a lien on: a sibling with an ownership share who lived there a year before the nursing home, or a child who lived there two years and provided the care that kept the parent at home. And undue hardship: every state must have a waiver process, and the heirs have to ask for it.

What counts as the estate is where states differ. Every state can reach the probate estate. Some states also reach property held jointly, life estates, and assets in a living trust, because federal law lets each state choose. A reader asked whether a transfer-on-death deed protects a house. In some states it does; in states that use the expanded definition it may not. That is a question for your state Medicaid agency or an elder-law attorney before the first Medicaid application, not after.

Liens during life: a state may put a lien on the home of someone permanently in a nursing home, but not while a spouse, a child under 21, a blind or disabled child, or a sibling with an equity interest lives there, and the lien must be released if the person comes home.

The claim comes after the death, through the estate. The time to learn your state's rules is before the first application.

R.J. Weiss, CFP®



The content shared here is for educational and informational purposes only. It is not personalized investment, tax, legal, or financial advice. Consult a licensed professional before making decisions based on your specific situation.

11/03/2026

🎖️ The VA's Survivors Pension pays the surviving spouse of a wartime veteran up to $18,697 a year in 2026 when they need help with daily care.

The VA calls it the Survivors Pension, and it is separate from the disability compensation some veterans' families receive.

It works on a limit, not a flat check. VA sets a yearly maximum, $11,699 for a surviving spouse with no dependents, and pays the difference between that limit and the household's countable income.

The limit rises when the spouse needs more care: $14,298 for someone mostly confined to home, and $18,697 with Aid and Attendance, which covers help with daily activities.

VA's own example is a surviving spouse with one child, Aid and Attendance, and $10,000 of income. The limit is $22,304, so the pension is $12,304 a year, about $1,025 a month.

With no dependents and the same $10,000 of income, the math gives $8,697 a year, about $725 a month.

Medical costs help. Out-of-pocket medical expenses above 5% of the limit can be subtracted from income, which is why assisted living or home care bills can open the door for someone whose income looks too high on paper.

The veteran needs at least 90 days of active duty with at least one day in a wartime period, or 24 months if they entered after September 7, 1980, and a discharge that was not dishonorable. The spouse cannot have remarried, and net worth has to be at or below $163,699.

The application is VA Form 21P-534EZ, filed online, by mail, in person, or with help from an accredited representative.



P.S. Once a week, I email the best money article I read, with my take on this week's top Facebook posts and what's new on the Ways to Wealth blog. It's free, and you can sign up on the Ways to Wealth home page.

R.J. Weiss, CFP®

The content shared here is for educational and informational purposes only. It is not personalized investment, tax, legal, or financial advice. Consult a licensed professional before making decisions based on your specific situation.

10/30/2026

Your first Medicare statement can be a surprise. The monthly premium is only one piece of what you pay.

Original Medicare charges $202.90 a month for Part B, the part that covers your doctor. Then there is a $283 yearly deductible, and after that you pay 20% of approved costs.

A hospital stay works differently. Part A has a $1,736 deductible for each benefit period. Days 61 to 90 in the hospital cost $434 a day. After that, the lifetime reserve days run $868 a day.

Higher earners pay more. The top-tier Part B premium is $689.90 a month.

Don't wait to enroll. If you sign up late, the penalty is 10% for every 12-month period you waited, and you pay it for life.

Original Medicare also leaves out dental, vision, hearing aids and long-term nursing care. Plan for those costs separately.

What to do: before your enrollment window closes, write down your enrollment dates and call Medicare at 1-800-MEDICARE to confirm them.

If you have been on Medicare a while, what cost surprised you most?

📚 Free Social Security and Medicare cheat sheets, plus a weekly email on upcoming deadlines: check the link in our bio.
📺 If you'd like the longer, more detailed version of this, we explain it on YouTube. Search

10/30/2026

If you have questions regarding this, please contact Coos Elderly Services at 541-756-1202.

👵 Being on Mom's bank account, holding her power of attorney, and being her Social Security payee sound like the same job. They are three different jobs, and none of them substitutes for the others.

A signer on her account, sometimes called a convenience signer, can deposit, withdraw, and write checks, and the money stays hers. It does not go to the signer when she dies.

A joint owner can do the same things, but the money is co-owned, and the joint holder generally gets it at her death. That can send an account somewhere her will never meant it to go.

An agent under a power of attorney can make decisions about her money and property more broadly. The money is still hers. In the words of the federal guide for agents, it's not your money, and the authority ends when she dies.

A Social Security representative payee is appointed by Social Security, not by a document she signs. A payee manages only her Social Security or SSI, and must keep it titled as hers.

Social Security says plainly that a power of attorney or a joint account is not the same as being a payee.

If none of these were set up while she could still sign, a court can name a guardian or conservator.

The best time to choose among them is while your parent can still make the choice with you.



The content shared here is for educational and informational purposes only. It is not personalized investment, tax, legal, or financial advice. Consult a licensed professional before making decisions based on your specific situation.

10/29/2026

Your Medicare card says Part A, Part B and Part D. Each one is a separate bill with its own rules.

🏥 Part A covers the hospital. The premium is usually $0. The deductible is $1,736 for each benefit period (2026).

🩺 Part B covers doctor visits and outpatient care. The premium is $202.90 a month, and the deductible is $283 (2026). After that, you pay 20% of the cost, and Original Medicare puts no yearly limit on it.

💊 Part D covers prescription drugs. The premium depends on the plan. The deductible is up to $615 in 2026 and $700 in 2027. Your yearly drug spending is capped at $2,100 in 2026 and $2,400 in 2027.

Only the drug part has a yearly cap. Ask a Medicare counselor how you would cover the 20% on a big medical bill.

Which part surprised you the most?

📺 If you'd like the longer, more detailed version of this, we explain it on YouTube. Search

10/28/2026

A medical bill that can't be paid in full feels urgent, and that is usually when it lands on a credit card. The order of the steps matters more than the speed, and the card belongs at the end, not the start.

Start by pausing. Under a policy the three national credit bureaus announced in 2023, medical collection debt with an initial balance under $500 is left off credit reports, paid medical collections are removed, and an unpaid one waits a year before it can appear. Experian says unpaid medical collections over $500 can then stay for seven years unless they are paid. This is the bureaus' own policy: a federal rule that would have kept medical debt off reports was struck down in 2025, and some states have their own bans.

Next, ask for financial help. CMS says nonprofit hospitals must give financial assistance to eligible patients who can't afford to pay, and federal tax rules require each tax-exempt hospital to have a written financial assistance policy. Each hospital sets its own criteria, and the help can mean free or discounted care. A nonprofit hospital also has to wait at least 120 days after the first bill sent after discharge before steps like reporting the debt to credit bureaus.

Then review the bill itself. The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau suggests asking for an itemized list of charges, checking it against the care actually received, looking for anything billed twice, and confirming the insurance was billed and its payment applied.

Negotiating comes after that. CMS notes that hospitals and medical offices can sometimes lower the price and may offer payment plans, and Experian notes that paying a lower amount in one lump sum can bring a bigger discount. Explaining the hardship gives the billing office a reason to use those options.

The credit card comes last because it changes what the debt is. Experian points out that a medical bill put on a card becomes regular card debt, without the 365-day grace period, and can be reported once a payment is 30 days late. A provider's payment plan keeps it a medical bill, though Experian notes there may be fees or interest, so it is worth asking first.

Medical bills often have room to move, and credit reports wait a year. Checking, asking and negotiating is what that time is for.

Source: Equifax, Experian and TransUnion joint announcement (Apr. 11, 2023); Experian, How Does Medical Debt Affect Your Credit Score?; CMS, Apply for medical bill financial assistance; IRS, section 501(r) financial assistance and billing and collections pages; CFPB, What should I do if I can't pay a medical bill? Read Oct. 26, 2026.

Educational information only, not financial, tax, legal, or investment advice. Hospital policies and state laws differ, so check the hospital's own policy and your state's rules.

10/28/2026

📁 14 DOCUMENTS TO GATHER AFTER THE DEATH OF A LOVED ONE

Losing someone is difficult enough. Trying to locate important financial and legal documents while grieving can make an already overwhelming situation even harder.

One of the most helpful things you can do during the first few weeks is get organized.

Here are 14 documents worth gathering, grouped into four categories:

✅ PROVE THE BASICS

* Certified death certificates
* Original will
* Trust documents and amendments
* Marriage or divorce records

💰 FIND THE MONEY

* Bank statements and CDs
* Investment account statements
* Retirement accounts and pension information
* Life insurance policies
* Property deeds and ownership records

🏠 IDENTIFY WHAT’S OWED

* Mortgage and loan statements
* Credit card statements
* Recurring bills and insurance policies

📋 BUILD THE PAPER TRAIL

* Recent tax returns and tax documents
* Military discharge records, if applicable

⚠️ ONE IMPORTANT DETAIL:

A power of attorney generally ends at death. Having been someone’s financial power of attorney does not automatically give you authority to manage their estate afterward.

That responsibility typically falls to an executor, administrator, trustee, or designated beneficiary, depending on the asset and applicable law.

🎯 YOUR ACTION STEP:

Don’t wait until there’s a crisis.

Create a secure folder listing where your important documents and account information can be found. Make sure someone you trust knows how to access it when needed.

The goal isn’t to settle an estate in 21 days. It’s to make a difficult process a little more manageable.

📌 Save this checklist and share it with someone who may need it.

Follow Level Headed Money for practical financial guidance that helps you prepare for life’s important decisions.

EstateChecklist

10/22/2026

10/17/2026

JOIN US FOR OUR UPCOMING COMMUNITY MEDICARE WORSHOP.

10/17/2026

📢 Social Security is getting some updates in 2027! And no, it's not just about the COLA increase! 😊

The 2027 cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) is 3.6%, which means Social Security beneficiaries will see an increase in their monthly benefits.

But there are several other changes worth knowing, especially if you're still working, planning to retire, or already receiving benefits.

💰 The estimated average retirement benefit will be $2,170 per month.

💵 The maximum retirement benefit at full retirement age will be $4,188 per month. And before anyone gets too excited, that's the maximum, not what everyone receives! 😂

The earnings limits, Social Security taxable wage maximum, work credit requirements, and SSI payments are changing too.

I put together this chart comparing 2026 and 2027 so you can see everything in one place without digging through pages of government information.

📌 Save it for reference or share it with someone who might find it helpful!

Remember, your actual Social Security benefit depends on your earnings history, claiming age, and individual circumstances.

Source: Social Security Administration (SSA)

For educational purposes only. This is general information, not financial, tax, legal, or investment advice.