I have a friend that lives in the state of Illinois that cares for his elderly Mother. She is in the late stages of dementia and needs 24 hr. total care, (she cannot feed , bathroom or dress herself) She is on medicare and medicaid. Since he is there caring for her 24/7 he cannot work. He is her Power of Attorney for her so this makes him ineligible for financial assistance to help out with the bills and for her care. Does anyone have any info that may help someone in this situation?
The Medicaid Cash and Counseling Program can provide direct payments that could be used to pay him for the time he spend providing care. To find out whether your state has a Cash and Counseling or similar program, contact your local Medicaid, human services, or social services office. Visit cashandcounseling organization website, scroll down to the Project Overview section, and click “our program map” to see what programs are offered in your state.
A Nursing Home may NOT be an option at this point unless self pay at several thousands a month, he can apply for Medicaid NH assistance now but many states have a 2-3 year back log and he would have to self pay until she is accepted by Medicaid. I highly doubt he will find a NH to accept her with just her SS $$. If you find one ket me know! Most are $6-8k a month depending on care and many people are not fortunate enough to have enough money to pay that for the elders care and also have enough left to pay for their own family needs.
Also can you draw up a caregiver contract? Stating the amount to be paid for his taking care of her and expenses it will help down the line with his SS it will be taxed probably as a 1099 but at least there will be something in his SS account!Good luck!
http://www.eldercare.gov/
He should also look and see if there are any PACE programs (Program of All-Inclusive Care for the Elderly), they are often a great option for people who have Medicaid.
http://www.npaonline.org/website/article.asp?id=12&title=Who,_What_and_Where_Is_PACE?
Or he can look for advance day health care programs, they are similar to PACE programs but less comprehensive as they don't provide primary care.
If she has Medicaid and is fully dependent, she should be eligible for a residential facility, although it can take a while to find one to accept her. He also may not want to put her in a residential facility, especially if he visits and has concerns about the quality of care.
Re hospice, it can be a great option however for dementia it's not enough to be fully dependent and in last stage; the person also has to show signs of the final terminal decline (weight loss, recurrent infections, skin sores, unable to swallow, etc).
I hope he finds some solutions. Generally there are more options for people who have Medicaid, since the state has an interest in supporting anything that is cheaper than a nursing home.
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