Long-Term Care Planning in Katy

Texas Medicaid Rules for Long-Term Care

Texas Medicaid eligibility depends on the applicant’s circumstances and the rules of the applicable program. The figures below apply specifically to Nursing Facility Medicaid and Home and Community-Based Services Waiver Medicaid, commonly called HCBS Waiver Medicaid. They’re effective January 1, 2026.

Key financial eligibility figures include:

• Gross monthly income: The maximum is $2,982 for one person and $5,964 for a couple.
• Countable resources: The maximum is $2,000 for one person and $3,000 for a couple.
• Protected Resource Amount: A community spouse may retain between $32,532 and $162,660.

The Protected Resource Amount is the portion of a couple’s resources that may be allocated to the spouse who remains in the community. The calculation excludes the homestead, household goods, personal goods, one vehicle, and burial funds.

Transfers require careful review. Giving away assets without compensation, or refusing or reducing income that a person could receive, can create a period during which Medicaid won’t pay for nursing facility, Intermediate Care Facility for Individuals with an Intellectual Disability, or waiver-program services. Because program rules and personal circumstances both matter, families should review prior transfers before making additional changes.

Homes, Savings & Legal Authority

For Nursing Facility Medicaid and HCBS Waiver Medicaid, a homestead is excluded as a resource when the applicant, spouse, or dependent relative lives in it, subject to applicable home-equity rules. Families should review ownership, beneficiary designations, and authority documents before transferring savings or changing title to a home.

Our elder law and guardianship work includes alternatives to guardianship. These options address different aspects of financial management and personal choices, but no single document fits every family.

Common planning tools and arrangements include:

• Statutory durable power of attorney: This document authorizes a designated person to handle financial matters for another person.
• Living trust: A living trust can hold property and establish directions for its management.
• Money management program: This arrangement can provide assistance with designated financial tasks as an alternative to guardianship.

The appropriate approach depends on the existing legal documents, the person’s ability to make decisions, the assets involved, and the authority another person needs. These tools shouldn’t be treated as automatic methods of obtaining Medicaid eligibility.

When to Begin Long-Term Care Planning

Early planning takes place before long-term care is immediately needed. It gives a family time to organize legal and financial decisions, clarify care preferences, and review who can act if the older adult later needs assistance.

Crisis planning begins when a family member needs care soon or is already receiving it. Immediate care needs don’t remove the need to examine income, countable resources, authority documents, and prior transfers. They make it important to identify the current facts before changing ownership or moving money.

Qualified Income Trusts

A Qualified Income Trust, also called a Miller Trust, is an income-planning arrangement used in connection with certain Texas Medicaid rules. For Nursing Facility Medicaid and HCBS Waiver Medicaid, it uses the special income limits listed above, effective January 1, 2026.

A Qualified Income Trust doesn’t change the separate resource limits. An applicant must still satisfy the applicable countable-resource requirement and the other rules for the relevant program. Eligibility depends on the applicant’s complete circumstances and the proper application of Texas Medicaid requirements.