Best bets
MassHealth, Exec. Office of Health and Human Services (EOHHS).
Includes an overview of the program, information for recipients, information for providers, how to apply, and more.
Medicaid, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
Includes general information, enrollment and coverage, and more.
Massachusetts laws
MGL c. 118E Division of Medical Assistance
- § 31 Adjustment or recovery of payments
Effective December 5, 2024: Recent amendments now limit MassHealth estate recovery to only federally mandated recovery; they also remove estate recovery for residents receiving assistance under CommonHealth.
Massachusetts regulations
130 CMR 501-610 MassHealth regulations
- 130 CMR 520 MassHealth: financial eligibility
- 130 CMR 520.019(B) Look-back period
Federal laws
42 U.S.C. §§ 1396 et seq. Medical assistance programs
Federal regulations
42 CFR 430-456 Federal Medicaid regulations
Selected cases
Guilfoil v. Secretary of Health and Human Services, 486 Mass. 788 (2021)
Provides a lengthy discussion of the use of nominee trusts in Medicaid planning, and the difference between nominee trusts and traditional trusts. Also, "the retention by an applicant of a life estate in his or her primary residence does not render the property a countable asset."
In the matter of the estate of Frances R. Mason, 493 Mass. 148 (2023)
"This court concluded that the State-administered health insurance program for low-income residents (MassHealth), having placed a lien against the property of a Medicaid recipient who had been permanently institutionalized, could not enforce that lien after the recipient's death". [Taken from headnote].
Web sources
MassHealth/Massachusetts Medicaid income & asset limits for nursing homes & long term care, American Council on Aging.
MassHealth/Medicaid resource library, MassLegalServices.
MassHealth is the name given to the Massachusetts Medicaid Program. This webpage contains information concerning eligibility and services under the MassHealth program, as well as links to important web sites needed for effective advocacy for MassHealth applicants and recipients.
MassOptions, a service of the Mass. Executive Office of Health and Human Services.
Connects older adults, individuals with disabilities and their caregivers with agencies and organizations that can best meet their needs.
Member booklet for health and dental coverage and help paying costs, Executive Office of Health and Human Services, March 2023.
Includes how to get MassHealth, details about coverage, and more.
Requiring adult children to pay for aging parents, ElderLaw Answers.
Helpful information on laws that may require adult children to support their parents. See also, Massachusetts' filial responsibility law, MGL c. 273, § 20.
Senior guide to health care coverage, MassHealth.
Includes how to get MassHealth, details about coverage, and geared toward seniors.
Serving the Health Insurance Needs of Everyone (SHINE) program, Executive Office of Aging & Independence.
Provides free health insurance information and assistance for Medicare eligible adults and their caregivers.
What's the difference between Medicare and Medicaid?, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
Print sources
Drafting successful Medicaid trusts, MCLE, 2024.
Elder law (Mass. Practice v.56), Thomson/West, annual.
Chapters 8 and 9.
Elder and disability law in Massachusetts, MCLE, 2023.
Estate planning for the aging or incapacitated client in Massachusetts, 5th ed., MCLE, loose-leaf.
Chapter 32 Resource Planning for MassHealth Coverage.
Estate planning with forms, 3rd ed. (Mass Practice v.24), Thomson/West, with supplement.
Chapter 29 Estate Planning and Medicaid.
Long-term care: How to plan and pay for it, by Joseph L. Matthews, Nolo, 2023. (eBook available with library card)
Massachusetts elder law, LexisNexis Matthew Bender. (eBook available with library card)
MassHealth from application to approval, MCLE, 2020.
Medicaid and health planning update, MCLE, 2023.
Medicare and Medicaid claims and procedures, West, with supplement.
Preserving and transferring your client's principal residence, MCLE, 2014.
Protecting assets while qualifying for Medicaid, National Business Institute, 2021.
Contact for Massachusetts law about Medicaid (MassHealth)
Online
| Last updated: | March 6, 2025 |
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