When applying to medicaid, do they look at how much you have in the bank?

If so, how much is too much to be eligible? I'm in New Hampshire if that matters. They want me to get medicaid so I can do ACT and get injections covered, but I saved up for college, but got a job (lost it due to mental illness getting in the way) instead so I have a few thousand in the bank and if they look at that I assume I'd be denied.

edit: yes they do, and for one person you have to have less than $2500 in resources. Found this chart if anyone is interested https://www.dhhs.nh.gov/dfa/document...fact-sheet.pdf it's for NH only I believe.

Yes you may have too much. In my state you can have 2000.00 in the bank a car and a house. Anything more than that disqualifies you.

For Medicaid, yes they do look at your income (and they do count disability payments from Social Security, etc., as income). They will look at your bank statements. They will look at other things, too. And, every state in the continental U.S. will have different rules that determine income cutoffs for eligibility.

They do offer "spend down" programs, but those are often more expensive than if you were to simply find a good alternative insurance company you can afford. How that works is that if you pay X amount of money out of pocket for healthcare (not a bill; you must prove that you actually paid it out of pocket first), then Medicaid's spend down program (in certain jurisdictions, not all, because it depends on the state, and most often than not, red states won't allow this) will pay for the rest. But the X amount is often in the hundreds or thousands, something that puts someone who is over by a few dollars to a few hundred dollars from qualifying for Medicaid - and rules that aren't affordable or achievable, so it becomes a catch 22, unless you can get "gifts" that are not considered income to pay for some of those bills at those costs in full for you. But then again, the program may want to see proof, and if they determine that your gift or GOFUNDME is considered extra "income," then they will just raise the price on the X amount you need to pay for in order for their Medicaid program to pay the rest of your bills on the spend-down program. Again, this is a catch-22 program that hardly works. And again, every state is different regarding their rules on Medicaid. Some red states want to abolish Medicaid altogether. So you have that issue to deal with as well. Medicaid and SSI are state-run programs, not federal. So you won't get protections like you would from a nonpartisan/bipartisan federal statute.

So, depending on your state, good luck in meeting their requirements. You have to be almost 25% below their consideration of poverty levels to qualify. The other option is to become pregnant, which allows for different rules that are more inclusive, but at a greater cost.

Adding on: And when you're on Medicaid programs, what they cover one year may not be covered the next. Furthermore, they will look at your savings, and most people on Medicaid and SSI (state-run programs) are NOT allowed to have savings or a savings account because that gets considered income (almost like double-dipping with the income that they already recorded plus the income - not just the interest - you are saving). It's a catch-22 to weed out people from taking the "state's taxpayer's dollars" and waiting for such people to go on federal programs, such as SSDI, but only if you worked a few years and made a certain amount of money to qualify for federal programs like SSDI and Medicare. SSI and Medicaid are different programs because they are state-based. Good luck!

Medicaid is dependent on your income, not health status.

Just so I understand, you dont have health insurance and need to apply for medicaid?

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sapien If so, how much is too much to be eligible? I'm in New Hampshire if that matters. They want me to get medicaid so I can do ACT and get injections covered, but I saved up for college, but got a job (lost it due to mental illness getting in the way) instead so I have a few thousand in the bank and if they look at that I assume I'd be denied. edit: yes they do, and for one person you have to have less than $2500 in resources. Found this chart if anyone is interested https://www.dhhs.nh.gov/dfa/document...fact-sheet.pdf it's for NH only I believe.

I believe they do. However, I do not think we are talking about a big amount of money.

I really do not know much about Medicaid but here is the Council on Aging guidelines

How States Verify Income & Assets for Medicaid Eligibility

Hope things work out for you @CANDC

In California, Health & Human Services has the option of checking an applicant's bank account. They can also check it when your recertification time comes. They've checked mine once in the course of many years.

In Texas it's practically impossible to get Medicaid. They didn't expand it, so basically only children, people over 65, and adults on disability can get it. I am not eligible. It varies a lot depending on your state.