Congress is considering making it more difficult for a community spouse to utilize an annuity to qualify for Medicaid. The proposed bill would prevent married couples from using assets to purchase an annuity for the community spouse, so that the institutionalized spouse can apply for Medicaid. The bill would count half of the income from a community spouse's annuity as income available to the institutionalized spouse for purposes of
Medicaid eligibility. Savings from the legislation would be utilized to reduce waiting lists for home health care waivers. In addition, Congress is reviewing legislation that would: count lottery winnings as income; and require Medicaid applicants to prove U.S. citizenship or residency before receiving benefits.
