Medicaid: Income is not a Resource During the Month of Receipt

Sometime people assume monthly income counts toward the $2,000 resource limit. Assets (anything of value) are either income or resources. ” An asset cannot be considered income and a resource during the same month.” Georgia ABD Manual 2300-1 and 2300-2.  See also POMS SI 01110.600 B.3.This confuses many people because they are trying to keep bank account balances below $2,000 to maintain resource eligibility and then, when monthly income is deposited, the balance goes over $2,000. Remember, the balance should drop back below $2,000 after payment of the patient liability amount. The image below illustrates how this works. The lesson here is, unless monthly income is retained, don’t worry about income causing the bank balance to “temporarily” go over $2,000. Just make sure you pay (write the checks for) any patient liability amount and any allowed insurance premiums before the last day of the month.