The largest financial risk that seniors face today is the potential of assisted living and nursing home costs to devour the nest egg that has taken a lifetime to build satellite direct. Many will end up relying on Medicaid to pay these costs satellite direct. If that's the case for you, chances are that Medicaid will come after your home when you die satellite direct.

Before you get alarmed, make sure that you are not confusing Medicare with Medicaid satellite direct. Medicare, available to seniors who have paid into the government's Social Security system, covers roughly the first 100 days of skilled nursing home care following a hospital stay of at least 3 days satellite direct. Medicare doesn't help with custodial care satellite direct.

Since Medicare is, in essence, insurance you have paid for through payroll taxes, the government can't try to reclaim that money when you die satellite direct. Medicaid, on the other hand, is a welfare program that provides health care to the poor of any age satellite direct. Qualifying for Medicaid requires the patient's liquid assets to be no more than $2,000, not including their home satellite direct.

Traditionally, Medicaid has allowed a patient to keep their home while they're in the nursing home satellite direct. Since Medicaid doesn't force the sale of the home at that time, many seniors assume they will be able pass it to their heirs at their death satellite direct. Recent actions by states are making that less likely satellite direct.

Back in 1993, Congress passed a law that required the state agencies that run Medicaid to make every effort to get reimbursement for the money spent on each patient satellite direct. This means the states are required by law to take any assets remaining at death, up to the amount spent by Medicaid satellite direct. So if Medicaid spends $75,000 for your care, the states will seek to recover $75,000 from your estate when you die satellite direct.

For years, many states completely ignored this law or only casually attempted to recover Medicaid costs satellite direct. But those days are over satellite direct. Facing budget crunches and exploding health care costs, many states are now aggressively pursuing recovery of their expenses satellite direct.

There is a whole industry devoted to shielding seniors' assets from the government so that they qualify for Medicaid satellite direct. These include the use of irrevocable trusts, placing assets in the name of a child or the purchase of an annuity satellite direct. But there are already rules in place that disqualify you for Medicaid when assets have been transferred to a trust or child within 3 to 5 years of your application satellite direct. It will not surprise me to see states try to make it harder to move or otherwise protect assets satellite direct.

More common are situations like this hypothetical one satellite direct. A widow named Thelma develops dementia and Ted, her son, moves his mom out of her house and into a nursing home satellite direct. Thelma's meager bank accounts are drained and she soon qualifies for Medicaid satellite direct. For the next two years, Thelma's health gradually declines and she finally passes away satellite direct.

Several months later, Ted is preparing to fix up the old home place as a retirement home for him and his wife satellite direct. But he's shocked when he receives a notice from Medicaid that $85,000 is owed to cover the cost of Thelma's nursing home care satellite direct. Ted will then have to sell the old family home, get a mortgage on the home or use other money he has saved for his own retirement to pay the bill satellite direct. Regardless, the result is that the bulk of Thelma's estate went to the state instead of to Ted satellite direct.

What if Thelma's home wasn't worth the $85,000 that the state was trying to recover? States are now beginning to go after other assets and personal possessions such as vehicles, family heirlooms and antiques satellite direct. The state can force the auction of all of Thelma's belongings by placing a claim against her estate satellite direct.

The state can legally pursue any and all of Thelma's assets in an attempt to recover what was spent on her care satellite direct. Fortunately, the state can NOT seek to recover any remaining shortfall from Ted satellite direct.

Investigate the procedures of the state where care is being received, because each state has different standards and procedures for Medicaid cost recovery satellite direct. The trend will continue for states to increase their attempts at Medicaid recovery from estates of recipients satellite direct. Be aware so you aren't caught off guard satellite direct.

Have financial questions? I’ll personally answer them satellite direct. Go to http://www satellite direct.guardingyourwealth satellite direct.com and click on "Ask Jeff" satellite direct.

In addition to being a nationally syndicated columnist and Certified Financial Planning Practitioner, Mr satellite direct. Voudrie provides personal, private money management services to clients nationwide satellite direct.