The Lock Box

I was talking with an elderly veteran couple the other day who had sold their house and moved into an assisted living facility due to declining health and mobility.  It made sense to liquidate the assets in their house to allow them to pay the ALF rent.  It made sense to everyone but the Federal Government, who will see that they are trading one dwelling place for another, but rather see that they now have assets.

This is important because the veteran is drawing a need-based pension, and the amount of money they got for their home to pay the high cost of an ALF will disqualify them for that tiny pension they have been depending on.  Their financial situation has not changed in real dollars but it has on paper, and that is all the beaurocrats seem to understand.

So, what are they to do?  Well, they have to make the assests above the allowable to go away.  When I explained that to them, the wife said, "So we should take that amount and put it into a lock box?"  I replied, "No," for two reasons: 1) That would be fraud and 2) they could lose everything.

I told her that, since the amount over the limit wasn't all that much, they each could give their daughter a certain amount, which would not cause a tax liability, and hopefully she would in turn use it to help them out as they might need.  But it had to be given freely, without strings - no longer under their control.  This wouldn't work for Medicaid but it does for VA Pension as there is no VA look-back period.

Here's the deal: The couple needed to move into an ALF, they had to sell their house to afford the monthly cost so it was a trade of dwelling for dwelling.  A dwelling is not considered countable assets in their case but the proceeds from a sale is.  They were in a catch 22.  The lock box seemed to be the answer except that would be a crime (as if the Federal Government's policy isn't).

The real answer, gifting the money to their daughter, is only a movement of assets off their papers (assuming, of course, that their daughter doesn't decide to just spend the money and not help her parents), but it doesn't involve a lie or fraud.  While essentially the same outcome, it can be openly disclosed when discussing assets.  One is in the dark and the other is in the light.  And that difference makes all the difference for "A false witness will not go unpunished, and whoever pours out lies will perish" (Pr 19:9).

God does not bless lies and deceit, even to short-sighted beaurocrats who haven't the capacity to look at things from a real-life vantage point.  They live in a world of papers and the rules are born out of that context.  Yet we are "to submit to the authorities, not only because of possible punishment but also as a matter of conscience" (Rom 13:5).  Jus' Say'n.