Ruling Blesses Controversial Form of Medicaid Planning

NtNew Jersey has become one of only a handful of states to expressly permit guardians to transfer the assets of their wards for the purpose of attaining eligibility for Medicaid.¹ Now in the Garden State, a self-sufficient adult child who acts as a legal guardian to a mentally incompetent parent can give away — or even transfer to himself — all or a part of the parent's assets to aid the parent's eligibility for Medicaid benefits.