Institutional Medicaid

The Alabama Medicaid Agency offers institutional care coverage for qualified individuals. Medicaid for Institutional Care is for people in nursing homes, hospitals and ICF-IID facilities. People who meet nursing home level of care may opt to apply for one of the Agency's Home and Community Based waivers to receive care in the community. Click here for more information on HCBS waivers.

• Applicants must be medically approved by Medicare or Medicaid for the nursing facility to be paid.
• Applicants must also be a resident of an approved medical institution for at least 30 continuous days to be eligible (Except for SSI recipients).
• Applicants must have monthly income below a certain limit, set each year in January. 
• Applicants must have resources below a certain limit.
• Applicants must be a US citizen and live in Alabama.
  

• The resource limit for Nursing Home Medicaid is $2,000 as of the first day of the month.
• Special rules apply when a spouse remains in the home.
• Examples of resources include cash, cash surrender value of life insurance (when face value of all policies is more than $5,000; checking and savings, loans, mineral and timber rights, mortgages, mutual funds, promissory notes, real estate, stocks and bonds, certificates of deposit and annuities.
• Some resources do not count toward the $2,000 monthly resource limit. These include household goods and personal effects, burial funds or prepaid contract up to $5,000; burial space items (casket, vault, plot, marker, opening and closing of grave); one car if used by the household member.
• All property information such as deeds, wills, etc. will need to be submitted to the Medicaid District Office for review.
  

• Used when an applicant has excess income (not resources)
• Allows Medicaid to disregard excess income for the purpose of determining eligibility
• Strict rules apply to the establishment of an acceptable QIT.
• Form 262 - Qualifying Income Trust Packet - Used for a Medicaid applicant who is entering a nursing home and has excess income

• Applications and Forms
• Tips for Applying for Institutional (Nursing Home) Medicaid - Updated 1/8/19
• Fillable Application - Type information onto on-line form, print and mail. Print a copy for your records since the information on the form will not be saved once it is closed. Application cannot be faxed.
• Addresses to Mail Applications
• Reporting Changes - Nursing Home/Institutionalized Recipients - 3/27/17    

• Policies may help Alabama residents protect their assets if they ever have to apply for nursing home assistance from Medicaid.
• Allows Medicaid to disregard, or exclude, the benefits paid under an approved policy when determining an applicant's financial eligibility for long-term care
• Policies must include inflation protection to keep up with the rising cost of long-term care services and meet IRS and other requirements.
• Qualifying policies must be certified by the Alabama Department of Insurance.

• The Expedite Online Nursing Home Application System is available to nursing home providers who wish to submit application forms and related documents online.