missads

On 11/6/2022 at 5:18 PM, sojourner99 said:

Sorry to necro this thread but as we were able to get the full tax credit last year from the ACA healthcare.gov for my mother in-laws health insurance since she was a recent immigrants in 2022 and didnt qualify for medicaid.

 

As of this year though it says her tax subsidy will be zero.  I know some tax credits expired but is it really down that much? That's brutal from almost full coverage to zero help.   Has anyone else renewed this year?  Were you able to get any tax subsidies?

Hi, this sounds bogus. Maybe you talked to someone who doesn't understand the rules completely? Or, if you tried the application online, healthcare.gov sometimes sends you down the wrong path which screws up the subsidy estimate. In that case, just call and talk to someone at healthcare.gov on the phone, and explain your MIL's situation.

Your MIL should get almost the same tax subsidy as last year, if not more. She remains ineligible for Medicaid for her first 5 years on GC (except in CA,) so there should be no change in subsidy/PTC beyond some minimal fluctuation in the insurance premium itself (certainly not zero subsidy.) Please message me if you need help. All the best!

15 hours ago, garylong said:

Greencard holders like US citizens get taxed on their worldwide income. Depending where they are from there might be a tax treaty negating the double taxation. However the country of residence is the one that taxes. If your parents are from the UK they should of gotten a Nil - Tax code to get tax free pension income in the UK, to then declare and pay here in the US. 
 

That income then can be used for the ACA. Your parents shouldn’t be filing $0 tax returns in the US unless they truly do have no income for anywhere in the world. 

I thought I was trying to help you and your family? I'm not sure how this turned into a federal case about how my parents should file their taxes. So why don't we keep the focus on your parents and their situation. Sounds like you might have the taxes part figured out already.

In any case, like I said in my previous post, I can only share what I know about issues related to Obamacare enrollment. For expert advice on your parents' specific tax situation, please consult an accountant / CPA.

On 6/21/2022 at 11:49 AM, NoFunIntended said:

Hi @ProbeGT, thank you for this well-written post!

 

...Another quick question, even with the new public charge rules, is PTC still okay for when they want to apply for citizenship?...

Repeat with me: "PTC or any Obamacare subsidy does NOT constitute a public charge under ANY circumstances".

When you're done saying it once, repeat it again just to make sure you do get it =P

Don't worry about public charge, the USCIS and/or healthcare.gov both specifically state it will not be considered a public charge. Check out the sister thread below, I have shared a link somewhere in it that specifically addresses the public charge issue.

15 hours ago, garylong said:

 

What happens with your parents foreign pension, was this not reported on their US taxes,  effectively giving them an income that allows them for ACA?

If your parents have foreign pension, where do they pay taxes? If they pay taxes in their home country, I don't think it necessarily needs to be reported as income here. At most, they might need to report the pension as income + report the taxes paid in the foreign country, I don't remember which specific one. You should talk to a tax accountant about this. I can help with Obamacare, I am not an expert on taxes!

59 minutes ago, ProbeGT said:

Great thread!

 

Also, please see this thread regarding those who are under 65.  For all who are reading this, I do suggest reading @missads thread as well.  It was the inspiration for my post

 

 

Great thread @ProbeGT Thanks for taking the time and effort to post it!

Great thread @ProbeGT well-written and very informative. This complements my original thread regarding health insurance for immigrants over 65 years old. Hopefully, between the two threads, we have covered the process of applying for health insurance for immigrants of all ages!

10 hours ago, SG-2020 said:

 

Thanks for information that Medi-Cal is completely free for 65+ Parents and no Premium is required to be paid .

Under Medi-Cal , can the Parents with zero income living in US for less than one year be declared INDEPENDENT on US Citizen son and file Zero tax return with zero income ?

What will be the impact on the US Citizen son if they are declared DEPENDENT on him with zero income ? Thanks in advance .

 

Read this (first page of the thread)

https://www.visajourney.com/forums/topic/582733-success-getting-healthcare-coverage-for-immigrant-parents-over-65/?do=findComment&comment=7976272

18 hours ago, Leily said:

Hi everyone. Happy New Year to you all. I thought to share my experience with my mom currently residing in California. She migrated to the US in 2015 with  green card sponsored by my sister living in the US. She has 0 income in the US and is in the lower incone range. From the first months she aplied for medi-cal and received that. She has already applied for citizenship and is waiting for interview. 

I am seeking your experience in this and with the moving forward health insurance options available to her. With 0 incone and no work experience in the US, would she be eligible for medicare after 5 years living or does she have to wait for citizenship? In what circumstances can she be eligible for free medicare, if any?

Thank you.

Hi, given your parents situation, they should continue to be on Medi-Cal even after the 5 year mark. Unless they need to be in a long term care facility (nursing home) it doesn't make sense to buy into medicare. Medicare is "free" for people who have worked 40 quarters in the US and paid taxes - not an option for your parents at this point.

Medi-Cal is awesome, it's completely free and includes dental care too (not sure if dental is covered by standard Medicare, you might need to pay extra on top of the buy-in fee for standard medicare.) If your parents are going to live with your/sister's family, just stay with Medi-Cal.

On 12/13/2021 at 4:52 AM, PRO2020 said:

Hello there ( missads ) , 

my parents are here in NY & just arrived this year ( green card) on my sponsorship. They both are 70+ old and i am looking for the best health insurance for them with cheaper premiums..i have looked in to this at healthcare gov website & created accounts for them too. But it is showing they have some opinions & i am not sure if they eligible for advanced premium credits & how does this work either. This year its dec 15 is the last date for application. Could you please help me on this with some lights.. are they eligible for medicaid? With Zero Income. 
Do they have to pay deductibles and co pays ( for doctor visits & prescription medications, as they have some chronic medications for diabetes, htn ) ..

 

please help .. thank you so much ahead ..

Hi, sorry for the late response. NY state has its own insurance marketplace, don't go through healthcare.gov

Start here

https://nystateofhealth.ny.gov/

Hopefully you can sign up before the deadline (30 days since arrival, or during open enrollment at the end of each year)

They are definitely eligible for subsidy/APCs. I believe NY doesn't apply the 5 year bar (waiting period) for Medicaid, but the level of care might not be as good / flexible as private insurance. Medicaid is free though, no copays no nothing. 0 dollars out of pocket, including insulin for diabetes as well as any other meds. And the enrollment deadline doesn't apply for Medicaid AFAIK. Please post if you need more help, I will try to respond more promptly.

16 hours ago, SG-2020 said:

 

In California for parents 65+ with Zero income in USA for less than one year , which Health Care Plan is recommended ?  Parents are independent and shall file Zero Income Tax return . They will live on their savings , as they have no income.

Can they use Medi-Cal ? What will be the premium per year per person . In California , I understand that one can get subsidised Health Care even for people who have lived for less than 5 years .

What is best (with lowest premium with subsidy) option for them -  Obamacare , Medcare , Medi-aid , MediCal  etc. and amount of premium ?  Thanks for advice in advance .

Short answer: Yes, they will be covered by Medi-Cal (completely free, zero premiums, includes dental too). Apply now, don't delay!

Long answer: spend some time reading this thread, especially the first few pages. You will save a lot of time when on the phone with Medi-Cal insurance providers if you know what to ask (there are several plans/providers to choose from, depending on where you live in CA.)

No pain, no gain buddy...

This whole thread is dedicated to that very topic!

9 hours ago, aaron2020 said:

You're right.  Lots of elderly parents immigrate to the US to be with family.  Some are poor and have little or no savings.  They live traditionally and rely on their children for financial support in their old age.

The problem is that too often, the petitioning US naturalized children are UNAWARE that their parents will not qualify for Medicare or Social Security unless they work.  They often mistakenly think that their parents will get free medical care and possible a pension.  

True, and hopefully some of those naturalized citizen children stumble upon this thread at some point and get a better understanding of what benefits their parents are and aren't entitled to, BEFORE bringing them over here!

On 11/18/2021 at 10:45 PM, Boiler said:

How many elderly people immigrate to the US with zero income? Must be very rare.

You sure about that? Elderly parents usually immigrate to the US to be with their kids & family, not to find a job and make some cash.

You do make some good points. I was primarily focused on a specific populace - immigrant parents who have no income.

Couple questions though. Did your parents become citizens before they could buy into Medicare? Also, could you share approximately how much it cost them to buy into Medicare? That information would be useful to other readers and help them make a more informed choice.

Kudos on taking care of your parents while they were seriously ill. I've been there, it's not easy...

True, my mistake. One could buy into Medicare. So explain me this - as a practical matter, why would anyone BUY into Medicare when they could get Medicaid for free, or get Obamacare for a substantial subsidy? How does it make financial sense for someone who has never worked in the US to buy into Medicare? Crunch the numbers and let us know.

Also, for the record I have previously posted in this very thread that California doesn't have the 5 year waiting period (AFAIK the only state in the country to do so. NY allows state Medicaid before 5 years, I haven't looked into it in detail.) CA is the exception to the norm though, everyone else has to wait 5 years to become eligible for Medicaid.

9 hours ago, neo_ny said:

Hey there!

 

Your post was very helpful in signing my mom up for health insurance via ACA after getting her green card.  I was wondering if we need to do anything to plan for the future? i.e currently since she has been  a permanent resident for less than 5 years she is ineligible for Medicare/Medicaid and hence can sign up under ACA even being 65+.  Does this calculation change once she has been a permanent resident for more than 5 years?  At that point will she be considered eligible and we will need to "buy" Medicare instead of her being on a subsidized ACA plan?  Your initial post was from 2016 and you must be coming up on that 5 year requirement if you have not already, how are you planning on handling it?  

 

Appreciate your input!

 

Thanks!

Hi, I'm glad this thread has been helpful in getting health insurance for your mom. There were a lot of negative posts earlier questioning the veracity of what I was saying, but as the saying goes - the proof is in the pudding! 

Regarding your question about what happens after the 5 year waiting period... First off, Medicare is a program for senior citizens only, unlike Medicaid. To be eligible for Medicare, a senior needs to have worked a minimum of 40 quarters in the US. That's 10 years of employment in the US - not likely to happen for immigrant parents! So Medicare is essentially out of the question.

Now about Medicaid - a program that covers people of any age who are economically disadvantaged (no income, below 125% of the poverty line etc.) Immigrant parents who are not employed (zero income) fall into this category. The catch is that there is a 5 year waiting period. After 5 years, immigrants are eligible to switch to Medicaid, or continue with ACA (rules might vary from state to state, especially if your state has its own health insurance exchange or uses the federal marketplace.) Medicaid rules vary from state to state, it is a STATE program that is partially funded by the federal government. Blue states are more liberal in their rules and usually let immigrants sign up for Medicaid after  years, most red states exclude immigrants from Medicaid no matter how long they've been in the US. Look up whether your state participated in Medicaid expansion.

For my parents specifically, we decided to continue with Obamacare (with the usual subsidized premiums) after 5 years, because of the higher quality of care. Medicaid is free, but has a limited network of doctors who accept it, and offers the lowest cost (= basic level) of care. For example, if your parents need a new medication that is more effective but expensive, Medicaid will only cover the cheaper, less effective medication. Think of Medicaid being like an HMO (limited network, lots of restrictions, but cheaper), versus ACA being more like a POS / PPO health plan (more flexibility, higher level of coverage, but relatively expensive.) For my family, the trade off in premium cost vs quality of healthcare was a no-brainer. The one advantage of Medicaid is it includes dental coverage. With the ACA you need to buy dental coverage separately (or find community resources that donate dental services or offer them at a substantial discount - this is what my parents did.)

Hope this helps!

P.S. For anyone reading this who were able to get their parents / loved ones covered through the ACA, please share your success story on this thread. There is a lot of mis/disinformation out there about ACA eligibility for senior immigrants, and it pains me to see people suffer in silence when they have the option of getting quality healthcare through a government approved program that is the LAW of the land...

15 minutes ago, Tertius said:

...

 

A senior family member, 64 and 67. They have not immigrated yet, I wanted to get this detailed nailed down before the move.

Good thinking!

Which US state are they planning to move to? I don't mean to pry, but some states have a local health insurance exchange (with slightly different rules) whereas healthcare.gov covers all the other states. healthcare.gov will tell you whether your state has a local exchange.

On 8/19/2019 at 3:27 PM, Tertius said:

I just had a brief discussion over the phone with a local Assister. She didn't know about the length of the waiting period or about subsidies etc.

Suggestions?

Are you looking for insurance for yourself or a senior family member? In which state?

Doesn't sound like the person you spoke with was very knowledgeable. You might be better off talking to another assister + reading all the helpful info on this thread. Unfortunately, all assisters aren't equally competent, especially when it comes to immigrant specific issues...

On 4/19/2019 at 9:44 AM, Chishhy said:

I am new to this and I am looking to get insurance for my parents they are hoping to come in another 2 months. How do I begin. They are both over  65 and i live in Virginia. Do I go to the marketplace and get insurance or can they get medicaid? I know by reading the posts that they need to file taxes separately. but what do they do this year to get insurance.

Go to healthcare.gov and look for an assister (not broker/agent) in your area. Talk to them about your specific scenario. You should be able to get them signed up for Obamacare on the marketplace. There is a special enrollment period of 60 days starting the day they enter the country. Don't miss it, otherwise they will have to wait until November to sign up for next year.

On 3/15/2019 at 12:16 AM, mommyofone said:

Hi,

 

I am joining late but my parents are green card holders and did not have health insurance for past 4 years.

I am a single mom ( i know, excuses) and forgot to check that out, thankfully they have been healthy till now and not needed insurance but now I am panicking after someone brought it to my attention and browsing online .

What are my options at this stage?

1) Should I wait till the 5 year and buy medicare for them at that time?

2) Will they ask about previous insurance coverage when I buy medicare? Anyone with experience applying for medicare?

3) I find out that they (that's me) will have to pay penalty for not having health insurance for past 4 years. How do I find how much the penalty is?

4) Too late for marketplace as they closed.

 

We have never filed income tax for them as they have no income here and so I thought  it is not required when I tried to file the first year they were here. I have not claimed them on my tax return either.

 

Thanks

For #1, #2 - you want to apply for Medicaid after the 5 year period, not medicare. Medicaid is free to those who have no income. They don't care whether you had previous coverage or not.

#3 - I don't think there is a penalty anymore for not having health insurance, Trump got rid of that last year. In any case, the penalty used to apply only to people who had an income above a certain limit (30K?) Since your parents didn't have any income, they wouldn't have to pay the penalty anyway.

#4 - marketplace is indeed closed for 2019. Check if you qualify for special enrollment (if you moved, they traveled outside the country and reentered etc.)

https://www.healthcare.gov/screener/marketplace.html

Also, since they didn't have income, they are not required to file taxes, no problem there either. However, I would strongly encourage you to file taxes for them separately for 2018 even with 0 income, as it serves as proof of income for future applications. Also, you can consult a tax advisor about backfiling taxes for the previous years, although this might not be necessary if they file 2018 taxes.

Also, what state are you in? Some states have local health exchanges, not healthcare.gov, with different rules.

11 hours ago, frazzled daughter said:

Great news! I managed to get this finally resolved - in thanks, in part to reading about a thousand posts on this site as well as elsewhere online.

...

Hope our story helps someone else.

Thanks for sharing your story and congratulations on finding your mother affordable health insurance. Every bit of extra information helps, and your experience of getting healthcare without an SSN will help other readers.

Just out of curiosity, what state are you applying from?

On 2/6/2019 at 3:02 PM, databit said:

Did they file their taxes for 2018 yet on their own (not as being deducted on your taxes)? Do that first. 

They will, they have filed their taxes separately every year thus far.

I am trying to find out if there's been any changes to Medi-cal eligibility rules recently. I hear applications from elderly immigrants with no income who have a green card sponsored by their children aren't being approved like they used to be in the past.

Hi all, been a while since I posted on this thread. I need some help.

Has anyone recently applied for Medi-Cal in California for parents on green cards (zero income)? Were they approved? Please share...

3 hours ago, Smitha said:

Thank you missads for all your help. I just talked to one of market place agents and they mentioned that to qualify for Obama care, we need to show $16,240 as I am looking for my parents insurance. So, I am looking for options to raise their income. They get monthly pension from India around $800 a month. So, I need to come up with options for around $700 a month . If I pay to my parents for any service, how that does work? Also, my mom is a yoga teacher, probably she can teach some classes. If she teach class, do we need to register as a small business before filing taxes? If anyone has info, please shared with me. Bruin85, can you please let me know your email address pls.

thank you all especially missads for sharing your experience.

Two things:
1. Talk to a local marketplace NAVIGATOR in Dallas. Search on google, you should be able to find someone. The customer service agents on the phone are inexperienced pencil pushers unfamiliar with the nuances of an uncommon case that involves senior immigrants.

2. Message Bruin85 directly rather than posting on this thread. He seems to have gotten coverage for his father in law with ZERO income. He has gone through the exact same process and come out successful. IN DALLAS. Not sure why you'd need to show income of $16,240, but please don't end up doing something that would get you and your parents into trouble with the IRS.

17 minutes ago, databit said:

Thanks! Not entirely sure which OP you're referring to--this thread has gotten so long---I was talking about OP named Chk312. An affidavit would do nothing, as mom gets income from India, some paperwork from that source would be the proof of income. Medi-Cal can still ask mom how she is making it on only $6k, though.

Sorry, I meant Chk312 (I'm the OP!)

I feel a sworn affidavit would be adequate, if Chk312 has getting documentation of foreign income is just not possible. The declaration in the affidavit would be under penalty of perjury, so there are serious consequences if anything is untrue. It is a commonly used workaround for such matters when it's simply not possible to obtain documentation. Best to discuss with Covered CA and find out what they require.