Medicaid

Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services

Prepaid funeral arrangements offer an applicant for financial assistance under SSI/Medicaid the opportunity to completely pay for the funeral of their choice before assets are used up for medical care and before their assets are reduced to SSI/Medicaid eligibility levels.

Effective January 1, 1997 - New York State law mandates that all contracts for prefunded funerals executed by applicants for or recipients of Medicaid be IRREVOCABLE.

* If a consumer had both a pre-existing agreement and was receiving Medicaid benefits prior to January 1, 1997, their account may remain revocable, and must still be recertified on an annual basis by County Social Services personel.

Summary of N.Y.S. Irrevocable Trusting Statute
(N.Y. Social Services Law, Section 209)

All preneed funeral agreements for applicants for or recipients of Medicaid must be irrevocable.
No other type of preneed contract may be irrevocable. All others remain completely revocable for the purchaser, which means moneys must be refunded upon demand.
There will be one irrevocable account with an unlimited dollar amount for SSI / Medicaid applicants or recipients.
Irrevocable burial trust Purchasers may not receive a refund prior to the death of the beneficiary, at which time the money must either be spent on funeral expenses or be paid to the county Social Services Department.
All irrevocable accounts must remain portable to any funeral home in any state, and upon the purchaser's request, the moneys must be paid to a newly selected funeral home or funeral trust within ten business days.
All preneed agreements for applicants for or recipients of SSI / Medicaid must contain a mandatory disclosure regarding the nature of the irrevocability of the contract and the portability aspects.
All literature printed after January 1, 1997 which promotes prefunded funerals must contain language disclosing the irrevocable nature of preneed agreements executed by applicants for or recipients of SSI / Medicaid.

Visit the Medicaid site for the State of New York for more information.

Medicaid

Summary of N.Y.S. Irrevocable Trusting Statute (N.Y. Social Services Law, Section 209)

Summary of N.Y.S. Irrevocable Trusting Statute
(N.Y. Social Services Law, Section 209)