Medicaid Planning & Elder Law Lawyer in Rochester, MI

Why does Medicaid planning matter so much for Rochester homeowners?

Because the house is usually the biggest thing a Rochester family owns, and a nursing home stay puts it at risk. The median Rochester home is worth about $473,000, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. Medicaid can't make a spouse sell it, but the state can come after it later.

Many Rochester and Rochester Hills couples have lived in the same house for decades and own it outright. While one of them is living there, Michigan Medicaid generally treats the home as exempt. After both have died, Michigan's estate recovery program can seek repayment from the estate for what Medicaid paid for care. For a family whose main asset is the house, that can mean the house.

Meanwhile, a Michigan nursing home costs about $135,050 a year for a semi-private room, according to CareScout's 2025 Cost of Care Survey. Medicare stops after a short rehab stay. Without a plan, savings go first, and then the house is exposed.

How do we protect the house from estate recovery?

By changing how the house is owned before it's needed, and recording that change properly. The two tools we use most are a Lady Bird deed and, when the family is planning five or more years ahead, a Medicaid Asset Protection Trust.

• A Lady Bird deed lets your parents keep living in the house, keep control of it and even sell it, while it passes straight to the children at death without probate and outside Michigan estate recovery. What a Lady Bird deed does.
• A Medicaid Asset Protection Trust can protect the house and savings together, but it starts a five-year clock, so it works best for families planning ahead. How a Medicaid Asset Protection Trust works.

A deed only works once the county has recorded it. We record it with the Oakland County Register of Deeds and confirm it came back, so the protection is actually in place. Read more about when Medicaid can and can't go after the home.

Can our parents just give the house or the savings to us?

Not safely. Michigan Medicaid looks back five years at gifts and transfers. A gift inside that window can trigger a penalty period when Medicaid won't pay, and the penalty doesn't start until your parent is already in care and out of money.

Giving the house to the children has other costs too. It puts the house within reach of the children's creditors and divorces, and the children can lose the tax advantage they'd get by inheriting it instead. Some transfers are allowed, such as between spouses or into a properly built trust. The rule is simple: talk to us before anything is moved. Read about the five-year look-back.

What if Mom or Dad is already in the hospital or a nursing home?

Call us, and don't move any money first. Crisis planning can often still protect part of the savings even after a parent has moved into care. What we can protect depends on what's already happened, so the earlier the call, the better.

It often starts at Ascension Providence Rochester Hospital, then a move to rehab. Medicare covers up to 100 days of rehab after a qualifying hospital stay, with only the first 20 fully covered. After that, families are paying privately while they work out next steps.

Rutkowski Law Firm has turned around emergency powers of attorney by the next day, with a notary sent to the hospital or care facility. If your parent needs a nursing home, we help find one with a Medicaid bed available and coordinate the tours. When a parent has been in a facility for more than 30 days, we file with a retroactive request so benefits start as early as the rules allow. Read more about Medicaid crisis planning.

What does Medicaid planning at Rutkowski Law Firm include?

The plan, the paperwork and the follow-through. We sort what Michigan counts from what it doesn't, build and record the protection, then file the Medicaid application and handle the state's letters until your parent is approved.

1. First conversation. Chris Pletkovic or Josh Heppner from our Customer Success team asks what's happening and what you're trying to protect, then lays out the options that fit and the fee for each, before you decide anything.
2. Strategy meeting. We confirm the plan with you and list the records we need.
3. Placement and paperwork. If a facility is needed, we help find a Medicaid bed while we gather documents.
4. Application. We file with the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services (MDHHS), with a retroactive request if it applies.
5. Decision and renewal. MDHHS has 45 days to respond. We handle the requests in between, explain the decision and guide you through the yearly renewal.

Founding attorney Michael L. Rutkowski leads the Medicaid team. Yizzy Yehudah, a Certified Medicaid Planner, began her career as a state Medicaid caseworker and later represented the state in hearings and appeals. For the eligibility rules in full, see Michigan Medicaid eligibility.

What elder law help does the Rochester office offer?

Elder law at Rutkowski Law Firm means planning for care: Medicaid, long-term care, guardianship, powers of attorney and veterans benefits. We don't handle nursing home abuse or neglect litigation.

• Powers of attorney. While your parent can still understand and sign, a durable power of attorney lets a child manage money and apply for Medicaid without going to court.
• Guardianship and conservatorship. If a parent can no longer make decisions and there's no power of attorney, we handle guardianship and conservatorship through the Oakland County Probate Court in Pontiac, with ongoing guidance and a yearly check-in included.
• Veterans benefits. We coordinate VA Aid and Attendance with Medicaid so a veteran or surviving spouse doesn't lose one by claiming the other.

Can we meet at the Rochester office?

Yes. The office is at 312 East Street in downtown Rochester, with dedicated on-site parking at the building. It's open Monday to Friday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., and the phones are answered 24 hours a day.

Brothers and sisters who live out of state can join any meeting by video, so the whole family hears the same plan. You can also meet at our Troy office on Big Beaver Road, or do every meeting by secure video.

Schedule a call with our team, or call the Rochester office at (248) 920-9841.

Which communities does the Rochester office serve?

The Rochester office helps families in Rochester, Rochester Hills, Oakland Township, Auburn Hills, Lake Orion and Shelby Township, and anywhere in Michigan by video. Guardianship and estate matters in the Oakland County communities go through the Oakland County Probate Court in Pontiac. Shelby Township is in Macomb County, so its matters go through the Macomb County Probate Court in Mount Clemens.

See the Rochester office page for directions, or read about Michigan Medicaid planning at Rutkowski Law Firm.