A DAUGHTER said her family home was set to be taken away from her following her mother’s death.
Ellen McCauley said Medicaid put a lien on her late mother’s property in Syracuse, New York.
Ellen McCauley said her family home could be taken away from herCredit: CNY CENTRAL
McCauley said the home belonged to her mother who diedCredit: CNY CENTRAL
The daughter said she was told Medicaid had placed a lien on her homeCredit: CNY CENTRAL
McCauley explained that her mother fell ill in 2019, so the family started to plan her care arrangements.
Her great-niece moved herself and her two young kids into the home to look after her.
McCauley said she also enlisted the help of a local healthcare company named Nascentia Health for extra assistance, according to NBC affiliate WSTM-TV.
“We saw those commercials, ‘Hey… for free you can get help in the home. Pay your loved ones,’” she said.
“So we said let’s do that!
“So we signed her up with a local company, my niece made minimum wage, never more than $10,000 a year, and we didn’t even realize that this local company was getting $4,000 to $5,000 a month.”
McCauley claimed the company had occasionally called to check in on her mother, but she added the great-niece had done the day-to-day care work.
The daughter said she received a shock after her mother died in January 2023.
“It wasn’t until my mother died that we got a letter from Medicaid saying they put a $202,000 lien on this house on West Onondaga,” she said.
McCauley said this amount was to collect the money Medicaid had spent on her mother’s care.
It wasn’t until my mother died that we got a letter from Medicaid saying they put a $202,000 lien on this house on West Onondaga.”
Ellen McCauley
The daughter questioned how this move could cover their costs as another home on their road allegedly sold for around $70,000.
Local lawyer Anthony Copani explained how this situation could have happened, according to WSTM-TV.
“They won’t file a lien against the home while the person’s living there,” he said.
“But, when she died they were able to go back the 10 years, add up all the monies that they paid out, and then filed the lien against the home at that time.”
We knew that her greatest wish was that this house was our inheritance, my sister Mae and I.”
Ellen McCauley
McCauley explained how this news had affected her family.
“We knew that her greatest wish was that this house was our inheritance, my sister Mae and I,” she said.
She reminisced about the memories she had of the home and her month.
“I think about how the Christmas tree was always over there and how the little kids grew up and now they have children of their own,” she recalled.
“I think about playing games around the table and how much laughter we had.”
The U.S. Sun has reached out to Medicaid and Nascentia Health for comment.
McCauley said the home was intended to be passed down to her and her sisterCredit: CNY CENTRAL