Medicaid’s Look-Back Period

Arkansas Medicaid Look-Back Period

Date: June 09, 2025

There is a general rule in any debt collection situation- if you can access an asset, so can your creditors. Example: if you owe a tax debt, the IRS can potentially collect any retirement assets that you can access, but can’t go after things like pension funds that you can’t access. The same holds for Medicaid eligibility. When you need long-term care, if you have the ability to access an asset, Medicaid will count it in determining your eligibility.  In fact, Medicaid can look back for a five-year period prior to the date that you start receiving long-term care and claw-back or penalize you for any asset you transferred below market value during this window.

In Arkansas, the Medicaid look-back period is 60 months (5 years) prior to your application date. Medicaid reviews all asset transfers made by you or your spouse in the 60 months before you apply—gifts, sales below fair market value, donations, debt forgiveness, etc. If any transfer is found, you'll face a penalty period during which Medicaid won’t pay for your long‑term care. This includes transfers to a revocable trust.

Many people who have created a trust to hold assets mistakenly think that the trust protects its assets from Medicaid. If you can revoke the trust and thereby access its assets, Medicaid will count these assets when determining eligibility. On the other hand, if your trust is irrevocable, established outside the look-back period and you can’t get to its assets, Medicaid will not count these assets in determining Medicaid eligibility.

This is where estate planning comes in. If you become aware that long-term care will be necessary or have more assets than you will ever need to provide for long-term care, you can use an irrevocable trust to preserve assets for your family.

Please contact me for more information on establishing an irrevocable trust.