Medicaid is a government program that provides limited coverage for long term care. How limited? It only covers Institutional Care, Community Based Long Term Care Services and Supports. You can find out more about institutional care below.





Many people ignore the practice of shopping for long term care quote and purchasing a policy thinking that Medicaid will provide them with everything they need in the future. It's not that helpful as everyone thinks it is but still it provides limited care.

Institutional services that Medicaid covers are those authorized in the Social Security Act only and they are services for people 65 and above who needs to be put in a facility for mental diseases, hospital services, inpatient psychiatric services to those who are below 21 years old, nursing homes, intermediate care facilities for people with mental diseases and preadmission screening and resident review.


Institutional benefits share the following characteristics:


- Institutions are residential facilities, and assume total care of the individuals who are admitted.


· The comprehensive care includes room and board. Other Medicaid services are specifically prohibited from including room and board.


· The comprehensive service is billed and reimbursed as a single bundled payment. (Note that states vary in what is included in the institutional rate, versus what is billed as a separately covered service, for example physical therapy may be reimbursed as part of the bundle or as a separate service.)


· Institutions must be licensed and certified by the state, according to federal standards.


· Institutions are subject to survey at regular intervals to maintain their certification and license to operate.


· Eligibility for Medicaid may be figured differently for residents of an institution, and therefore access to Medicaid services for some individuals may be tied to need for institutional level of care.

Visiting the Medicaid website will give you more information regarding the extent of the coverage it offers.