Figures checked against New York State Department of Health sources on November 1, 2026.
What is the Medicaid look-back in New York?
When someone applies for Medicaid to pay for long-term nursing home care, Medicaid looks at the 60 months (five years) before the application. It wants to see whether the person, or their spouse, gave money or property away or sold something for less than it was worth during that time.
The 60 months are counted back from the month your parent is both in the nursing home and has applied for Medicaid. The same look-back applies when short-term rehab in a nursing home runs past 29 days.
The look-back is not a punishment for having savings. Paying bills, rent, food and medical costs is normal spending. What Medicaid looks for is money that left without your parent getting fair value back.
Does the look-back apply to home care Medicaid?
Not right now. Medicaid for care at home (often called community Medicaid, which covers home attendants, MLTC plans and CDPAP) does not currently have a look-back in New York.
A 2020 state law created a 30-month look-back for home care. It has never started. The Department of Health's own page still lists March 31, 2024 as the earliest start date, and that date passed without it taking effect. As of November 1, 2026 we could find no state directive that sets a start date or tells local Medicaid offices how to apply it.
This could change, so check before you plan around it. Under the state's proposal, people who apply for home care Medicaid before the start date would not be subject to the new look-back.
Home care applicants still have to show what they own today. For a few kinds of assets, such as life insurance, stocks and bonds, annuities, burial funds and trusts, current paperwork is required. You can read more in our guide to CDPAP and home care in NYC.
What happens if money was given away?
If Medicaid finds a gift or a below-value sale inside the 60 months, it does not usually deny the whole application. Instead it sets a "transfer penalty": a number of months when Medicaid will not pay for the nursing home.
The months are worked out by dividing the amount given away by a regional monthly rate. For 2026, the rate for all five boroughs of New York City is $15,282. So a $30,564 gift to a grandchild would mean about two months with no Medicaid nursing home coverage.
The hard part is the timing. The penalty clock does not start on the day of the gift. It starts once your parent is in the nursing home, has applied, and would otherwise qualify. That is exactly when the family can least afford a gap.
Some transfers are not penalized. Examples in the state rules include transfers to a spouse, to a child who is certified blind or disabled, and certain transfers of the home. Whether one fits your family is a legal question, so Ben works with an elder-law attorney on those cases.
New York Medicaid figures for 2026
- Look-back for nursing home care: 60 months
- Look-back for home care: none in effect today
- NYC rate used for transfer penalties: $15,282 a month
- Resource limit, single person 65 or older: $33,038
- Income level, single person: $1,836 a month
- Home equity limit: $1,130,000
What records do I need for the Medicaid look-back?
The state's Supplement A form, which goes with the main Medicaid application, says nursing home applicants must document certain resources for the past 60 months:
- Life insurance policies
- Stocks, bonds and mutual funds
- Annuities
- Burial agreements or burial funds
- Trust documents and trust accounts
The form also asks you to list every account closed in the past 60 months, with the balance at closing and where the money went, and to explain each transaction of $2,000 or more on a separate sheet.
Bank accounts may be checked through computer matches instead of papers at first. But the form says Medicaid can review every transaction in the look-back period and can ask for proof later. That is why families are wise to pull five years of statements for every bank account early, while the bank can still produce them.
You will also need the basics: proof of identity, address, income and citizenship or immigration status, and your parent's Medicare card. In NYC, the Human Resources Administration (HRA) says Medicare proof is now required.
What if we can't find old statements?
This is very common. Banks can usually reprint statements, though it can take weeks, so start early. If a parent kept cash or wrote checks to family, write down what each payment was for while people still remember. A short, honest explanation for a large withdrawal is much better than a blank.
If your parent is about to enter a nursing home, our guide on what to do about Medicaid when a parent goes into a nursing home walks through the first steps and timing.
Talk to Ben before you move any money
Ben Drew has prepared New York Medicaid applications for families for 12 years, more than 1,000 of them, from Brooklyn for families across New York City. He can look at your parent's situation, tell you which records matter most, and put the application together. If trusts or planning come up, he brings in the elder-law attorney he works with. Ben is not an attorney himself.
This is general information, not legal advice.