I'm my dad's guardian. He's in a nursing home & disabled. He's on Medicaid & his Social Security benefits go to the nursing home. No other income. Claim as dependent?

[zellie89]

I am his only other means of financial support, which amounts to $100-150 per month.  Should I claim him as a dependent?  Will this impact his Medicaid eligibility?  We live in Alabama.

[xmasbaby0]

No you cannot claim your father as a dependent.  As you know, the care he is receiving in a nursing home may be costing tens of thousands of dollars.  The amount you are providing to help him out is not over half of his support.  His support is being provided by Medicaid.  Sorry.

[MichaelG81]

Yes, you can claim him if in nursing home for residency requirement.  Check with Medicaid for that question, but claiming him is not more income for him. He must have also made less than $4,400 in earned income not including untaxed social security, sounds like nursing home takes check. 

Also, according to IRS: 

Temporary absences.

A person is considered to live with you as a member of your household during periods of time when one of you, or both, is temporarily absent due to special circumstances, such as:

Illness,

Education,

Business,

Vacation,

Military service, or

Detention in a juvenile facility.

If the person is placed in a nursing home for an indefinite period of time to receive constant medical care, the absence may be considered temporary. 

TANF and other governmental payments.

Under proposed Treasury regulations, if you received TANF payments or other similar payments and used the payments to support another person, those payments are considered support you provided for that person, rather than support provided by the government or other third party.

@zellie89 

[EDITED | 03/08/2023 11:58 am PST]

@zellie89