New York Medicaid Income and Asset Limits for Long-Term Care in 2026

Your parent's doctor just said they need long-term care, and you're staring at a Medicaid application wondering whether they'll qualify. In New York, the financial thresholds are more generous than most states — but the rules change dramatically depending on your parent's age and the type of care they need.

2026 Income and Asset Limits

New York uses what's called the Non-MAGI (Modified Adjusted Gross Income) pathway for anyone applying for long-term care Medicaid — whether that's nursing home care, home care through an MLTC plan, or the CDPAP program.

Single applicant:

• Monthly income limit: $1,836
• Countable asset limit: $33,038

Married couple (both applying):

• Monthly income limit: $2,489
• Countable asset limit: $44,796

These numbers apply across all long-term care programs. Unlike most states that cap individual assets at $2,000, New York's $33,038 threshold gives families significantly more breathing room.

If your parent's income exceeds $1,836 per month, they're not automatically disqualified. New York allows excess income to be deposited into a Pooled Income Trust managed by a nonprofit organization, effectively sheltering the overage so it doesn't count against eligibility.

MAGI vs. Non-MAGI: The Age 65 Cliff

This distinction trips up more families than almost anything else.

Under 65: Your parent likely qualifies under the MAGI pathway, which has no asset test at all. Income is the only financial factor, and the threshold is considerably higher.

At 65: Everything changes. The day your parent turns 65, they transition to Non-MAGI Medicaid. Suddenly, the state counts every dollar in their bank accounts, investment portfolios, and non-exempt assets against that $33,038 limit. A parent who sailed through MAGI eligibility at 64 can be denied at 65 with the exact same finances.

This transition is one of the strongest reasons to start planning before a parent reaches 65 — especially if they have assets above the threshold that need to be restructured.

What Counts as an Exempt Asset

Not everything your parent owns gets counted. New York exempts:

• Primary residence — exempt up to $1,130,000 in equity, as long as the applicant or their spouse lives there (or the applicant files a formal "Intent to Return" statement). This cap drops to a flat $1,000,000 on January 1, 2028.
• One vehicle of any value
• Household furnishings and personal belongings
• Prepaid irrevocable burial trust — unlimited value, as long as it's irrevocable. Alternatively, up to $1,500 in a designated burial fund.
• Retirement accounts (IRAs, 401(k)s) — fully exempt if they're in "payout status," meaning your parent is taking Required Minimum Distributions as monthly installments. Medicaid uses its own life-expectancy tables, which may require higher monthly payouts than standard IRS tables.
• Life insurance with a face value under $1,500

The burial trust exemption is particularly useful. Families can prepay funeral and burial expenses through an irrevocable trust with no dollar cap, immediately removing those funds from the countable asset total.

How to Apply for Your Elderly Parent

Getting Medicaid for an elderly parent in New York starts with determining whether they live in New York City or elsewhere in the state.

NYC residents submit through the Human Resources Administration (HRA), either online via ACCESS HRA or by mailing a paper application to HRA's Centralized Medicaid Unit in Brooklyn.

Everyone else applies at their county's Local Department of Social Services (LDSS) — Nassau DSS, Suffolk DSS, Westchester DSS, and so on.

Both pathways require the same core documentation: five years of bank statements for nursing home applications, proof of income, identification, and medical records establishing the need for care.

The New York Medicaid Long-Term Care & Asset Protection Guide walks through both filing pathways step by step, including the specific forms required for each county.

What Happens If Assets Exceed the Limit

If your parent has more than $33,038 in countable assets, you have several options:

1. Spend down legitimately — pay off debts, make home modifications for accessibility, prepay burial expenses
2. Convert countable assets to exempt ones — pay down a mortgage, purchase a prepaid burial trust, buy a vehicle
3. Pooled Income Trust — for excess monthly income (not lump-sum assets)
4. Medicaid Asset Protection Trust (MAPT) — for longer-term planning, but this triggers a 60-month lookback for nursing home Medicaid

The key mistake families make is waiting until a crisis hits to address excess assets. Strategic planning 2-5 years before care is needed opens up options that simply don't exist during an emergency hospital discharge.

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