Crowd of Seniors Cram Boro Park JCC Seminar on Medicaid

BROOKLYN – They are in the years when medical care is uppermost in their mind, and they came to hear from the top experts on how best to manage it.

The Boro Park Jewish Community Council seminar on Medicaid for seniors took place Wednesday night at the council's ballroom right off 13th Avenue. Over a hundred men and women crowded the hall to hear how to structure their finances in a way to remain eligible for the care they need.

The attendees, who were pin-drop quiet throughout the two hours of the Medicaid Made Simple event, clearly enjoyed it.

"Excellent presentation!" one of them called out when Pinny Heller, the council's Medicaid consultant and the main presenter, finished his 45-minute talk. 

Medical costs are one of the main concerns people have. For seniors, it is absolutely critical. That is why the government has Medicare, and Medicaid for those who can’t afford it.

But to make these programs work best, it is important to plan. The seminar went a long way at doing that.

One issue that kept coming up was how to establish a trust so that elderly parents can have the homecare they need while not breaking the bank. Mr. Heller assured that there were legal ways to do it as long as people plan on advance.

"There are ways you can do anything that are kosher for Medicaid," he said. He related a horror story about a couple who helped out their children with money and then were hit with liens on every one of their properties.

"There are ways to deal with the penalties," he reassured. "But you have to careful with what you do at this age."

Medicaid Made Simple is the JCC’s third monthly seminar geared for seniors. It featured top-notch presenters who explained in a simplified manner how to qualify for the program, which BPJCC navigators say is one of the most common things asked by seniors.

"It was so heartwarming watching the faces of those who attended, the way they came away armed with the vital information,” said Avi Greenstein, the CEO of the BPJCC. “I am thrilled that these seminars are helping our seniors in a practical way better understand how to get help with their healthcare costs.”

The event was introduced and emceed by Rabbi Greenstein and Hadassah Waldman, the BPJCC's director of senior services.

The presenters include a highly experienced panel of Medicaid professionals. After Mr. Heller's masterful seminar, a Q&A panel of Elimelech Knoblech, a Medicaid consultant for Maximum Care Solutions; Joseph Klein, a partner at Korsinsky & Klein LLP; and Mark Leibowitz, the vice president at Pooled Trust, held participants' attention as they skillfully responded to an array of questions.

Some of the questions dealt with how to handle Holocaust reparations from the German government, what to do with children who are both trustees and beneficiaries and pooled trusts.

The seminar’s sponsors were Elite Home Health Care and Fidelis Care.

As the seminar wound down, Rabbi Greenstein announced the subject of next month's event - on estate planning. To register, please call the BPJCC office at 718-972-6600 or visit www.bpjcc.org/senior-workshops.