A Medicaid Asset Protection Trust (MAPT) is an irrevocable trust that holds your assets outside of your countable estate so they are not subject to Medicaid’s spend-down requirement. After five years, assets in a MAPT are protected from nursing home costs.
It is one of the most effective legal tools available to Georgia families who want to protect their savings and home from long-term care expenses.
How a Medicaid Asset Protection Trust Works
When you create a MAPT, you transfer assets — typically your home and significant savings — into the trust. You give up direct ownership of those assets. The trust holds them, and an independent trustee manages them according to the trust terms.
Because you no longer own the assets directly, they are not counted against you when Georgia Medicaid evaluates your eligibility. After the five-year lookback period has passed, those assets are fully protected.
During your lifetime, you can typically retain the right to live in your home and receive income generated by trust assets — but you cannot take the principal back.
What Assets Go Into a MAPT?
The most common assets placed into a MAPT are:
- Your primary residence
- Investment accounts and savings beyond your emergency reserve
- Rental property
- Vacation property
You keep liquid assets outside the trust for day-to-day living and healthcare costs. The goal is to protect the assets most at risk of being consumed by a nursing home stay.
The Five-Year Lookback Rule
Transferring assets to a MAPT starts a five-year clock. If you need nursing home care and apply for Medicaid within five years of the transfer, Medicaid will penalize the transfer and impose a period of ineligibility.
This is the most important reason to create a MAPT early — ideally in your 60s or early 70s, well before any health crisis. Waiting until you need care almost always means the trust cannot protect you in time.
MAPT vs. Revocable Living Trust
A revocable living trust is excellent for avoiding probate, but it does not protect assets from Medicaid. Because you can change or revoke a revocable trust, the assets inside it are still considered yours for Medicaid purposes.
A MAPT is irrevocable — you cannot take assets back — which is precisely what makes it work for Medicaid planning. If your goal is both probate avoidance and Medicaid protection, you may need both types of trusts.
Who Should Create a MAPT?
A Medicaid Asset Protection Trust makes sense if:
- You are in your 60s or 70s with significant assets you want to protect
- You have a family history of conditions requiring long-term care
- You own your home and do not want it seized after death by Medicaid estate recovery
- You have savings beyond what you need for day-to-day living
It is not right for everyone. If you are already in a nursing home or facing an imminent admission, the five-year clock makes a MAPT less useful. Other strategies may be more appropriate in that situation.
Georgia Medicaid Estate Recovery
Even if you qualify for Medicaid, Georgia can attempt to recover what it paid from your estate after you die. Your home — if it was not in a MAPT — is a primary target. Transferring your home to a MAPT early removes it from your estate and protects it from recovery.
Next Steps
Creating a MAPT requires working with an elder law attorney who understands Georgia Medicaid rules. The trust must be drafted correctly to withstand Medicaid scrutiny and achieve its protective purpose.
The Hive Law helps Georgia families set up Medicaid Asset Protection Trusts as part of a complete elder law plan. The first step is a Family Protection Audit — a 60-minute session where Melissa Breyer reviews your assets and explains exactly what a MAPT would protect and what it would cost.