Many recipient Medicaid fraud cases in New York City (lying on HRA application to obtain Medicaid) are related to concealing reportable resources. Resources are property of all kinds including real, personal, tangible, and intangible.
Real property is land and generally whatever is built upon, growing upon, or affixed to the
land. When you own real property of any sort, you have an obligation to disclose this information when applying for Medicaid benefits in New York City. The equity value of real property is a countable resource and which is applied toward the appropriate resource level
with the exception of a homestead. However, the equity value of your second home will always be applied toward the resources level.
In simple terms, if you live in your only home in New York City, you qualify for a homestead exemption. A homestead is the primary residence occupied by an applicant or their family members including the recipient’s spouse, minor children, certified blind or certified disabled children and other dependent relatives. The homestead includes a house, condominium, cooperative apartment or mobile home. Vacation homes, summer homes or cabins are usually not considered homesteads. Homestead is exempt as long as it is your primary residence. However, when you move out of your homestead, it will count as a resource.
If you own a second property, its equity will disqualify you from receiving Medicaid. Many applicants fail to disclose on their Medicaid applications that they in fact own multiple properties, often outside of New York City. That is the essential fraud, easily detectable by the HRA Bureau of Fraud Investigations (BFI) agents. Most cases investigated by the BFI involve multiple unreported properties as well as instances of Medicaid recipients who don’t live in New York City.