Mississippi Medicaid Look-Back Period

Last updated: August 21, 2026 Jurisdiction: Mississippi

Mississippi uses a five-year transfer review

DOM’s 2026 long-term-care guide states that there is a five-year look-back period to determine whether assets were transferred with the intent to qualify for Medicaid. DOM’s eligibility page similarly describes a 60-month review for transfers, including assets transferred into a trust. The review applies to long-term-care planning; it is not a gift-tax calculation and does not mean that every family payment receives identical treatment (DOM 2026 nursing-facility and HCBS guide; DOM eligibility page).

DOM says a transfer can produce a penalty under which Medicaid will not pay the nursing facility for care; for an HCBS waiver participant, the guide says the person will not be eligible for Medicaid during the applicable penalty. That makes dates, proof of value, compensation received, the recipient, and the legal interest transferred central facts rather than paperwork details (DOM 2026 nursing-facility and HCBS guide).

The current transfer-penalty divisor

DOM’s Appendix A-2, revised January 1, 2026, lists a monthly transfer-of-assets divisor of $9,430 and a daily rate of $309. A divisor is the rate used in the state’s penalty calculation; it is not a fee that a family elects to pay and it is not a prediction of every facility’s private-pay price (DOM Appendix A-2, revised January 1, 2026).

A useful planning example should not replace DOM’s calculation. The published monthly rate changes over time, while a case can turn on the date of transfer, the date long-term-care services are requested, whether the person is otherwise eligible, and whether an exception or return of property applies. Families should use the current chart and the case record rather than an older online divisor (DOM Appendix A-2).

Home and trust transactions need their own analysis

DOM expressly includes a 60-month review for property transferred into a trust. A transfer of a home interest, the creation of a remainder interest, a transfer-on-death deed, or trust funding can have different legal effects, so the word “estate planning” does not answer the Medicaid transfer question. DOM’s located public pages do not give a rule specifically addressing the Medicaid treatment of every TOD-deed transaction (DOM eligibility page; Mississippi TOD-deed statute).

For that reason, a proposed gift or deed should be reviewed before it is signed. A Mississippi elder-law attorney can connect title, the transaction’s value, the 60-month review, the income-trust question, and the person’s likely care setting.

2026 divisor: $9,430 per month or $309 per day. DOM describes the look-back as five years/60 months (DOM Appendix A-2; DOM 2026 LTC guide).

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Mississippi Medicaid Look-Back Period

Mississippi uses a five-year transfer review

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