Your living trust does NOT protect assets against nursing home charges and may actually delay qualification. Of course you should consult with a local elder law attorney - preferably one who is comfortable discussing long term planning options and irrevocable (yes - IRREVOCABLE) trusts with you.
I am an Illinois elder law attorney and having your assets in a revocable trust will not necessarily protect your assets from the costs of long term care, nor will it delay Medicaid qualifications. The existence of a trust may complicate the Medicaid application. Instead of focusing on whether or not you should have a trust, you should pay for a consultation with an elder law attorney in your area and spend a couple of hours with him or her so that you can learn and understand many of hte rules that would apply with respect to Medicaid asset protection for the way your estate and assets are structured. The failure to do this correctly could be quite costly.
