Every January, the Pennsylvania Department of Human Services updates the income and asset figures that determine whether a person qualifies for Medicaid long-term care benefits. These numbers govern how much a nursing home resident may keep, how much a spouse at home is protected, and what — if anything — a family must spend before Medicaid begins to pay.
If your family is facing a nursing home admission now, or if you are planning ahead so that a crisis does not catch you unprepared, understanding these figures is the necessary starting point. They shape every conversation we have with clients about Medicaid planning, and they change every year.
What follows is a plain-language explanation of the 2026 Pennsylvania Medicaid limits — what they mean, and why the numbers matter far less than what you do with them.
"The numbers are only the beginning. What families need is not a spreadsheet — it is a strategy. Medicaid planning is about knowing which assets are countable, which are exempt, and what can still be done on the day a loved one is admitted."
First, an important distinction. Pennsylvania is a medically needy state for Medicaid long-term care purposes. This means there is no hard income cap — a person does not become automatically ineligible because their monthly income exceeds a certain threshold. Instead, income above certain allowances is applied toward the cost of care, with Medicaid covering the remainder.
This is meaningfully different from so-called "income cap" states, where applicants with income above a fixed ceiling are categorically ineligible regardless of their expenses. In Pennsylvania, the structure is more nuanced — and more forgiving — but it still requires careful navigation.
The following figures apply to Pennsylvania Medicaid long-term care (nursing home level of care) for 2026. Verify specific figures against current DHS guidance before relying on them for planning purposes, as periodic mid-year adjustments do occur.
| Figure | 2026 Amount | What It Means |
|---|---|---|
| Personal Needs Allowance | $45 / month | The amount a nursing home resident may keep from income for personal expenses. Everything else goes to the facility. |
| Community Spouse Resource Allowance (CSRA) — Minimum | $30,828 | The least a community spouse (the spouse at home) may retain in countable assets, regardless of the total marital estate. |
| Community Spouse Resource Allowance (CSRA) — Maximum | $154,140 | The most a community spouse may retain in countable assets without a court order or hardship exception. |
| Minimum Monthly Maintenance Needs Allowance (MMMNA) | $2,555 / month | The minimum monthly income the community spouse is guaranteed to receive before the nursing home spouse's income is applied to care costs. |
| Maximum Monthly Maintenance Needs Allowance | $3,854.50 / month | The ceiling for the MMMNA, adjustable by court order if the community spouse can demonstrate excess shelter costs. |
| Home Equity Limit | $730,000 | The maximum equity in a primary residence before the home is counted as a resource for a single applicant with no community spouse. |
| Individual Resource Limit (Single applicant) | $2,400 | The maximum countable assets a single nursing home applicant may retain while qualifying for Medicaid. |
Note: Figures reflect 2026 Pennsylvania DHS guidelines. Confirm current amounts at resources.html or with our office before making planning decisions.
Not all assets count against the Medicaid resource limits. Pennsylvania distinguishes between countable assets and exempt assets, and the distinction is consequential.
Countable assets include checking and savings accounts, CDs, stocks, bonds, mutual funds, IRAs and retirement accounts (in most circumstances), second homes and investment real estate, and most other liquid or convertible property.
Exempt assets — those Medicaid does not count against the applicant — typically include:
"A house is not always safe. A car is not always exempt. The categories are clear in the regulations; applying them to a specific family's balance sheet is where experience — and strategy — come in."
When one spouse enters a nursing home and the other remains at home — the "community spouse" — Pennsylvania's Medicaid rules apply a set of protections designed to prevent the at-home spouse from being impoverished.
The core mechanism is the Community Spouse Resource Allowance (CSRA). At the time of the nursing home admission (called the "snapshot date"), all countable assets owned by either spouse are totaled. The community spouse may then retain the greater of $30,828 or one-half of the combined countable assets, up to the maximum of $154,140.
Example: A couple has $180,000 in combined countable assets at the snapshot date. Half is $90,000 — which falls between the minimum and maximum. The community spouse may retain $90,000. The nursing home spouse must spend down to $2,400 before Medicaid eligibility begins. That leaves approximately $87,600 to be addressed through planning, spend-down, or both.
In a couple with $320,000 in countable assets, half would be $160,000 — exceeding the maximum of $154,140. The community spouse retains $154,140; the nursing home spouse again spends down to $2,400. The planning challenge is larger but the structure is the same.
In addition to asset protection, Pennsylvania protects a portion of the nursing home spouse's income for the benefit of the community spouse. If the community spouse's own income falls below the Minimum Monthly Maintenance Needs Allowance ($2,555 in 2026), the shortfall may be filled from the nursing home spouse's income before that income is applied to the cost of care.
This matters significantly for couples where one spouse has a pension or Social Security and the other does not. The income allocation rules can substantially reduce what must be paid to the nursing home each month — in some cases, down to nearly nothing.
Pennsylvania participates in the federal Medicaid Estate Recovery Program (MERP). After a Medicaid recipient passes away, the state may file a claim against the estate to recover benefits paid during the recipient's lifetime. The primary target is the home — which, while exempt during the recipient's lifetime, becomes subject to a claim after death if no community spouse or qualifying dependent was residing there.
This is one of the strongest arguments for planning well before a crisis. A properly structured plan can protect the home and other assets from recovery while fully complying with the law.
Medicaid planning is not only for families facing an imminent nursing home admission. The most effective strategies require time to implement — sometimes years. The 5-year look-back period on asset transfers means that certain protective steps must be taken far in advance to be fully effective.
That said, even families in a crisis — days before admission — have more options than they realize. Do not assume it is too late. Call us first.
The annual Medicaid figures provide a framework. But the actual work of Medicaid planning — determining what assets are countable, identifying permissible conversion strategies, structuring annuities, coordinating with the nursing facility, completing the application — requires far more than knowing a table of numbers.
Pennsylvania's Medicaid rules are complex and, in the hands of an experienced elder law attorney, far more flexible than they first appear. Families who come to us after reading that their assets "exceed the limit" are often surprised to learn how much can still be protected through legally available strategies.
If your family is navigating a nursing home admission — now or in the future — we welcome you to call our office. The first consultation is free, and we will tell you clearly what can be done.