Michigan's Medicaid estate recovery program, run by the Department of Health and Human Services, seeks repayment from the estate of a person who received Medicaid long-term-care services at age 55 or older, for services on or after September 30, 2007, per MDHHS. It most often affects the home. A hardship waiver can protect survivors — for example, when household income is under 200% of the poverty level and resources are below $10,000.
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Michigan Medicaid Estate Recovery: What a Caregiver Should Know (2026)
By Chuck Brodsky, Co-Founder, MediNav — Updated July 2026 — 7 min read
Quick answer
If a parent received Michigan Medicaid for nursing-home or other long-term care, their estate — usually the house — may face a recovery claim after death. Knowing Michigan's rules and its hardship protections helps a family prepare instead of being surprised.
What Michigan estate recovery covers
Federal law requires states to recover, and Michigan's program applies to people who received Medicaid long-term-care services at age 55 or older, for services provided on or after September 30, 2007, the date Michigan implemented recovery. Long-term care here includes nursing-facility care, hospice, and home and community-based services such as adult home help, the MI Choice Waiver, and PACE. The most common recovery target is the deceased person's home.
When recovery does not happen
Recovery is deferred or waived in defined situations. As with all states, Michigan cannot recover while a surviving spouse is living, or while there is a surviving child who is under 21, blind, or disabled. Michigan also offers a hardship waiver: one path applies when the estate's heirs have household income below 200% of the federal poverty level and countable resources below $10,000. These protections keep recovery from causing undue hardship.
What counts as the estate
Michigan recovers from the probate estate — assets that pass through probate after death. Assets that pass outside probate may or may not be reached depending on how they are titled. Because how the home and other assets are held affects exposure, families who plan ahead with an elder-law attorney generally have more options than those who address it only after a death.
How this connects to eligibility
Estate recovery is the back end of Medicaid; the front end is eligibility, where Michigan applies a $2,000 asset limit for most SSI-related long-term-care categories. Planning that reduces assets to qualify, and planning that addresses estate recovery, are related and interact with the Medicaid look-back period on transfers. Handling both together, before a parent needs care, produces the best result.
What a caregiver should do
If a parent received Michigan Medicaid long-term care, expect an estate-recovery claim after death and do not ignore it. Respond within the deadline, ask whether a hardship waiver applies given the survivors' income and resources, and confirm which services are being recovered. The MDHHS estate-recovery helpline is (800) 642-3195. See the national estate recovery guide for the federal framework.
When to call MediNav
- Free: Ask a specific question — tell us about a Michigan parent's estate and Medicaid history and get a straight answer on recovery.
- Free: Run the coverage check — in about two minutes, see what a parent is likely eligible for with 2026 figures for your state.
- Paid ($9–$19/mo): MediNav Watch and Watch+ re-check the figures as they change each year and remind you before deadlines, so nothing lapses unnoticed.
Related guides
- Medicaid Estate Recovery — the federal framework
- Medicaid Look-Back Period — the transfer rules
- Miller Trust (QIT) — income-cap planning
- Is My Parent Dual-Eligible? — Medicare + Medicaid together
Frequently asked questions
Does Michigan take the house after a parent dies?
The home is the most common estate-recovery target, but protections apply. Michigan cannot recover while a surviving spouse lives, or while a child under 21, blind, or disabled survives, and a hardship waiver may protect survivors with household income below 200% of poverty and resources below $10,000. Ask MDHHS about waivers.
Who is subject to Michigan estate recovery?
People who received Medicaid long-term-care services at age 55 or older, for services on or after September 30, 2007. Long-term care includes nursing-facility care, hospice, and home and community-based services like the MI Choice Waiver and PACE. A parent who only had regular Medicaid at a younger age is generally not subject to it.
What is the hardship waiver?
It is a process to waive or reduce recovery when it would cause undue hardship. One Michigan path applies when the estate's heirs have household income below 200% of the federal poverty level and countable resources below $10,000. Apply promptly after receiving a recovery notice, and provide documentation of the survivors' finances.
Does a will avoid estate recovery?
Not by itself. Assets that pass through probate under a will are reachable by recovery. How the home and other assets are titled affects whether recovery reaches them, so whether any planning tool helps depends on the specifics. Get elder-law advice before relying on a will or trust to avoid recovery.
What are Michigan's eligibility asset limits?
For most SSI-related long-term-care Medicaid categories, Michigan applies a $2,000 asset limit for an asset group of one. This is the front-end eligibility test; estate recovery is the back-end repayment after death. Both interact with the five-year look-back on transfers, so plan for them together.
Where do I get help with a Michigan recovery claim?
Contact the MDHHS estate-recovery program at (800) 642-3195 or by email through the MDHHS website. For advocacy about care in a facility, the Michigan Long Term Care Ombudsman Program is at 866-485-9393. Respond to any recovery notice within its stated deadline.
Sources: Michigan MDHHS — Medicaid Estate Recovery, MDHHS BEM 400 — Assets, Michigan Long Term Care Ombudsman Program. Last verified July 2026.