Everyone who lives at Christian Health Care Center has the right to manage his or her financial affairs.
CHCC helps people do that by offering to hold money for them in a separate account. These accounts, called resident trust accounts, can be requested by anyone living at our Lynden health care center.
What is a resident trust account?
Essentially, resident trust accounts are like bank accounts. They accrue interest and can be used for paying bills. Plus, account holders can make withdrawals or deposits when needed.
CHCC keeps all funds in these accounts separate from any other care center accounts. As long as the minimum balance is maintained, all accounts bear interest.
Quarterly statements are delivered to account holders, and the financial record can be requested at any time by residents or their legal representatives. All activity in resident trust accounts is protected by the principle of confidentiality of records.
How can residents open and access an account?
To open a trust account, residents can contact the CHCC business office. The resident will need to sign a Resident Trust Fund Deposit Authorization form, which is then filed in the office.
To withdraw money from the account, residents can visit the receptionist between 8 a.m. and 9 p.m. any day of the week. They also can make deposits with the receptionist on duty.
How can residents use their trust account?
Among the main reasons for holding a resident trust account at CHCC is to make it easier to make ongoing payments. Residents or their representatives may authorize the payment of ongoing expenses (for example, newspaper subscriptions and insurance premiums) from the trust account.
Residents may use a trust account to pay any necessary charges at CHCC. Residents also have the right to know, in advance, what charges CHCC may impose against personal funds in the account.
Residents who receive Medicaid benefits can ask CHCC to let them know when the amount in the trust account approaches the Supplemental Security Income resource limit for one person ($2,000). If the amount in the account, in addition to the value of other non-exempt resources, reaches the SSI limit for one person, the resident could lose eligibility for Medicaid or SSI. CHCC’s business office helps residents maintain eligibility by monitoring the account.
If you have any additional questions about resident trust accounts at CHCC, please contact the business office at 360-354-4434.