First thing to get straight is the separation of Medicare from Medicaid. Medicare is a federally administered program of health care for those who are eligible and are aged 65 or older, or younger people with disabilities and people with End Stage Renal Disease (permanent kidney failure requiring dialysis or transplant). Medicaid is healthcare for the needy; a federally and state funded program. Banks don't look twice at joint checking accounts. It's very common with so many people looking after elderly parents, etc., who no longer feel inclined or are unable to write out, sign, and mail checks for their bills and routine household expenses. To keep a little cash on hand when credit cards and bank cards are no longer used. What they (or someone like Medicaid within the 5 year look back inquiry period) would look at would be a cashing in of assets - stocks, bonds, Treasury notes, etc.- putting the proceeds in a joint account and systematically draining it, then applying for Medicaid benefits. If your Mother has assets (in addition to a pension or Social Security which the nursing home will take) those should rightly be used for her upkeep for as long as they last. If there's an inheritance received while in the nursing home, the home will take that for her upkeep. Even though, in your scenario, a will is involved and you are to inherit upon her death. That would indicate the inheritance was expected to be left to be passed down again. Not too much a chance of that happening unless death occurred before the inheritance and assets were exhausted. I realize you're information gathering for a situation that may or may not arise in the future. You do have to be aware though - and please don't take any offense as none is intended - that many of us on the forums as well as out in the world, don't look kindly on deliberate spend downs to preserve an inheritance. In other words, if you've got the means, you pay the freight. My mother did because that's what her estate was for. I expect to do the same myself.

Noodlesportland asks, why on my own account? Well it is not to teach him anything. I really just have in mind his being able to access cash and maybe pay some bills by check should there be some sort of emergency or situation in which his parents are not able to do so. The possiblity of that is probably remote, but it just seems wise to be prepared. Let's say, my husband and I were in a horrendous car accident and hospitalized and the car totalled. My son would need transportation for his daily life (and to come visit his parents!). I would trust him to buy a used car if need be and to pay cash for it. Big expense. Smaller needs for cash come to mind, too. Our closest relatives are far away and we would have to rely on local friends in such an emergency, but I think it might be easier for everybody if he would have access to checks and cash. I have already given him a credit card on my account and he has been spotlessly responsible about that for over a year. He's got a good head on his shoulders and he knows pretty much everything about our finances-- where the dollars come from, how & when bills are paid, where records are, and so on. We have always been forthcoming about and explicative of money matters, so he is well grounded. Still, if anyone has any cautions, I'm interested to hear.

After many years of observing GEM's extreamly poor service for Sam's Club member, the bank has hit a new low by redefining the meaning of a simple word in the English language. If I lost my credit card and it was replaced with a new one (new acciount number)I could understand the reason for reporting that fact to credit bureaus. When the primary account holder of my Sam's card passed away, Sams changed my standing from secondary (user) to primary, with a new account number and membership ID card. After reporting that I lost my credit card to the credit bureaus, GEMB refuses to correct the delibert insertion of false information to my credit file. The GEMB supervisor stated that I "LOST" my old credit card NUMBER when Sam's Club changed it to a new one. I never lost my existing card, nor was it ever stolen. GEMB's is violating the Fair Credit Reportring Act, and as usualy blames it on Sam's Club. It seems that Sam's club would have had to alow me to keep my old account number when changing my status from secondary to primary in order to keep GEMB from flagging my reports with untrue information. No wonder GEMB is at the center of so much fraud. The company simply has no ethics of its own. It does not help resolve fraud issues that people do have, while the bank insists on creating eronious credit information where there is no lost or stolen credit card involved. Someone asked what GEMB stood for. The name aboviously is derived from the parent company's corporate policy. GE (General Electric) Means ..... Whenever contemplating the purchase of any product made by GE, I think of the routine customer abuse it provides through GEMB and then buy any product but GE. It is a shame that Sam's club refuses to sever its relationship with such an arrogant, irresponsible, incompetent financial institution. It probly has something to do with the amount of money that Sam's makes selling GE products.

Thank you all for your ideas! This will be as much a part of the learning experience for her as the camp will, I imagine. Thank goodness there's a young man whom she knows from the youth symphony who will be going there too, for the second time, and we've learned that he's unapologetically frugal. Laundromat vs. laundry service, etc. So she can 'follow' him and not feel like she's the only one who doesn't have parents who are 'wealthy' or 'generous' enough. We were actually able to find a 'teen' account at a local credit union we've wanted to begin a relationship with for a while, but just haven't. After DD took a quick tutorial and had to score 100 on a test about basic banking and personal finance issues (love the credit union if only for that feature!), a person there very expertly walked us through establishing both a savings and a checking account. The checking comes with a debit card that is also a VISA if you use it that way, and you are protected against fraud if any fraudulent charges appear (that didn't involve your PIN). Best of both worlds. Never thought it would be that easy--now she just has to not lose the card (although she'll be safe as long as the PIN isn't with it, which it won't be.) I swear, g'web home decor conversations is the Place To Be. I'll keep all those ideas in mind, including yours, Beth, a preloaded AAA Visa--who knew! Really helpful. Thanks so much!