The Medicaid look-back period, state by state (2026)
By Bennett Dixon, founder of MedicaidChecklist · Every figure cited to an official source · Last verified
Every state reviews an applicant's financial history before paying for long-term care — the “look-back period.” In most states it is 60 months for nursing-home coverage, but the exceptions matter: some states apply a shorter window, and some apply no look-back at all to home-care applications.
Look-back periods, side by side
| State | Look-back period | Year |
|---|---|---|
| California | 30 months | 2026 |
| Michigan | 60 months | 2026 |
| New York | 60 months for nursing-home applications; no look-back currently applies to community (home-care) applications | 2026 |
| Ohio | 60 months | 2026 |
| Pennsylvania | 60 months | 2026 |
| Texas | 60 months | 2026 |
This table covers the 6 states we currently research in depth — California, Michigan, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania and Texas. Every figure is hand-verified against the official state source (linked on each state's page) rather than syndicated, which is why we publish fewer states than aggregator sites do. Rules in other states follow the same federal framework but with different published figures.
What the look-back means in practice
Transfers for less than fair market value inside the window can create a penalty period during which Medicaid will not pay for care — calculated from published, state-specific divisors. Practically, the look-back is also a paperwork rule: it is why caseworkers ask for up to five years of account statements. The plain-English walkthrough is in our look-back explainer, and each state page covers its own published penalty rules.
A note on limits of this page: whether and how any rule applies to a specific family is a question only the state agency — or an elder-law attorney — can answer. MedicaidChecklist publishes the rules and helps you prepare and organize the application; it does not give legal advice, and nothing here is a recommendation to move, transfer, or restructure money or property.