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Annuities, although usually purchased in order to provide a source of income for retirement, are occasionally used to shelter assets so that individuals purchasing them can become eligible for Medicaid. In order to avoid penalizing annuities validly purchased as part of a retirement plan but to capture those annuities which abusively shelter assets, a determination must be made with regard to the ultimate purpose of the annuity (i.e., whether the purchase of the annuity constitutes a transfer of assets for less than fair market value). If the expected return on the annuity is commensurate with a reasonable estimate of the life expectancy of the beneficiary, the annuity can be deemed actuarially sound. To make this determination, use the following life expectancy tables, compiled from information published by the Office of the Actuary of the Social Security Administration. The average number of years of expected life remaining for the individual must coincide with the life of the annuity. If the individual is not reasonably expected to live longer than the guarantee period of the annuity, the individual will not receive fair market value for the annuity based on the projected return. In this case, the annuity is not actuarially sound and a transfer of assets for less than fair market value has taken place, subjecting the individual to a penalty. The penalty is assessed based on a transfer of assets for less than fair market value that is considered to have occurred at the time the annuity was purchased. For example, if a male at age 65 purchases a
$10,000 annuity to be paid over the course of 10 years, his life expectancy
according to the table is 14.96 years. Thus, the annuity is actuarially sound.
However, if a male at age 80 purchases the same annuity for $10,000 to be paid
over the course of 10 years, his life expectancy is only 6.98 years. Thus, a
payout of the annuity for approximately 3 years is considered a transfer of
assets for less than fair market value and that amount is subject to penalty.
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