Greetings.  My boyfriend has recently been diagnosed with AML and we're navigating all the research, all the appointments, all the aid to apply for, all the financial ins and outs.  He does not currently have insurance but will qualify for Medicaid and SSDI, amongst other assistance.  We originally filed for Medicaid online as soon as we knew about the diagnosis, which we later found takes longer.  Then the case worker at the facility where he will be going for treatment said they would help facilitate the Medicaid process.

The case worker told us that Medicaid will turn my boyfriend down when they see how much money he has. It isn't much, under $10K altogether, but it was him trying to be responsible and have a little bit of savings for expenses if he were to lose his job or whatever.  Like we're all supposed to do, but not all of us do.  Anyway, one of the resources is an IRA.  The case worker told us it will need to be cashed out for DSHS to approve Medicaid coverage.  If my boyfriend closes out that IRA, he will get hit with a $600 penalty.  Is there a possibility of stating disability as the reason for closing the IRA and getting out of that penalty?

My boyfriend is struggling with what to do with the IRA money.  Additionally, we may need to document where the money went to show that all resources have been drained.   My advice to him has been

1. do not pre-pay any medical bills with it (he wanted to pre-pay dental or other medical needs), but maybe pay already-existing bills? 
2. do not ask our landlord for a bill for a year's worth of rent in advance (another idea he had, but I disagree because that then shows he doesn't need any assistance with housing),
3. maybe prepay utilities?  although this could be as problematic as prepaying rent,
4. put some of it in the benevolent account I'm setting up on Monday.  A benevolent account is an account where anyone who has access to that bank's branches can go in and make a donation in his name.  It isn't opened with his Social Security number, so it isn't tied to him formally, plus it will not count as income on his next year's tax filing.

Any other ideas?  Has someone been through this specifically before?  Are we overthinking the documentation standpoint?  Initially, we reported the IRA and everything else on the Medicaid online application, but because it still has not been processed, the case worker facilitating the application next week can just start over and fill out a new application and write "supercedes previous application", and then DSHS will use that new application (I got this information straight from DSHS).  Is my boyfriend overthinking what to do with the money?  Can he just stick it under the bed, so to speak?