What Are Ohio's Spousal Impoverishment Rules?

When one spouse needs Medicaid-paid nursing home or waiver care and the other stays living at home, federal and Ohio rules protect a portion of the couple's combined income and assets so the at-home spouse — sometimes called the community spouse — isn't left destitute. We found reported 2026 figures suggesting the community spouse can generally keep up to roughly $162,660 in countable assets (the Community Spouse Resource Allowance), and that if the at-home spouse's own monthly income falls under about $2,705, income can be shifted from the applicant spouse to bring them up to that floor. Families should verify current figures directly with a caseworker or elder law attorney, since these numbers are periodically updated. These protections aren't limited to nursing home Medicaid — they extend to Ohio's major home and community-based waivers too, including PASSPORT and the Assisted Living Waiver. See our explanation of Ohio Medicaid income and asset limits for the single-applicant figures these spousal rules build on.