What Is a Certified Medicaid Planner (CMP)?

Long-Term Care Medicaid is one of the most complicated benefit programs in the country. Families often face it in a crisis, when a parent or spouse suddenly needs nursing home care. Many look for professional help, and many find that almost anyone can call themselves a “Medicaid planner.” The Certified Medicaid Planner™ (CMP™) credential gives families a way to tell whether a planner has met a published standard of knowledge and ethics. This guide explains what the credential is, how to check it, what a CMP can and cannot do, and how a CMP works alongside an elder law attorney.

Figures change periodically. Double-check current amounts before relying on them.

What a CMP is

A Certified Medicaid Planner is a professional in the Medicaid planning field who has been certified by the CMP™ Governing Board. The board describes a CMP’s focus as planning for Medicaid eligibility for long-term care: nursing home care, assisted living care, and home and community-based services.

The CMP Governing Board was set up in 2010 as an independent body to run the CMP program. It has six members serving three-year terms. Five come from the Medicaid planning field and one represents the public served by Medicaid planners.

CMPs come from many backgrounds. The board lists, among others:

• Medicaid planning and elder law attorneys;
• nursing home staff, administrators and social workers;
• geriatric care managers;
• financial advisors, including insurance agents and certified financial planners;
• former Medicaid caseworkers and specialists;
• certified public accountants;
• funeral home directors.

What they share is the same certification standard and the same code of ethics.

Important: CMP is a private professional credential, not a government license. No state or federal agency issues it. It does not replace a law license, and it does not let anyone do work that only licensed professionals may do.

Why the credential matters

Anyone can offer “Medicaid help.” There is no general government license for Medicaid planners, and quality varies widely. A credential gives families a starting point. To become a CMP, a person must:

• meet education and experience requirements;
• pass a proctored certification exam on Medicaid planning;
• agree to follow the CMP Ethical Principles;
• accept discipline by the CMP Governing Board, including possible loss of the credential;
• complete continuing education and recertify every three years.

For families, this means a CMP has shown a tested level of knowledge, is expected to keep up with rule changes, and can be held to account through a grievance process. Because Long-Term Care Medicaid rules are complex and mistakes are costly (see Why working with an experienced Medicaid planner matters), choosing a Certified Medicaid Planner is a sensible way to look for experienced help.

The requirements in more detail

Education

The board accepts four pathways to meet its education requirement:

1. An advanced degree: a law degree (JD), or a master’s degree in accounting, health financing or social work.
2. A bachelor’s or associate degree plus two years of full-time experience in a Medicaid planning field within the past six years.
3. A professional license or designation, such as a life and health insurance license, a securities license or the Certified Financial Planner® designation, plus two years of full-time experience in the field within the past six years.
4. Four years of full-time experience in a Medicaid planning field within the past six years.

Experience

Every candidate must also have worked full-time for at least two years within the six years before certification in a related field. Examples include Medicaid program administration (such as a caseworker or supervisor), law (such as a lawyer or paralegal), and finance (such as a financial advisor or insurance agent). Part-time workers need at least four years of part-time experience in the last six years.

The exam

The CMP exam has 160 multiple-choice questions. It is closed-book, given by a professional proctor at an approved testing center, with a three-hour limit. A passing score is 65 percent (104 correct answers).

Ethics and discipline

Every CMP agrees to follow the CMP Ethical Principles, a code of professional conduct for planners from all backgrounds. Anyone can file a grievance about an ethical violation. The board investigates, gives the CMP a chance to respond, and can refer the matter to its Ethics Council for a hearing. The Governing Board decides final discipline, which can include sanctions or decertification.

Continuing education and renewal

To keep the credential, a CMP must:

• pay an annual certification fee;
• recertify every three years;
• complete 20 hours of continuing education in each three-year period, including 2 hours of ethics and at least 2 hours in each of four areas: Medicaid laws and procedures; trusts; annuities and life insurance; and Medicaid advocacy (fair hearings, appeals and courts).

How to check whether someone is a CMP

Before you hire anyone who says they are a Certified Medicaid Planner, ask the planner for proof of current certification. You can also check with the CMP Governing Board, the organization that grants the credential. It will tell you whether a planner is currently certified.

It is also reasonable to ask the planner:

• when they were first certified;
• whether their certification is current;
• what their professional background is (attorney, social worker, financial professional and so on).

What a CMP may and may not do

According to the CMP Governing Board, a CMP can help a family:

• understand how Long-Term Care Medicaid rules apply to their situation;
• design and carry out an eligibility strategy, often coordinating the other professionals involved;
• prepare, file and follow through on the Medicaid application;
• assist with fair hearings.

There are limits, and they depend on the CMP’s own profession and on state law:

• A CMP who is not an attorney may not give legal advice or draft legal documents such as trusts, deeds, powers of attorney or wills. The board states that holding the CMP credential does not give anyone permission to do work reserved for licensed professionals in another field.
• Some states restrict non-attorneys further. The board’s position on the unauthorized practice of law notes that advisory opinions in Florida, New Jersey and Ohio treat much Medicaid planning advice as legal advice, and that non-attorney CMPs should not give Medicaid planning advice in those states. It also notes that Texas prohibits non-attorneys from charging fees for help with the Medicaid eligibility process.
• The board discourages non-attorneys from charging for planning advice and encourages non-attorney CMPs in every state to work with a CMP who is licensed to practice law.
• A CMP who is also licensed in another field (for example, an attorney or a financial professional) can do what that license allows, under that profession’s own rules.

Federal law allows non-attorneys to help people fill out Medicaid applications.

CMP vs. elder law attorney

Some elder law attorneys are themselves Certified Medicaid Planners. That combination brings both a law license and the CMP credential’s specific focus on Medicaid.

When both work together

In many cases the best result comes from a team. The board describes a CMP as often acting as the “quarterback,” coordinating the professionals involved. A non-attorney CMP might:

• review the family’s finances and the look-back records;
• map out an eligibility plan and the timing of the application;
• handle the application, verification requests and follow-up.

An attorney then handles the parts that require a law license, such as:

• drafting a Qualified Income (Miller) Trust or other trust;
• preparing deeds or powers of attorney;
• giving legal advice in states that treat Medicaid planning advice as legal advice;
• representing the family at a contested fair hearing.

When interviewing a non-attorney CMP, ask which attorneys they work with for legal documents and advice, and how that work is billed.

Questions to ask a Certified Medicaid Planner

• Is your CMP certification current, and when were you first certified?
• What is your professional background, and are you also licensed as an attorney or in another field?
• How much experience do you have with Long-Term Care Medicaid in our state?
• What exactly is included in your service, and what is not?
• Who drafts any legal documents we may need, and who gives legal advice?
• Who handles verification requests, denials and fair hearings?
• How is your fee set, what will the total likely be, and will you put it in writing?

Red flags: anyone who guarantees approval, pressures you to sign or pay right away, suggests hiding assets or leaving things off the application, claims a credential they cannot show, or (if not an attorney) offers to draft trusts or deeds.

What CMP help typically costs

Professional Medicaid help is not free. Published fee surveys and price lists show a wide range:

Fees vary by state, by the type of professional and by how complex the situation is. Gifts in the look-back, a spouse at home, a home or business, trusts or a denial tend to push the cost higher. Ask about cost up front and get the agreement in writing.

When a CMP can help most

A Certified Medicaid Planner is especially worth considering when:

• the applicant is married and the spouse at home’s assets and income need protecting;
• there were gifts or transfers in the last five years;
• the family owns a home or business;
• income is over the state’s cap;
• trusts or annuities are involved;
• an application has been denied or a fair hearing is needed.

Free help is also available for paperwork from the state Medicaid agency, the nursing home’s business office and the State Health Insurance Assistance Program (SHIP). These can explain forms and the process, but they generally do not give planning strategy.

Related guides

• How to apply for Long-Term Care Medicaid
• Look-Back and Gifts
• Married Couples and Long-Term Care Medicaid
• Questions to ask before paying anyone for help
• State guides

Last updated for 2026. General information only, not legal or financial advice. Medicaid Answers is a free educational resource published by Medicaid Answers Foundation.