click the link to watch the short video In North Carolina, the penalty period is determined at the time of application, simply looking at the amount of money that was transferred for less than fair market value. Taking that amount of money and putting it into a calculation will tell us how many months that Medicaid will not pay for the person's nursing home care. That penalty runs from the time the person is otherwise eligible which means they have to have less than $2,000 in assets and they have to need the care being applied for.