Resources
- Alzheimers and Dementia
- Caregiver Issues
- End of Life Planning
- Estate Planning
- Financial Products and Issues
- Financing Long Term Care
- Health Care Advocacy
- Medicaid
- Probate & Trust Administration
- Veterans' Benefits
No Results Found
The page you requested could not be found. Try refining your search, or use the navigation above to locate the post.
2016 Elder Law Numbers
Many numbers are pertinent to the Elder Law practice change annually. Below are the 2016 Elder Law Numbers. This year many of the numbers did not change because there was no Cost of Living Adjustment; therefore, many of the numbers below are indexed to the COLA so...
Leaving a Medicare Rehab Facility for Family Holiday Celebration
Elderly Nursing Home Residents are sometimes concerned that they will lose their Medicare benefit if they leave the facility to participate in family Christmas or Chanukah celebrations. These residents should rest assured that their benefits are not at risk because...
Diplomatically Finding Documents
In our last blog, we talked about how when families gather for the holidays, that sometimes adult children are confronted with the realization that their elder parents need help. We talked about how "diplomatically finding documents" is necessary to determine the...
Holiday Gatherings Reveal Changes in Elderly Family Members
When families gather for holiday celebrations, it sometimes becomes apparent that elderly family members are experiencing changes that need to be addressed. Adult children are often shocked by their aging parents’ situations. Look for the following warning signs:...
Medicaid Planning Misconceptions to Avoid
Whenever I meet with new clients about long term care, I find that most of them are operating under a few misconceptions. The problem is that neighbors and friends give well-meaning advice that is often based on experience in other states or simply bad information....
Personal Services Agreements
Four in ten U.S. adults are now caring for a sick or elderly family member as more people develop chronic illnesses and the population ages (Reuters). These caregiving responsibilities can take both a physical and financial toll on the family members. Spending time...
The Role of the Successor Trustee
All too often I hear stories of family members who are named successor trustee in a loved one's trust who do not seek legal advice about their role as trustee and never trigger the mechanism in the trust in order for them to take over as trustee. They instead help...
Notification Needed for Observation Status
On August 6, 2015 President Obama signed a bill that requires hospitals to notify Medicare patients if they are in the hospital under “observation status.” The bill is meant to rectify the problem that Medicare beneficiaries face when they learn that Medicare will not...
Change in Florida’s Health Care Surrogate Law
As of October 1, 2015 an Advance Directive for Healthcare can include language that would make it possible for a health care surrogate to make decisions immediately. Previously, before a health care surrogate could act, a physician had to determine that the patient...
No Results Found
The page you requested could not be found. Try refining your search, or use the navigation above to locate the post.
Pet Trusts
Have you thought about what happens to your pet when you die? Pet trusts can assure your pet's well being. Many of us have pets who add joy to our lives. But what happens to them after you are gone? Who will take care of them as well as you did? Your children may be...
The Pitfalls of Joint Accounts
Elderly parents often put their children's names on accounts because they want their children to be able to pay their bills if they can't, and so the account goes to the child upon their death. However, joint ownership is seldom the best tool for accomplishing these...
What Your Attorney Needs to Know
A client that I had not seen for several years called me the other day wanting to add a newborn grandchild to her estate planning. I told the client that I would need updated financial information in order to revise her estate planning documents. The client was...
When Chronic Illness Strikes the Blended Family
Blended families are families where one or both spouses have children by a previous marriage. Typically, parties want to provide for each other and also for their children of prior marriages. The situation becomes even more interesting when the children are...
Florida’s New Durable Power of Attorney Statute
Among the new laws which the Florida legislature passed this session were substantial changes to the Durable Power of Attorney Statute. A durable power of attorney (DPOA) is a document in which you appoint someone to legally act on your behalf. The new law takes...
Avoiding Probate
Many people believe that probate is something that should be avoided in all cases. When asked why probate should be avoided, people often express that probate will be a very expensive and time consuming process. These perceptions are not necessarily true. The efforts...
End-of-Life Planning
Dear Jill: I am 85 years old. I am married and have no children. What are my options for end-of-life care? Thank you, Margret Dear Margret: When considering end-of-life options for our clients, a number of factors must be considered. It is critical that you receive...
Topics to Discuss with your Health Care Surrogate
It is important to discuss your beliefs and wishes with your health care surrogate. When instructing your health care surrogates about your wishes in the event you become incapacitated and they need to make health care decisions, you should consider the following...
Liability of an Agent Using a Durable Power of Attorney
Last week, I began to answer a reader’s question about the liability of a person acting under the authority of a durable power of attorney. Specifically, the reader was concerned about the liability of the agent (also called the “attorney-in-fact”) when acting for an...
No Results Found
The page you requested could not be found. Try refining your search, or use the navigation above to locate the post.
Ending Exploitation
As we help seniors find, access and pay for good care, we have found many of our clients have been exploited by insurance salespeople selling inappropriate financial products to elders in the guise of “Medicaid Planning” or “VA Benefits Planning.” We have found...
Reverse Mortgage Options
As of October 4, 2010 there is new option in the area of Reverse Mortgages. Federally insured Reverse Mortgages have been offered under the name of HECM loans, for “Home Equity Conversion Mortgage.” The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and the...
Medicare Benefits–Jimmo Case
Earlier this year, chronically ill persons who had had their Medicare benefits discontinued because they were told that they were not improving filed a lawsuit in Vermont federal court Jimmo, et al vs. Sebelius, 5:11-CV-17, (D. VT., January 18, 2011). Historically,...
End-of-Life Planning
Dear Jill: I am 85 years old. I am married and have no children. What are my options for end-of-life care? Thank you, Margret Dear Margret: When considering end-of-life options for our clients, a number of factors must be considered. It is critical that you receive...
Importance of Considering All Aspects of a Client’s Situation
All aspects of a client's situation must be considered. I had a meeting with two brothers whose father was suffering from a long term chronic condition. Their mother had been his sole caregiver for about five years and she had just passed away. Her husband was...
Planning at the Time of a Dementia Diagnosis
Most patients and their family members are not entirely surprised when a diagnosis of dementia is made by a physician. The patient and the family member have probably been noticing subtle changes for some time. However, when these suspicions are confirmed by a...
End-of-Life Planning
Dear Jill: I am 85 years old. I am married and have no children. What are my options for end-of-life care? Thank you, Margret Dear Margret: When considering end-of-life options for our clients, a number of factors must be considered. It is critical that you receive...
Are You Facing Termination of Hospice Benefits?
The local Hospice providers are facing a crisis. Since the inception of Hospice in 1983 Medicare regulations have included a cap limiting the average annual payment per patient a hospice can receive. If the average payment exceeds the cap amount, the hospice provider...
Topics to Discuss with your Health Care Surrogate
It is important to discuss your beliefs and wishes with your health care surrogate. When instructing your health care surrogates about your wishes in the event you become incapacitated and they need to make health care decisions, you should consider the following...
Importance of Considering All Aspects of a Client’s Situation
All aspects of a client's situation must be considered. I had a meeting with two brothers whose father was suffering from a long term chronic condition. Their mother had been his sole caregiver for about five years and she had just passed away. Her husband was...
Respite Care
Providing care is a tremendous responsibility that family members often undertake. Family caregivers must find ways to take breaks from their caregiving responsibilities. No one can continue to expend all available energy giving to someone else, without...
Standards for a Health Care Surrogate to Make Decisions
We recommend that our clients consider who they would want to be health care surrogate for them in the event that they are not able to make health care decisions for themselves. Once they have made the decision, it is documented in an Advance Directive for Healthcare...
Do Not Resuscitate Orders
Do Not Resuscitate Orders also known as DNROs are important to consider in long term care planning. Clients often request “DNRO”s when doing estate planning. A “Do Not Resuscitate Order” in Florida must be on a Department of Health Form, (DH 1896) and must be signed...
Truth and Dementia
Families are often paralyzed when they become aware that a family member is suffering from dementia. But for a number of reasons families must help the loved one take appropriate action as soon as they become aware of the problem. First, it is critical that...
Improvement Standard an Ongoing Problem
Just today I received a call from a family member who is being told by a rehabilitation facility that his loved one will be discharged from Medicare because “she is no longer improving.” I let the man know that “not improving” is not an appropriate reason to deny...
The Importance of Obtaining the Proper Advice When Planning For Your Elderly Loved One
More and more seniors and their families are seeking the assistance of a senior professional to help guide them through the maze of long-term care planning options. In many situations in which seniors face the prospect of long-term care costs, Medicaid is a necessary...
2016 Elder Law Numbers
Many numbers are pertinent to the Elder Law practice change annually. Below are the 2016 Elder Law Numbers. This year many of the numbers did not change because there was no Cost of Living Adjustment; therefore, many of the numbers below are indexed to the COLA so...
Medicaid Planning Misconceptions to Avoid
Whenever I meet with new clients about long term care, I find that most of them are operating under a few misconceptions. The problem is that neighbors and friends give well-meaning advice that is often based on experience in other states or simply bad information....
New Rules Proposed: Arbitration in Nursing Home Contracts
The Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services has proposed a new Federal Rule which revises the requirements that Long Term Care facilities must meet to participate in the Medicare and Medicaid programs. Among the reforms is a provision relating to arbitration clauses...
Personal Services Agreements
Four in ten U.S. adults are now caring for a sick or elderly family member as more people develop chronic illnesses and the population ages (Reuters). These caregiving responsibilities can take both a physical and financial toll on the family members. Spending time...
Penalty Divisor to Increase September 1, 2015
When a person applies for Florida's Medicaid's Institutional Care Program (skilled nursing home care, Home and Community Based Waiver, and the PACE) he or she must report any amounts transferred within 60 months. Non-exempt transfers are subjected to an ineligibility...
Some Trusts Limit Asset Protection Planning
We have had the unfortunate situation with some married clients over the past year of finding that the revocable living trusts prepared in the past severely limited the possibility of asset protection planning when facing long term care. Many people have been sold...
Advocacy Requires Persistence
Our Life Care Planning service includes advocacy issues that some never contemplate when considering our services. For instance, around six months ago we were hired by a 78 year old woman who was living independently in her home. Several months later, she fell and...
No Results Found
The page you requested could not be found. Try refining your search, or use the navigation above to locate the post.
No Results Found
The page you requested could not be found. Try refining your search, or use the navigation above to locate the post.