This past Tuesday, December 13th, the Cures Act, containing the SPECIAL NEEDS TRUST FAIRNESS ACT, was signed by President Obama and passed into law; this marks an enormous milestone for individuals with disabilities! The passage of this legislation establishes liberties for persons with disabilities which had been previously denied to them.
Many years ago, there were certain restrictions for home care. It used to be that, in a home care setting, if somebody wanted to hire help outside of an agency to care for mom and dad, that hired person could not be a family member.
Caregivers often ask, “I stopped working because I need to take care of my mom; can I get paid for this?” The answer, traditionally, has been, “No.”
A frequent question I get from clients who are considering putting their house into a Medicaid Asset Protection Trust is,“If my house is in the trust, can I sell it if I so choose in the future?”
The Department of Health, overseer of the Medicaid program in New York, recently issued GIS 16 MA/010 updating the actuarial life expectancy table.
“So what,” you say?
The Supplemental Security Income program, known as SSI, is a federally administered program.
Unlike Medicare or Medicaid, SSI is a federal welfare program that pays monthly cash benefits to individuals who fall within 1 of 3 categories:
For many, the biggest asset associated with one's name is their home. Should a catastrophic illness occur and immediate care is required, many would not willingly choose to use their home to pay for this care. Join us at one of our…
For most seniors, obtaining Medicaid to pay for nursing home care is a must. Very few people can afford to pay privately for extended long-term care, which is not covered by Medicare.
The nursing home may provide you with a list of attorneys to assist with the filing of a Medicaid application. It is suggested that you obtain three attorney references in writing.
A key question for the family to ask is: Do any of the attorneys on the list currently represent the nursing home?
Commencing January 1, 2016, there are new Medicaid amounts reflecting medicaid eligibility. This is the third of a four-part series of updates for 2016. Click here to read part one or part two. 2016 Asset and Income Allowances One Person Two People…
The truth is, nursing homes are full of people who did not want to be there and whose families thought they never would.
As an elder law attorney, I often hear: “My mother will never end up in a nursing home,” or “I would never put my dad in a nursing home.”
It is all nice in theory. No one (myself included) wants to see their parents in a nursing home but, in most cases, the reasoning behind the decision is either financially driven or care-driven.
On Wednesday, September 9, The Special Needs Trust Act was passed! The passage of this legislation establishes liberties for persons with disabilities which had been previously denied to them.
Prior to passing the Act, only a parent, grandparent, legal guardian of the disabled individual, or a court could establish a special needs trust on behalf of the disabled individual.