Archive for March, 2010

Plan Ahead: Learn the Tricks to Choose the Right Nursing Home

Tuesday, March 30th, 2010

One of the toughest choices you may ever make will be whether or not to put a loved one who needs constant care into a nursing home facility. It’s an emotionally draining, scary and often traumatic experience- just ask anyone who has had to do it. Selecting the right nursing home for your family member requires research, a lot of question asking and patience. Don’t be afraid to ask the tough questions. Don’t be afraid to shop around. And if anything makes you feel uneasy- move on!

Rule #1 for nursing home hunting is to do it before you actually need one. Do it now when your loved one can give their input; when you are all feeling cool, calm and collected. When you wait until your loved one is under duress, seriously ill or otherwise it’s not the best time to remember to ask all your questions and get the valuable answers you need to feel secure in your decision.

The cost of nursing home care is another source of stress for most families. Learn ahead of time what Medicare or private insurance covers and what the gaps might be so you can have your loved-ones estate plan setup to handle the costs. You should also realize that Medicare does not pay for what’s called “custodial care”, that includes: help with walking, eating, bathing and other daily activities. The average cost of nursing home care is $200-$300/day. And that doesn’t include whatever additional fees you may face in situations of Alzheimer’s of dementia when additional specialty staff and care is required.

Do your research! The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services collect valuable data on over 15,000 nursing homes cross-country. The data includes health inspection, staffing and a measure of the quality of care all combined to score each facility with an overall ranking from one to five stars. Additionally, the site offers a nursing home compare tool as well as a brochure titled “Medicare’s Guide to choosing a Nursing Home” for each facility.

Visit the home often, and at different times. Similar to when you are house hunting and want to check out the neighborhood different days of the week and times of the day- choosing a nursing home is the same way. Pop in to see if the experience feels different. Pay attention to patients looking for help, bad smells, or anything else that feels neglectful or just not right.

And take the checklist from the nursing home compare website with you so after you’ve toured each facility you can sit down as a family and discuss your findings together; carefully weighing the pros and cons of each facility. Also, bring your own list of questions along. Some questions to ask include: Do you engage in “person-centered care” as well as “consistent assignment” care? Ask what the daily schedule is, visiting hours, security of the building, activities or classes offered, and eat the food while you’re there. All of these things should weigh into your final decision.

If you are looking for help in California, try the California Elder Law Center. For access to a free clinic to learn more, we offer them every Wed at 2pm or for additional information please call (888-500-6700).

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2 Million Californians Left Without Health Insurance Post-Recession

Monday, March 22nd, 2010

If you thought that the record high job losses were the worst end result of this recession for Californians you will be shocked after reading this new article from the UCLA Center for Health Policy Research. Luckily, the U.S. House voted 219-212, approving the Senate’s health bill which can now be signed into law by President Obama. Soon after passage, the House narrowly approved a reconciliation bill that included changes to the Senate bill. No Republicans voted for either measure, roughly 33 Democrats voted against both packages. It remains to be seen how this new bill will trickle down to effect the Californians now without health care coverage… I guess we just wait and see.

“Nearly 2 million Californians lost their health insurance during 2008 and 2009 – years characterized by a deep recession and mass layoffs – bringing the total number of uninsured in the state to more than 8 million, according to new estimates from the UCLA Center for Health Policy Research.

The number represents a 25 percent increase in the number of uninsured since 2007, when 6.4 million Californians lacked insurance, according to the authors of the new policy brief, Number of Uninsured Jumped to More Than Eight Million from 2007 to 2009. Today, nearly one-quarter of all adult Californians lack health insurance.

“These estimates help us understand the scale of the damage inflicted on California over the last two years,” said Shana Alex Lavarreda, the center’s director of health insurance studies and a co-author of the study.

The estimates are based on 2009 enrollee data from health insurance companies and the public health insurance programs offered by the state of California. Those counts were then used to update 2007 California Health Interview Survey health insurance rates, adjusting for 2009 population growth and changes in insurance status.

Researchers found that the number of uninsured likely increased among all age groups, even among children, despite their access to public health insurance safety-net programs.

The hardest hit, however, were California’s working adults. From 2007 to 2009, the proportion of unemployed in California’s workforce jumped from 5.4 percent to 12.3 percent. That increase contributed to the rapid rise in the number of uninsured adults, from 5.3 million to an estimated 6.8 million between 2007 and 2009 – a jump of nearly 6 percentage points.

The harsh economic conditions of 2008 and 2009 reduced the rate of job-based coverage to less than 50 percent for all non-elderly (under 65) Californians, according to adjusted estimates.

Although public coverage among Californians increased from 15 percent in 2007 to an adjusted estimate of 16 percent in 2009, this surge did not offset the decline in employment-based insurance.

“The number of Californians who lost their insurance simply because they lost their job is the clearest indicator yet that our current system of health insurance is broken and that urgent change is needed,” said Dr. Robert K. Ross, M.D., president and CEO of the California Endowment, which, along with The California Wellness Foundation, funded the study.

Recent rate increases for individual health insurance policies offered by private health insurers leave the newly unemployed with hard choices.

“Do they pay their rent or buy an individual policy?” asked Gary Yates, CEO of the California Wellness Foundation. “Few out of work Californians can afford to do both. As a result, many unemployed Californians may go without essential health coverage, increasing the health risk to themselves and their families and the costs of our emergency care system.”

Read the Original Brief

Q & A

Thanks to the UCLA Center for Health Policy Research for sharing this important article with us.

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New Survey!

Thursday, March 18th, 2010

Help us help you! Please tell us which topics you would like us to cover more. Our intention for this site is to continually provide the information the community needs, so your feedback on this is greatly appreciated. Please comment back with just the numbers of the topics you are interested in or suggestions for other topics not listed here.

Topics:

  1. VA Benefits/Law
  2. Elder Law Resources
  3. Elder Care/Community Resources
  4. Legal Lingo/California Legal Tips
  5. Medi Cal
  6. Will, Trusts & End of Life Planning

Thanks! We are looking forward to your continued positive feedback & suggestions.

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Avoiding Probate in California

Tuesday, March 16th, 2010

After you pass away, your assets will likely route through one of these four channels: Probate, Spousal Property, Probate Avoiders and Small Estates. One of the most challenging routes your assets may go through is Probate, which is a court proceeding to pass the deceased estate and property to their heirs. Let’s begin by defining the terms involved.

Executor: This applies to the person approved by the judge to sort out the Probate Estate, deal with debts, and distribute assets under court supervision.

Community Property: In general, this refers to any accumulated assets by a married person during the marriage while living in California.

Intestate: A person who dies without a valid will is called “intestate.” Meaning, the person has failed to name who will receive their assets.

Probate Estate: This refers to all assets held in the name of a deceased person on the date of death that do not have a Probate Avoider in place.

Probate Avoider: An arrangement created by a person during his or her lifetime that removes an asset from his or her Probate Estate.

Separate Property: These are assets owned before the marriage or inherited during the marriage.

Trustee: The person named in a trust document to be placed in charge of trust assets and their distribution.

Now that we have the basics defined, here are the arguments involved in many common probate debates. Arguments in favor include:

  • Can be a way to sort out planning document ambiguities and defects to resolve conflicts
  • Can provide valuable court supervision
  • Can provide an expedited way to deal with creditors

Arguments made against using probate:

  • Can be more time consuming than other approaches
  • Can be less private
  • Can be more costly

The cost of probate is often the biggest point of conflict in these circumstances. As a general rule based on California statutes; the larger the Probate Estate (based on gross value), the smaller the fee as a percentage of the Probate Estate that will be doled out to the attorney handling the case. California law provides for relatively straight forward passing of community property to the surviving spouse- normally without court proceedings. But for separate property going to a surviving spouse, an expedited, lower-cost court proceeding called a “spousal property petition” is available.

By acting during your lifetime, you can create Probate Avoiders by completing the necessary paperwork to name one or more beneficiaries that will receive assets after your death. Remember to keep the beneficiary naming up to date and include life insurance, IRAs, 401(K)s and annuities in mind when doing this. Your family will thank you for having the foresight to plan ahead and give them direction after your passing.

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Understanding ‘Powers of Attorney’ Could Make All the Difference

Wednesday, March 10th, 2010

Along with understanding your end of life plan, estate plan, trust and action items regarding burial, transfer of assets and closure of financial accounts- establishing the powers of attorney involved in all this planning is the critical step that should not be overlooked. In the event of family catastrophe, when decisions must be made and executed quickly, sometimes that responsibility must fall to a trusted attorney. That is why understanding the various types of powers of attorney and implementing them properly into your will and estate plan is vital to its ultimate success or failure.

Powers of Attorney Lingo Explained:

• A “general” power of attorney is one that is written to be very broad, with the intention of giving the agent the widest possible range of actions which he can handle for the principal.

• A “limited” power of attorney is one that is specific and narrow, with the intention of giving the agent a limited set of actions which he can handle for the principal.

• A “durable” power of attorney can be either general or limited. Durability does not address the range of actions which can be taken; it addresses when the actions can be taken. When a power of attorney is durable, the agent may act for the principal before and after the principal becomes incapacitated. When a power of attorney is not durable, the agent may act for the principal only before the onset of incapacity.

• A “springing” power of attorney can also be either general or limited. A springing power of attorney is always durable, because it is effective only after the principal becomes incapacitated. The agent may act only after the principal is incapacitated. If the principal remains capable of acting for himself, the agent has no authority to act.

Have questions? Speak with one of our expert elder law attorney’s today, 562-627-9600.

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2010-The Year Without an Estate Tax

Tuesday, March 2nd, 2010

What does it all mean?

For the first time in 95 years, there is no federal estate tax, even for the wealthiest individuals. However, it’s not time to celebrate yet. We’ll return to our familiar tax system in 2011, but at a higher rate with a much lower exemption, if Congress doesn’t act.

As Americans now face a year without estate taxes, it’s important to know the possible impact on family and loved ones. The first step: review your plan. It’s a critical time to review documents with an attorney and ask hard questions. For example:

If you die at a time when the estate tax is not in effect, will all your assets still go the way you had intended? The language in a will or trust that was clear when the estate tax was in place could skew the results in a crazy year like 2010.

Is my estate arrangement still valid? Because most married couples’ basic estate tax plan is a revocable trust, which is a trust that can be changed at any time. The trust is divided when one spouse dies, known as an “A-B” arrangement, with part becoming irrevocable, meaning it’s unable to be changed after agreements are signed. This is good estate tax planning.

However, what clients may not know is that the irrevocable “B” trust may be made flexible for the survivor while still complying with the tax law. If someone has this arrangement or is considering it, both spouses should clearly understand how it works and what type of flexibility the survivor would have, so the trust document states what the couple wants it to state.

Non-estate Tax Reasons for Planning

With all the uncertainty in the law, the least likely outcome is permanent estate tax repeal. However, it’s critical to realize that even if there were no estate tax, there are even more important reasons for having a valid and effective plan in place.

• To avoid family conflict and ensure your wishes are carried out, with respect to who receives assets and which individuals are in charge of making decisions.

• To protect beneficiaries who are too young, irresponsible or who have special needs by placing their inheritance in an appropriate trust. This will protect them from themselves or outside forces and keep them qualified for necessary governmental benefits.

• To provide protection if you use continuing trusts, even for mature and responsible beneficiaries. Arizona law can keep an inheritance secure from spouses in the event of divorce, from creditors in the event of a lawsuit and from estate taxes.

It’s hard to predict what the rest of 2010 will have in store. With planning and guidance from your attorney, an estate plan can stay intact and perform the way it was originally intended.

Original Story by Craig Wisnom, Special to “The Explorer” Published: February-24-2010

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