Did you know that 90% of all calls to the VA’s Benefits Hotline fail to connect? Watch this MSNBC short video about the VA’s difficulties in helping our veterans…
Archive for the ‘Uncategorized’ Category
Applying for VA Benefits: Not An Easy Task!
Tuesday, February 1st, 2011Quick Long-Term Care Planning Calculator
Thursday, December 23rd, 2010The following link, from the U. S. Department of Health and Human Services, is a very useful tool for assessing your financial capacity to cover the cost of long-term care.
U.S. Dept of Health & Human Services Calculator
It calculates the projected cost of long-term care (using your selected state’s average costs) and compares this to your projected savings. This gives you a ballpark number of the critical gap between the cost of long term care and what you are able to fund yourself.
This is of course, a preliminary first step in planning for your long term care needs. If you have a “sizeable” financial gap, you need to explore other options available to you, BEFORE you enter into what is called a “crisis planning” mode. You need to talk to an Elder Law Attorney who specializes in Long-term Care Planning, and who also has expertise in utilizing public programs such as Medi-Cal (Medicaid) benefits, and the Veteran’s administration Aid and Attendance Program.
Here at the California Elder Law Center, we specialize in helping seniors finding money to pay for their long-term care needs. So if you live in the Palm Springs area (Coachella Valley) or in the greater Los Angeles area, don’t hesitate to call us and make an appointment to discuss you own situation. Our toll free number is (888) 500-6700.
Nursing Homes
Friday, December 17th, 2010This is a very important video about a different way of looking at housing needs of seniors…
Alzheimer’s and Money Problems
Sunday, November 21st, 2010This excellent short video is a cautionary tale about the dangers of Alzheimer’s for Seniors. The following background story about Alzheimer’s and Money Problems is from CBS News. (“Senior Moment:” As the Boomer Generation Ages, Dr. Jon LaPook Examines How Easily Warning Signs for Alzheimer’s Are Missed. by Jonathan LaPook)
“Dr. Max Gomez was a successful OB-GYN in Miami, delivering thousands of babies. He lived the good life, but admits he was bad with money. Gomez has suffered more than a few bad investments. He is now penniless, living in a care facility paid for by Medicaid.
His son is WCBS medical correspondent Dr. Max Gomez. Even with his training, he missed the warning signs of Alzheimer’s disease until three years ago — when he discovered his father had lost every dollar he’d earned.
Dr. Gomez’s father was not practicing medicine, but still had the title of medical director at a clinic. That clinic made him legally responsible for multiple commercial loans, and took out mortgages in his name.
A girlfriend wrote thousands of dollars in checks against his savings account.
The FBI started investigating after his ID was used to file millions of dollars in false Medicare claims.
“Here he was helpless and being taken advantage of left and right,” Dr. Gomez says of his father. He adds, “There’s never one big ‘ah ha’ moment.”
Patients can seem lucid. Even as, in Dr. Gomez’s case, the disease is destroying the brain. In Alzheimer’s disease, nerve cells die in key brain regions. One of the first is the hippocampus. Damage to the hippocampus, and later the frontal lobe, affect the ability to plan organize and reason – crucial for managing money.
“You can’t retain the facts because of memory, and you can’t utilize the facts efficiently,” explains Mony John de Leon, director of the NYU Center for Brain Health. “It’s very hard – as people become deteriorated – to manage finances.”
The financial services industry realizes brokers and bankers may see aging clients more often than out-of-town families do. They’re training representatives to report warning signs including confusion, mood swings, and losing things. Susan Axelrod of the Financial Industry Regulator Authority adds, “Also importantly, changing a long term investment strategy suddenly.”
Fight for Your Right to Choose Life-Sustaining Treatments!
Tuesday, August 24th, 2010
Long-term health care planning is a dodgy process in that you must stand firm about how you expect to be cared for in the event of your incapacitation or inability to make critical medical decisions. This process helps people think about the kind of care they wish to receive should you need a spouse, loved one or friend to make these life and death decisions for you. In California, a Power of Attorney for Health Care, also referred to as PACH, is the legal document that allows patients to choose who will speak for them should they become unable to speak for themselves.
Sadly, a health care provider who confronts an emergency situation may lack the time and opportunity to communicate with a terminally ill patient’s chosen representative. For this reason, California law permits treating physicians to confer with their patients to define acceptable types of life-sustaining treatment should a medical decision involving issues of life support arise.
The Physician Orders for Life-Sustaining Treatment, or POLST, converts the patient’s wishes regarding life support into a formal medical order. To make sure that the order has full force and effect the POLST must:
- Be completed by a health care provider based on the patient’s preferences and medical indications
- Be signed by the treating physician and either the patient or the patient’s legally recognized health care decision maker
- Be prepared on a brightly colored pink form that is easily recognized by emergency care providers and hospital staff
- Be filed on the first page of the patient’s medical file and transferred with that file to all future health care providers.
Doctors are required by law to honor the preferences of those patients who have chosen to use this legal document as a guideline that defines appropriate future care. However, the POLST may be changed or even revoked by the physician, patient, or patient’s health care decision maker at any time should the circumstances warrant it.
Do you feel prepared for this type of emergency medical decision-making? If not, contact a qualified Elder Law attorney who can walk you through the process of preparing for this type of situation and avoiding medical mistakes that may mean the difference between life and death.
Conservatorship Basics
Tuesday, August 10th, 2010If your spouse of other loved one becomes incapacitated without having a proper power of attorney prepared for health care (PAHC) or a durable power of attorney for financial matters (DPAFM), a conservatorship may be needed. In a conservatorship, the court appoints a conservator to take charge of the incapacitated person’s (the conservatee) personal needs, financial matters or both.
In a conservatorship, the court determines that the conservatee does not have the sufficient capacity to care for their own personal needs or make decisions. In a conservatorship of the estate, the court determines that the conservatee does not have the legal capacity to enter into transactions involving financial matters.
How to Establish a Conservatorship
To create a new conservatorship, you need a court proceeding to determine whether the person in question is indeed considered incapacitated according to the law. The judge tries to put the best interests of the conservatee first so he/she will carefully consider the best person to be put in this position in this order:
- First choice is always the spouse, domestic partner, or other nominee
- Second- an adult child or the child’s nominee
- Third- a sibling or sibling’s nominee
- Last- any other eligible person or entity (appointed attorney would work here)
The Conservator’s Responsibilities
The conservator’s primary role is to ensure that the conservatee’s needs are met. The duties include: making decisions about their living arrangements and daily care like planning for the conservatee’s meals, clothing and health care.
A conservator of the estate handles the financial matters which include:
- Filing an Inventory and Appraisal document with the court; this document lists all the assets owned by the conservatee and the value of each on the date the conservator was appointed.
- Paying the conservatee’s bills and expenses
- Making appropriate investments on their behalf
- Applying for entitlement benefits
- Keeping financial records and filing periodic accountings with the court
All conservators are required to have a copy of the Judicial Counsel of California’s Handbook for Conservator that can be viewed online at courtinfo.ca.gov/selfhelp, under the “Seniors” heading.
Unlike an Agent under a PAHC or DPAFM, a conservator must submit to the court:
- Formal written documents informing the court of address changes for all relevant persons.
- Regular accountings that explain how the conservatee’s finances were handled.
- Intentions to sell, abandon or give away any of the conservatee’s personal or real property.
- Any other matters that the court orders the conservator to report on.
Unlike a PAHC or DPAFM Agent, the conservator may not resign without first obtaining the court’s permission. If you are in this situation or would like to plan ahead in case the instance of incapacitation happens to your family, contact one of our attorneys today for a free consultation. Being prepared is the best way to avoid this confusing situation.
What Does Medi-Cal Cover Anyway?
Wednesday, August 4th, 2010California’s medical assistance program, otherwise known as Medi-Cal, pays for “medically necessary” health care such as:
- Physician visits
- X-ray and laboratory tests
- Hospital and nursing-home care
- Adult day health services
- Home health care
- Certain prescription drugs excluded as a Medicare Part D benefit
- Prosthetic and orthopedic devices*
- Hearing aids*
- Medical equipment
- Ambulance services
- Hospice care
But there are several caveats to this coverage. First, Medi-Cal will only cover these costs and services if you use previously accepted Medi-Cal providers. And, if you qualify for full Medi-Cal benefits or have Medi-Cal with a share of cost (SOC) under $500, Medi-Cal will also cover your Medicare Part A and B deductibles and copayments, and pay your monthly Medicare Part B premium ($110.50 in 2010).
Share of cost (SOC)- “Share of cost is a term that refers to the amount of health care expenses a recipient must accumulate each month before Medi-Cal begins to offer assistance. Once a recipient’s health care expenses reach a predetermined amount, Medi-Cal will pay for any additional covered expenses for that month. Share of cost is an amount that is owed to the provider of health care services, not to the state.”
You can use Medi-Cal with either:
- Original Medicare
- Medicare Advantage (MA) plan
If you choose Original Medicare and fee-for-service Medi-Cal, make sure your doctor or hospital accepts Medi-Cal as well as Medicare. You must show both your Medicare card and your Medi-Cal Benefits Identification Card (BIC) to your doctor and other providers before receiving services, so they can bill Medicare and Medi-Cal directly. Medicare and Medi-Cal will make payments directly to the providers. Most dually eligible beneficiaries choose this option.
If you choose a Medicare Advantage (MA) plan and fee-for-service Medi-Cal, present your BIC to the network providers of the MA plan so they can bill Medi-Cal for any cost-sharing (i.e., deductibles, copayments and coinsurance).
For services covered only by Medi-Cal, such as long-term care in a nursing home, Medi-Cal is solely responsible. Medi-Cal may also pay for certain in-home services through In-Home Supportive Services (IHSS) when you need long-term care.
The bottom line is, yes Medi-Cal is confusing, time consuming and sometimes difficult to qualify for. The attorneys at the California Elder Law Center know these regulations inside and out and have decades of experience helping individuals just like you qualify for and receive all the benefits they need. Call 800-500-6700 for a free Medi-Cal benefits consultation with one of our expert attorneys. You can keep your home and other assets while also receiving excellent care.
Asset Protection during Long Term Care
Tuesday, July 27th, 2010
For the average aging individual or married couple, nursing home costs and the expense of long-term care are a huge shock and can wipe out their entire life savings within just months. In fact, many people are completely not aware that Medi-Cal and private supplement insurance does not cover the cost of long term care. Furthermore, in limited circumstances Medi-Cal will cover 100% of just the first 20 days and then part of the next 80 days. But after 100 days, Medi-Cal won’t cover anything and usually a private supplement policy won’t either. In reality you only get a few weeks of coverage between both. Scary thought right?
Over 40% of people getting close to 65 will need to spend time in a nursing home at some point. And the average monthly cost is steadily rising and is around $6k/month now.
So what are your options when faced with the potential of a long term care crisis?
One. Pay the costs out of private funds. This option is great if you’re independently wealthy or have wealthy family to help you out, if not, this is just not going to work.
Two. Purchase long term health care insurance. Purchasing long term care health insurance is becoming more popular as people realize the debilitating costs of full-service long-term care. So if you can afford it, make sure you use a reputable company and buy at least 5 years of in-home, assisted living and nursing home coverage at a minimum of $150 per day with the cost of living rider.
Three. Apply for and qualify for public benefits including Veterans and Medi-Cal benefits. Medi-Cal will pay for minimal in-home care and assisted living and can also be very complicated and stressful to apply for. Here’s why. There are certain assets that are counted against you when applying for Medi-Cal so having an attorney review your assets and decide how to treat them will help your chances of keeping your hard-earned possessions as well as qualify for the benefits you need now. These items may include your home, car, whole life insurance, household furnishings, cash at hand, bonds, savings, stocks, retirement accounts, etc. Some of these items may need to be transferred to someone else or used up in order to qualify for your benefits.
But the rules have changed! Congress passed legislation that majorly affects Medi-Cal Nursing Home benefits. This new law imposes new restrictions on the ability of the elderly to transfer their assets before qualifying for coverage.
Some of the Provisions Include:
- The look back period is extended from 3 to 5 years.
- The value of a house that can be exempt is $500,000.
- Annuities and many other planning tools will be eliminated.
- Monthly gifts are severely curtailed.
We strongly encourage adult child caretakers and seniors to readjust your long-term care planning or start planning now. Pre-planning is more critical than ever to maximize the possibility of saving your family’s assets and getting the senior the quality long-term care coverage they will likely need. Contact us today for a free consultation with one of our skilled Elder Law attorneys. Call 562-627-9600
Another Case of Buyer Beware: LegalZoom.com Gets Sued
Tuesday, July 20th, 2010
We’ve blogged about this in the past but with the resurgence of website’s posting free or very cheap legal advice and document preparation we wanted to reiterate the dangers of letting a company that doesn’t know you and hasn’t even consulted with you prepare your will, powers of attorney or other life and death documents. These are the measures that dictate the handling of your care in case of a major medical emergency, how your financial matters will be handled and who your assets will go to. These are not things to take lightly or just let a website’s “quick quiz” handle. We understand that this seems to be the simple, easy and cheap way to handle the preparation of these documents but it’s been proven time and again to be riskier than you might think.
The truth is, creating these documents is often left to the last minute and is rarely considered in advance when you have time to think clearly through the process. Most people don’t even realize they need a will and powers of attorney. Reasons given might include: cost, difficulty in finding time to see an attorney, reluctance to contact an attorney, or difficulty in finding an attorney whom they feel will help them.
The result of this lack of consideration: contacting online services such as LegalZoom.com, or buying programs that allow you to create your own documents. While these may seem fast and easy, this is the perfect “buyer beware” scenario just waiting to backfire on you.
In fact, trying to save money with “do-it-yourself” legal documents can have very expensive consequences. LegalZoom.com, for example, is the target of a class action lawsuit in California, as reported in Elder Law Answers recently.
The article as reported goes like this. “A man with only a few months to live asked his niece to help him execute a will and living trust using LegalZoom. The niece believed the advertising on the website that the documents would be legally binding. Furthermore, it was represented that if there was any trouble with the documents, the customer service department would help resolve them.
In actuality, the financial institutions that held the man’s money refused to transfer any money into the trust because they maintained that the documents were not legally valid. The customer service department apparently provided no assistance. After the man’s death, it cost thousands of dollars to rectify the damage caused by reliance on the LegalZoom documents.” Not exactly the scenario you want to have happen to you, right?
And, you still pay for the preparation of the LegalZoom documents. Furthermore, the fine print on the website states that “LegalZoom is not a law firm, does not act as your attorney and is not a substitute for the advice of an attorney. Rather, it helps you represent yourself…” Wow! So why are they taking on the responsibility of preparing your legal documents? They don’t even have a real attorney on staff!
Basically, any documents developed are based on a short questionnaire, which may not ask the appropriate questions for your circumstances. Furthermore, any documents developed online, or from a purchased program will not be state specific, which can be an issue for power of attorney documents and wills. You, your executor or agents may find the documents inadequate or invalid when it is too late to rectify the damage.
Another area where failing to consult an attorney can have unexpected and expensive results is in the preparation of your living trust or revocable trust. All too often, non-attorneys are marketing these documents, using standard forms that are “customized” for the client. Remember that your situation is different and should be addressed specifically so that your documents reflect your entire set of circumstances, are legally binding and professionally prepared and filed.
Get real, professional legal advice with a free consultation with one of our attorneys.
Call 888-500-6700 or email info@calelderlaw.com
VA Changed the Rules: What you need to know to get your benefits now.
Tuesday, July 13th, 2010
A huge change recently occurred in how things are now being processed by the VA. Now they no longer withhold monies on approved claims that require a Fiduciary be appointed. In the past, no money was being released until the Fiduciary process was completed. This left families with approved claims but no access to the much needed monthly income from the pension to help pay for care. This is singularly one of the best things the VA could have possibly done to truly assist veterans and their families. The Fiduciary process is still in place on those claims where the applicant has been declared incompetent to manage their own affairs. Due to the limited number of VA Field Agents, these appointments can take months to schedule, but this change in policy will make the wait a little easier to tolerate.
Below are some additional rules you may not know that can help you or your spouse more easily qualify for and/or continue receiving your veteran’s benefits.
The New Legislative Rule
Currently, if you can prove that you medically and financially should have received an award up to 12 months before you filed, the VA may (might, maybe, could) give you the award for the 12 prior months. The letters veterans receive on your benefits eligibility started changing a few months ago, so read all the correspondence relating to your approval application carefully. You would need a physician’s evaluation that states as of ABC month, the applicant needed XYZ help. If you do qualify for the additional back payments this is definitely worth exploring!
What happens if you are a veteran with a sick spouse?
This question comes up all the time in our practice. While the veteran has to qualify for a spouse to benefit (unless they are widowed), what many do not realize is that if the medical costs of the spouse depletes their combined monthly income, the veteran is entitled to file as a “veteran with a sick spouse” and would be eligible for $1290 a month. That extra cash could be just enough to fill the gap and keep you afloat. This is a common gap that many couples do not even know they could qualify for.
Providing Care at Home
Let’s say you are the veteran (or surviving spouse) and you are being cared for in a home by a family member or other non-licensed healthcare individual, you are required to call the primary doctor or nurse and give monthly updates as to how the veteran or widow is doing. This is really just you checking in but it is a crucial step for deducting the caregiver’s cost. Again this is if the care is being provided by a non-licensed healthcare individual. Many people are unaware of this requirement, and if you have not done this in the past, you need to start doing this to ensure there are no issues when the yearly EVR (Eligibility Verification Report) comes due.
Contact our Veterans Benefits Specialist Sean McGuire today to learn more about getting all the VA benefits you are owed. Call (562) 920-6100 to find out more today.
