Longtime Partners but Never Married (Part 5)
In last week’s post about Bill and Mary, I told you that we applied for a guardian to be appointed for each of them. The court approved their neighbor and friend, Nancy. Bill had sufficient assets to pay for his care for at least several years. Mary did not. By the time we were
Why Won’t the Government Cover My Care?
           It’s a comment we get frequently when someone calls our office just after getting sticker shock at the cost of their loved one’s long term care. Some get angry upon hearing that, if they have assets but no long term care insurance coverage, they’ll need to use their own
Planning Before the First Spouse Dies (Part 2)
           Last week I was telling you about Mary’s call. Her mom is in a nursing home paying $11,000 per month and her sister, Terry is in a group home. Mary doesn’t want to spend down all of Mom’s assets towards her care. She wants to be able to save
The Problem with IRAs – The Solution
           So, what is the solution to Bill’s IRA problem from last week? He has $1.2 million in IRA money and doesn’t want to risk losing it all to long term care if he gets sick. But protecting it by moving it to a trust will cause him to pay
How to Self-Insure for Long Term Care (Part 1)
           It seems that every year we receive more calls from our clients who have long term care insurance but are struggling with the decision about whether to keep it in the face of rising premiums. The story I wrote about the past two weeks is an example of someone
Second Marriage – Happily Ever After?
               George called me because his wife, Mary wasn’t doing well. She has dementia and he is facing the prospect of needing long term care for her, possibly in a nursing home, although he would like to do everything possible to keep her at home.                As the conversation always does,
Tax Fraud or Medicaid Penalty? Part 2
Last week we were discussing Joe’s problem. His brother Jim had been using Dad’s account to buy and sell Jim’s investments, presumably because having Dad pay the tax instead of Jim was more beneficial. However, what happens when Dad applies for Medicaid? Medicaid will definitely question the $500,000 in assets transferred
I’ve Been Named Agent Under Power of Attorney – Now What?
Recently, I was asked to serve as agent under Power of Attorney for husband and wife clients. We’ll call them Harry and Wilma. Both are in their 80’s and just moved to a nursing facility. As their legal representative, I will be doing the types of things that, as an
Lessons Learned from Hurricane Sandy – From an Elder Law Attorney’s Perspective
The past two weeks have been crazy times here in New Jersey. From a late season hurricane to another autumn snow storm, which now seems to be the new norm. When not in search of gas, my staff and I made some interesting observations from the calls we have received
Can’t I Transfer My Home to My Child Who is Living With Me and Still Get Medicaid? (Part 2)
Last week we were discussing Susan’s mistake of confusing Medicaid’s exempt asset rules vs. the transfer of assets rules. Mom transferred her home to Susan 4 years ago and now needs Medicaid. If she applies now there will be a Medicaid penalty, a period of ineligibility. There are, however, exceptions