This is another installment in our series on Medi-Cal planning. In this blog post we discuss common eligibility problems and a few of the tools we can use to solve them. Once we have analyzed our client’s situation and see why they are ineligible, either because they have too much income, too much assets, or both, we can create a…
In this continuing series of posts we will focus on Medi-Cal for our over-65 clients who need assistance with long-term care. Here, we continue our discussion of the issues we discuss in our first appointment with our clients. What About Veteran’s Benefits? One preliminary question we ask our clients has to do with their prior military service. In some cases,…
In this series of posts we will focus on Medi-Cal for our over-65 clients who need assistance with long-term care. We will take you through the laws and what we do for our clients, from the initial meeting until we receive that eligibility letter, to help them qualify, apply for and receive Medi-Cal, for long-term care. The Initial Appointment –…
According to new federal data, gathered by Medicare from daily payroll records from more than 14,000 nursing homes in the United States, nursing homes have been under-reporting to the government their nurse and caretaker staffing levels for years. For families with loved ones dependent on nursing home care, this is likely not a surprise. There are nearly 1.4 million people…
All attorneys will agree with me that if there’s one thing we wish our clients would do it would be to talk to us before they act. It’s much better for the client, and less expensive in the long run, to have your attorney review that lease or contract before you sign it than to be surprised later. We find…
Laura was worried about her 80-year-old mother. “She gets around well enough, but sometimes she needs help with household tasks, such as cleaning, grocery shopping, and laundry,” she told her friend, Debra. “And she claims she can’t afford to hire someone to help. But neither can I. And if she doesn’t get the help she needs, she may have to…
Understanding Medicare Many people might be familiar with Medicare as coverage for major medical situations, such as hospitalization or emergency services. But there is much more to Medicare. Understanding the different parts of Medicare can be difficult. Each component means something different for your health care and your financial bottom line. A General Explanation of Medicare Medicare is a health…
Each year, the Social Security, Medicare and Medi-Cal programs have the potential to adjust rates for programs that benefit many of our clients, who are dependent, at least partially, on these programs for support or care. We think it is helpful to review some of the changes to these programs this year. The Social Security Administration annually issues a Cost…
In our last post we began a discussion of the various roles that must be filled in the planning and administration of a SNT, contrasting that with a conventional estate planning trust. Here we will continue discussing the roles that must be filled in the planning of a SNT. As we’ve mentioned before, a unique feature of most SNTs is…
Special Needs Trusts (SNTs) are different from other trusts that we use in estate planning in many ways. One of those ways has to do with the number and variety of the participants, both family members and professionals, whose assistance is needed. The roles of some of these participants must be clearly defined in the SNT document. Other roles will…
