Q. My husband recently entered a nursing home and it appears he will be there for the long term. It is very expensive and I am concerned that we may lose our home and savings. Is there anything that we should do at this time? A. Yes. The first step is to take a deep Read Full Article
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Spouse on Medi-Cal? May Be Time To Change Your Will
Q. My husband is in a nursing home and has qualified for a Medi-Cal subsidy to help with care expenses. To qualify, I was obliged to take his name off of most of our bank accounts, so that most everything is in my name now. However, I have my own health problems and I wonder Read Full Article
Managing the Afterlife of Your Online Accounts
Q. I do most of my banking and bill paying over the Internet, participate in Facebook and exchange e-mails with friends and family. What would happen to these online accounts when I die or if I became disabled and could no longer manage them? A. Great question. As we move further into the 21st century, Read Full Article
Using Annuities in Long Term Care Planning
Q. My wife and I do not have long-term care insurance and we are concerned about how we would pay the cost of care if one of us had to go into a nursing home, which I understand is very expensive. I heard that purchasing an annuity might help us qualify for a Medi-Cal long Read Full Article
Advance Care Planning: Making Sure Your Loved One’s Wishes Are Honored
Q. Our parents are up in years and have become increasingly frail. I know that they both have definite wishes about advance care planning and end-of-life decisions. Any suggestions on how we might help them make sure that their wishes are honored? A. Yes, I do. The first step is to begin the conversation. There Read Full Article
USING ‘UNAVAILABILITY’ TO REDUCE SPEND DOWN AND/OR SECURE RETROACTIVE MEDI-CAL ELIGIBILITY
Practice Note: By Gene L. Osofsky, Esq., CFLS Published in the Legal Network News, Fall 2010, California Advocates for Nursing Home Reform For purposes of determining the countable assets available to the individual applying for Medi-Cal, an asset which is unavailable enjoys for the time that it remains unavailable the same status as an Read Full Article
How the Medi-Cal “Look Back” Works
Q. Prompted by the temporary increase in the gift tax exemption, my wife and I recently made gifts of $50,000 apiece to each of our 3 sons. Shortly thereafter my wife had a stroke and now needs full-time care in a nursing home. The cost is running about $7,500 per month and I need to Read Full Article
Gov. Brown Signs Law to Extend to Same-Sex Couples and RDP’s Some Medi-Cal Protections of Married Couples
Recently, Governor Jerry Brown signed legislation seeking to extend to same-sex couples and Registered Domestic Partners (“RDP’s”) some of the Medi-Cal benefits enjoyed by married couples. The legislation, known as AB 641, was authored by assemblyman Mike Feuer, whose website summarizes the importance as follows: “Under current law, Medi-Cal’s long term care benefit helps to Read Full Article
The Difference Between Alzheimer’s Disease and Dementia
Many people use the terms Alzheimer’s disease and dementia interchangeably, but they have very different meanings. Although dementia is a group of symptoms that include memory loss, the term itself doesn’t explain what is causing the symptoms. Alzheimer’s disease is the leading cause of dementia, but here are many other causes. Dementia is a general Read Full Article
Senior Cohousing: A Retirement Alternative
Seniors want to remain at home as long as possible, but with family spread out all over the country, it isn’t always easy to do so. “Senior cohousing,” a relatively new concept, allows older Americans to age at home in a supportive community. Senior cohousing consists of a group of houses or condos that are Read Full Article