A Federal court held that a special needs trust is not valid because it was created by the parents of the beneficiary while the parents were acting as the beneficiary’s agents under a power of attorney. Draper v. Colvin (U.S. Dist. Ct., D. S.D., No. 12-4091-KES, July 10, 2013). Stephany Draper suffered a traumatic brain injury.. read more →

Reversing state agency and appeals court rulings, the highest court of the State of Washington ruled that a guardian cannot be charged with neglect based on the guardian’s good-faith decision to provide care for the ward in her home rather than place her in a nursing home against the ward’s wishes. Raven v. Department of Social and.. read more →

A federal district court judge in New Jersey granted a Medicaid applicant’s motion for a preliminary injunction, thereby enjoining the State from counting an annuity owned by her husband as an available resource in determining her eligibility for Medicaid. Flamini v. Velez, Civil No. 1:12-cv-07304 (D.N.J. July 19, 2013) Elizabeth Flamini entered a skilled nursing.. read more →

John Landy and Margaret Sauchelli are elderly persons who purchased promissory notes and subsequently applied fur Medicaid benefits. New Jersey’s Department of Human Services (DHS) declared Landy arid Sauchelli to be ineligible and denied their applications. In doing so, the agency ruled that the promissory notes were countable resources that made both Landy and Sauchelli.. read more →

A New Jersey appeals court held that the State did not have a duty to inform a woman with special needs who was residing in an out-of-state residential facility that she was eligible for priority placement for services due to a change in regulations. The court also found that the disabled woman was not entitled.. read more →