Donald D. Vanarelli, Esq. (http://VanarelliLaw.com/) will present at the 2018 Elder Law College given by the New Jersey Institute for Continuing Legal Education on December 18, 2018 at the Crowne Plaza, located at 690 Route 46 East, Fairfield, New Jersey. Mr. Vanarelli will provide an overview of the laws governing Medicaid Planning by Guardians in.. read more →
In 2002, J.S., a Medicaid applicant, created an irrevocable trust naming his son K.S. as trustee. Under the terms of the trust, all of the annual net income generated by the trust was to be paid to J.S., while the beneficiaries of the trust corpus was K.S. and his family. The trust gave the trustee.. read more →
Every year we release the key dollar amounts that are frequently used in elder law, estate administration and special needs trust planning, including Medicaid figures, Medicare premiums, Social Security Disability, and Supplemental Security Income. Be sure to check back often, as we will add any information that has not yet been released and update the page.. read more →
With the aging population becoming increasingly tech savvy, the Social Security Administration (SSA) has moved a lot of services online. From applying for Social Security benefits to replacing a card, the SSA has online tools to help. To access most of the online services, you need to create a my Social Security account. This account allows you to.. read more →
Nursing home care is growing ever more expensive. Contact your elder law attorney to learn how you can protect some or all of your family’s assets. For the first time, the median cost of a private nursing home room in the United States increased to $100,375 a year in 2018, up 3 percent from 2017,.. read more →
If an applicant for Medicaid signed a contract with an assisted living facility agreeing to a pay privately for a period of time, any penalty resulting from a transfer of assets cannot begin until the end of the private pay period, even if the applicant is otherwise eligible for benefits. B.K. v Division of Medical.. read more →
B.S. was ninety-two years old and residing in a nursing home when she applied to the Monmouth County Division of Social Services, the County Welfare Board (CWB), for Medicaid benefits. In response to the application, the CWB inquired about two 2010 bank withdrawals from petitioner’s accounts, one for $29,955.79 and the other for $37,085.47. Petitioner.. read more →
Reversing a lower court, a Connecticut Appeals Court held that the conservator of a nursing home resident owed a duty of care to the nursing home in which the resident resided to apply for Medicaid on behalf of the resident on a timely basis. The Court allowed the nursing home to sue the conservator personally.. read more →
The Social Security Administration (SSA) has announced the 2019 cost-of-living increases for Social Security and Supplemental Security Income (SSI) benefits. SSA announced a 2.8% benefit increase in 2019, and an increase in the SSA taxable maximum amount to $132,900. The federal benefit amount for an individual eligible for SSI in 2019 will increase to $771 per month. The information.. read more →
A New Jersey appeals court ruled that the State must hold a full evidentiary hearing before rejecting the claim of an assisted living facility resident who wanted to deduct the cost of a full-time aide from the income she paid to the facility. G.F. v. Division of Medical Assistance and Health Services (N.J. Super. Ct., App… read more →
The Appellate Division of the Superior Court of New Jersey dismissed this appeal, refusing to remand the case for administrative hearings that were never held because the applicant failed to preserve her right to those hearings. B.M. v. Division of Medical Assistance and Health Services, Docket No. A-3546-16T3 (App. Div., August 29, 2018) Esther Schulgasser.. read more →
A U.S. district court held that a claim by Medicaid applicants against New Jersey officials for wrongly denying their applications is barred by the Eleventh Amendment because it would require the state to pay retroactive benefits. Radogna v. Connolly (U.S. Dist. Ct., D. N.J., No. 1:16-cv-5477 (NLH/KMW), Aug. 24, 2018). Dominic Rodogna and Solomon Krupka both.. read more →
V.S. is a nursing home resident; her adult son is her legal guardian, and she was represented by legal counsel. V.S.’s authorized representative submitted a Medicaid application with the Bergen County Board of Social Services (BCBSS) on her behalf. In response, BCBSS requested information verifying the information on her application, including several months of bank.. read more →
After a trial court, expressing its disagreement with the legislative policy underlying special needs trusts, placed only a portion of the net settlement proceeds of a lawsuit brought on behalf of a severely disabled person into a special needs trust and ordered the remaining funds be paid directly to the disabled person, resulting in the.. read more →
An Appeals Court affirmed an agency decision denying a Medicaid applicant’s request for a fair hearing because it was filed more than seven months after a denial notice was sent advising him he had twenty days to request a fair hearing, even though the notice was sent directly to the applicant rather than to his.. read more →
A.F. is a quadriplegic as a result of an accident that occurred 20 years ago. She is totally disabled and needs personal assistance to perform all activities of daily living. For many years, A.F. has relied upon Medicaid benefits to provide her with the assistance she desperately needs. Under regulations, the Medicaid agency must re-determine.. read more →
A New Jersey appeals court ruled that a Medicaid applicant who began paying her daughter after the daughter provided two years of free caregiving did not rebut the presumption that a transfer of assets to a relative who previously provided services for free is an uncompensated transfer of assets for Medicaid purposes. E.B. v. Division of.. read more →
Donald D. Vanarelli, Esq. (https://vanarellilaw.com/) participated in the New Jersey Institute for Continuing Legal Education’s “2018 Elder Law in a Day” Seminar held on July 11, 2018 at the New Jersey Law Center in New Brunswick, NJ. Mr. Vanarelli provided the “Case Law Update: The Year In Review” – a review of the cases decided.. read more →
W.M. was admitted to a nursing home in Cranford, New Jersey. In December 2013, W.M.’s wife, E.M., filed a Medicaid application for W.M. with the local Medicaid agency, the Union County Division of Social Services (“the County”). In January 2014, the County requested additional information and/or documents about W.M.’s income, life insurance, and household expenses… read more →
A.F. was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease and osteoarthritis in 2007. She also had difficulty walking. Her husband, T.F., was in failing health, with Parkinson’s disease and COPD, and had other mobility issues. Beginning in 2012, T.F. could not care for A.F. due to his own health problems. T.F. died of lung cancer in 2015. J.F.,.. read more →
Public Law 113–295, also known as The Stephen Beck, Jr. Achieving a Better Life Experience Act (ABLE Act), was enacted December 19, 2014. The ABLE Act provides individuals with special needs and disabilities to save money for disability related expenses in tax-free savings accounts while preserving their needs-based government benefits. Modeled on 529 college savings plans, ABLE.. read more →
In September 2015, Y.M. was declared an incapacitated person, and the Office of the Public Guardian (OPG) was appointed as Y.M.’s guardian. Y.M. was a resident of Hudson View nursing home. The month after its appointment as guardian, OPG filed a Medicaid application on behalf of Y.M. After the application was denied, Hudson View filed.. read more →
On January 7, 2016, R.P.’s stepdaughter applied for Medicaid on R.P.’s behalf. At the time, the case worker asked the stepdaughter to supply certain additional information. However, the stepdaughter testified that the caseworker did not give her a written notice requesting information. According to Medicaid, it then sent a February 22, 106 letter to the.. read more →
After suffering a stroke and spending a period of time in a rehabilitation facility, A.K. was discharged to her home, where she spent the following two years prior to moving to a long-term care facility. Her daughter lived with her for the two-year period. A.K. attended a therapeutic day care program. The daughter worked outside.. read more →
My law office presents this Peace of Mind Checklist as a tool readers can use to organize their thoughts about and plans for the future, and to identify the vital estate documents readers need to reach their goals. The law office staff encourages you to share this checklist with others and discuss it with your close.. read more →
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