Because much of the elder law practice population is elderly or disabled and at or below the poverty level, a basic understanding of Social Security programs (and related Medicare and Medicaid benefits) is important. Social Security Disability (“SSD”) Benefits: Available to a blind or disabled worker who: (1) applies for benefits; (2) has not reached.. read more →
What emerging case law is demonstrating about Medicaid planning techniques: SITUATION PLANNING TECHNIQUE Applicant does not have a community spouse Use a promissory note with a “gift and loan” strategy. G.L. v. DMAHS, Docket No. HMARP 05080-2008N (Middlesex County), Final Agency Decision Oct. 23, 2008. Applicant has a community spouse Use funds above the resource.. read more →
This is my 100th blog post, a milestone of sorts. This blog is an integrated part of my law firm’s new website. After an extended effort in preparing content for the firm website that began in 2007, the website went live in mid-March 2008. I started blogging on April 21, 2008. I reached my 100th.. read more →
Fresh from their recent electoral victories, Congressional Democratic leaders are vowing to pursue an aggressive agenda when the 111th Congress opens in January. While the ailing economy will doubtless be the top priority, health care will not be far down the list. Over the past year and a half, lawmakers have introduced a number of.. read more →
The recently passed Emergency Economic Stabilization Act of 2008 (aka “the bailout bill”) temporarily raises the basic limit on federal deposit insurance coverage (FDIC) from $100,000 to $250,000 per depositor. The legislation provides that the basic deposit insurance limit will return to $100,000 after December 31, 2009. “This temporary increase in deposit insurance coverage should.. read more →
A directive from the Administrative Office of the Courts lays out a new framework for use of incarceration in cases of parents brought into court for child support enforcement. The directive, entitled directive-15-08, comes in the wake of the state Supreme Court’s holding, in pasqua-v-council-186-nj-127-2006, that indigent parents charged with violating child support orders, who are.. read more →
On Saturday, November 15, 2008, members of the The Elder Mediation Center of New Jersey, an alliance of eldercare professionals of which I am a co-founder, presented a workshop on “Unique Perspectives in Elder Mediation – A Paradigm Shift” at the Annual Conference of the New Jersey Association of Professional Mediators in Somerset, NJ. The.. read more →
In James v. Richman, 465 F.Supp.2d 395 (M.D.Pa. 2006), aff’d, 547 F.3d 214 (3rd Cir. 2008), an institutionalized spouse who was a nursing home resident brought a lawsuit against the Pennsylvania Department of Public Welfare (DPW) alleging that the DPW’s decision to deny his eligibility for Medicaid benefits violated the federal regulations governing annuities under.. read more →
I’ve written on the subject of mediation preparation before, here and here. But the longer I think and read about the subject, the more I discover there is to say about it. So, I decided to revisit the subject. Last year, more than 98% of all lawsuits filed in New Jersey settled prior to trial. The.. read more →
Are you having difficulty keeping up premium payments on a life insurance policy, or do you no longer need the policy? Policyholders once had only two options: let the policy lapse or turn it in for a meager cash surrender value. Now there’s another, often vastly more lucrative alternative: sell the policy to a company.. read more →
In E.S. vs. Division of Medical Assistance and Health Services, petitioner, a 91 year old nursing home resident, transferred $42,053 to her son after paying the nursing home privately from her savings for two years. The nursing home payments and the gift combined to leave petitioner with no assets, so she applied for Medicaid. The.. read more →
The business section of the Star-Ledger newspaper has a recurring feature entitled “Shop Talk” which usually contains a short news story highlighting a local business or community event. In the November 6th edition of the newspaper, Shop Talk featured a short article on the newly-formed Central Jersey Collaborative Law Group and briefly described the collaborative divorce.. read more →
How can you ensure that your special needs child will remain well cared for and secure once others assume the role of guardian or caregiver? While creating a financial plan and establishing a specialized trust are central to preparing for your child’s future, special needs planners also advise families to write down their intentions and.. read more →
The Internal Revenue Service has announced the maximum tax deduction that can be taken on qualified Long Term Care Insurance premiums in 2009. Maximum Deduction for Qualified LTCI Premiums Under Code 213(d)(10) Attained Age Before Close of Year 2008 2009 40 or less $310 $320 More than 40 but no more than 50 $580 $600.. read more →
This year, the National Academy of Elder Law Attorneys held its Advanced Institute in Kansas City, Missouri from October 23 – 26. The program-of-events-10-31-08 shows that the presentations at the Institute covered a wide array of subjects. I attended two terrific sessions on the eligibility criteria for Veterans Administration (VA) service-related compensation benefits and non-service.. read more →
I have a number of speaking engagements scheduled during the first few weeks of November 2008 that may be of interest to readers of this blog. On November 8, 2008, I am scheduled to speak at the Alzheimer’s Association Conference, in Union County College located in Cranford, NJ. My presentation is entitled “Planning for Disability.. read more →
This year, the Guardianship Association of New Jersey, Inc. (GANJI) held its 13th Annual Conference on Guardianship on October 30th at the New Jersey Law Center in New Brunswick, NJ. The conference was entitled “Surrogate Decision-Making: A Holistic Approach.” The Program Schedule is attached here – 13th-annual-conference-on-guardianship-10-31-08. As can be seen, there was a wide.. read more →
The nation’s roughly 53 million elderly and disabled Social Security recipients will get their biggest pay hike since 1982 — a 5.8 percent cost of living increase in payments in 2009. This is expected to raise the average monthly payment for the typical beneficiary by $63. The 2009 increase is up from the 2.3 percent.. read more →
You are invited to explore the legal, financial and psychological issues involved in divorce in comprehensive seminars led by an interdisciplinary team of attorneys, financial experts, child specialists and mental health professionals. There are separate seminars offered for men and women. In each seminar, team members will discuss the pros and cons of the various.. read more →
As I reported in a May 22, 2008 blog posting several months ago, I received a denial notice from the Middlesex County welfare agency in a case in which the applicant’s Medicaid eligibility plan involved making a loan to a relative. The borrowing relative signed a promissory note agreeing to repay the note in monthly installments, including.. read more →
My article on Elder Mediation was published on October 20, 2008 in the Focus Section of the New Jersey Lawyer newspaper which covered current issues in Estate and Elder Law. As stated in the article, Elder Mediation provides a forum for family decision-making designed to achieve the following goals: • To hear the concerns of.. read more →
Updated Figures for 2009. The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has released the community spouse resource allowance and the maximum monthly maintenance needs allowance for 2009. The new minimum CSRA is $21,912 and the new maximum is $109,560. The new maximum monthly maintenance needs allowance is $2,739. The minimum monthly maintenance needs allowance.. read more →
More than ten years after the measure was first proposed, Congress finally passed a law requiring that insurance companies provide enrollees suffering from mental illness with coverage equal to the coverage they would receive for any other type of condition. The new law was included in the controversial economic bailout package passed by Congress and.. read more →
The annual gift tax exclusion will increase from $12,000 to $13,000 effective January 1, 2009, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) has announced. The gift tax exclusion is the amount the IRS allows a taxpayer to gift to another individual without reporting the gift. The increase means that more can be given away for estate tax.. read more →
Many people continue to work beyond retirement age, either by choice or out of necessity. But if you are receiving Social Security benefits, working may affect your benefit payments. Earning income above Social Security thresholds can cause a reduction in benefits and mean your benefits will be taxed. If you work and are “full retirement.. read more →
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