In a ruling seen as a major setback for disabled individuals and their families, on September 1, 2009 the United States Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit granted summary judgment in favor of the State of New Mexico, affirming a denial of Medicaid benefits and holding that the State could consider a special needs trust.. read more →
As reported on my blog, Judge John Malone, Presiding Judge of the Chancery Division of the Superior Court in Union County, entered an Order authorizing the Administrator of an intestate estate, i.e., an estate of a decedent who died without a will, to establish a Special Needs Trust, often referred to as a Supplemental Benefits.. read more →
The following excerpt is taken from a discussion between elderlaw attorneys recently posted on a listserv (or electronic bulletin board) in New Jersey: Q. – Is there a law that mandates that a disabled child maintain his/her eligibility for Medicaid when the child loses eligibility for Supplemental Security Income (SSI) benefits as a result of.. read more →
A May 27, 2009 Administrative Law decision in Georgia addresses the impact of Veteran’s Administration (“VA”) Improved Pension with Aid and Attendance benefits on Medicaid eligibility. M.W. v. Georgia Department of Human Resources, reprinted here, concerns a nursing home resident who was the surviving spouse of a veteran and who was receiving Improved Pension with.. read more →
According to the June 8, 2009 edition of the Star-Ledger newspaper, two-thirds of New Jersey’s hospitals stand to lose money under a proposal that would change how the state doles out $400 million for patients on Medicaid. The change, slated to occur this August, has nothing to do with New Jersey’s budget woes. It’s being.. read more →
A New Jersey appeals court held earlier this month that a Medicaid applicant’s transfer of assets occurred when the checks she wrote were cashed, not when they were written, so the Deficit Reduction Act of 2005 (DRA) applies to the transfer and the penalty period begins when the applicant would have been otherwise eligible for.. read more →
It is not uncommon for an elderly or disabled person to entrust his or her finances to a third party. For example, an elder may execute a power of attorney as a simple estate planning tool in order to ensure that his or her affairs are properly handled in the event that the elder is.. read more →
A national assisted living company broke its promises to elderly New Jersey residents by throwing them out after allowing them to believe they could convert to Medicaid when their life savings were depleted, a report by the state’s Public Advocate has determined. The report concludes that regulations in New Jersey and around the country are.. read more →
New Jersey will receive an additional $2.2 billion for its Medicaid program under the stimulus package emerging from Congress, providing a financial boost to a safety-net program that officials say will face more demands as the recession continues. With the economy battering state revenues, N.J. Health Commissioner Heather Howard welcomed support for Medicaid. “It’s critical.. read more →
If a person with disabilities is a veteran, a child of a veteran, the spouse of a veteran, or the parent of a veteran, the disabled person may be eligible to receive benefits from the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA). Moreover, the receipt of these benefits may jeopardize Supplemental Security Income (SSI) or Medicaid.. read more →
The U.S. District Court for the Western District of Pennsylvania, in a case entitled Weatherbee v. Richman, ____ F. Supp. _____ (C.A. No. 07-134, January 22, 2009), has issued an opinion essentially following the reasoning of the United States Court of Appeals of the Third Judicial Circuit in James v. Richman in a case involving an.. read more →
A new Programs Operations Manual System (POMS), used by Social Security Administration employees to administer the Social Security and Supplemental Security Income (SSI) programs, has recently been issued by the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) for trusts under the heading “SI 01120.200 Trusts – General, Including Trusts Established Prior to 1/1/00, Trusts Established.. read more →
In my years of practicing elder law and guardianship litigation, I’ve become accustomed to meeting with elderly clients and their families who are shocked when I inform them that Medicare, the medical insurance which covers the medical bills of most elderly clients, does not pay for long-term care costs, either at home or in a.. read more →
There were 6 significant cases decided in New Jersey in 2008 in the area of elder law, the majority of which came out of the administrative arena. That is, 5 of the following 6 cases were issued by the Office of Administrative Law. All of the cases involved elderly clients who engaged in Medicaid estate.. read more →
The next time you must defend the decision either 1) to provide help to families by accelerating eligibility for public benefits based on need, like nursing home Medicaid, or 2) to engage in estate planning to protect yourself and your family from the catastrophic costs of nursing home care, I suggest that you confront the.. read more →
Below is compilation of Medicaid, Medicare, Social Security and other figures for 2009 that are of interest to the elderly, the disabled and their families. Source: ElderLawAnswers.com Medicaid Spousal Impoverishment Figures for 2009 – effective January 1, 2009 In 2009, the spouse of a Medicaid recipient living in a nursing home (called the “community spouse”).. read more →
A New York trial court held that because the state Medicaid agency failed to reconsider its earlier eligibility determination in a timely manner, its amended decision denying benefits is vacated. dickinson-vs-ny-department-of-health-and-onondaga-county-department-of-social-services, (N.Y. Sup. Ct., No. 08-4831, Dec. 3, 2008). After her application for Medicaid benefits was denied by the Onondaga Department of Social Services (DSS), Viola.. read more →
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 →
The federal statute concerning the stimulus checks exempts them from being counted as income by any federally funded program like Medicaid or SSI. Further, the checks are not counted as resources in the month of receipt or the following two months.The Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) issued a notice on this issue which.. read more →
Many states are now giving Medicaid-eligible seniors a monthly stipend they can use to hire family, friends and/or professionals to care for them at home. The program, called Cash and Counseling, already exists in 15 states and is expected to be implemented soon in 18 more. Cash and Counseling offers Medicaid consumers who have disabilities.. read more →
New Jersey issued updated numbers for calculating Medicaid eligibility in 2008. They are: Minimum Community Spouse Resource Allowance – $20,880.00 Maximum Community Spouse Resource Allowance – $104,400.00 Resource Allowance for an Individual – $2,000.00 Resource Allowance for a Couple (both husband and wife in a nursing home) – $3,000.00 Minimum Monthly Maintenance Needs Allowance through.. read more →
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