Comprehensive Life Care Planning

Comprehensive Life Care Planning is an integrated planning approach that addresses the health care, legal, and financial issues of aging and disability. A Life Care Plan combines asset protection and care coordination into a single convenient package that answers all the tough questions about you and your loved one’s long-term care, now and in the future. Like a traditional estate and asset preservation plan, a Life Care Plan includes the legal protection needed to safeguard assets, honor your loved one’s wishes and provide for family members. But a Life Care Plan doesn’t stop there. Rather, a Life Care Plan is comprehensive. It describes how your loved one’s long-term care, financial, physical and psychological needs will be met. It is a “road map” for total care. As a result, the elder maintains maximum independence for as long as possible, gets proper care as soon as necessary, and retains the ability to age with dignity. Families get help finding appropriate care and services; guidance with legal, health care and long-term care decisions as the elder’s condition progresses; and security because the spouse and dependents are provided for. Once your Life Care Plan is written, it is a living document that changes along with your loved one’s changing needs. It remains in force for the remainder of your life, or your loved one’s life. The goal of a Life Care Plan is to provide a Total Care Solution which will achieve the following:

• Promote good health, safety, and well-being at all times
• Assist with health care and long-term decision-making
• Identify and assess good long-term care, whether at home or outside of the home
• Identify all potential sources of payment for such care
• Attain eligibility for public benefits programs (SSDI, Medicaid, VA, etc.)
• Protect family wealth

The Life Care Plan includes the services of Certified Elder Law Attorneys, Elder Care Coordinators, other members of our staff and possibly other professionals who work together to coordinate care, maximize quality of life and protect family wealth for future generations. Depending on the client’s needs, you or your loved one’s Life Care Plan will include some or all of the following services: Legal Services to protect assets, coordinate public and private resources to pay for long-term care, and preserve family wealth for future generations. Advocacy Services to help you get the highest quality health care and long-term care for your loved one. Care Coordination Services by qualified staff and others who take all necessary steps to protect and promote your loved one’s quality of life. Medicare and Insurance Assistance by experienced staff who understand your options and help you make wise choices and resolve problems.

Legal services which are provided within the Life Care Plan include:

• Consultations and research, leading to the creation and implementation of a comprehensive Life Care Plan
• Drafting all of the client’s legal documents, such as wills, powers of attorney, trusts, etc., necessary for the success of the Life Care Plan
• Assistance in restructuring assets
• All meetings and telephone calls necessary to implement and monitor the Life Care Plan
• Filing applications for Social Security, SSI, VA, and Medicaid benefits
• Completing annual reviews of all benefits being received
• Modifying the Life Care Plan when laws change affecting the current plan

Other professional services provided within the Life Care Plan:

• Services of a geriatric care manager, geriatric licensed social worker or Elder Care Coordinator to assist with development and implementation of the Life Care Plan
• Initial assessment in your home, residential or health care facility
• Development, implementation and monitoring of a Health Care Plan
• Assistance with living arrangements and placement
• Coordination of available community resources
• Coordination with family to provide support, guidance and advocacy

Legal Support Gives You Confidence

The legal issues created by aging, illness, chronic conditions or disability can be terrifying for an aged loved one and other family members. For this reason, every Life Care Plan includes the legal services you need to protect your loved one’s interests and to provide for dependents and other family members now and in the future. Depending on your loved one’s needs and your family’s situation, your Life Care Plan will include one or more of the following legal services:

• Estate planning, including wills, trusts and powers of attorney
• Finding and accessing sources of payment for quality long-term care
• Resolving the asset protection problem created by the high cost of quality long-term care
• Medicaid asset protection planning
• Determining public benefits eligibility
• Setting up Special Needs Trusts
• Probate and estate administration

With a Life Care Plan, you can count on legal support from experts who are familiar with every aspect of your loved one’s situation.

Your Advocate for Quality Care

The elder law experts at Vanarelli & Li, LLC advocate for high quality care. We work on each client’s behalf to resolve care issues, manage transitions to more appropriate care and advocate for the client when needed. We stay by your side working to protect your interests and the interests of your loved one for the rest of his or her life. We also offer educational programs that empower you to assume a greater role as your loved one’s advocate.

Comprehensive Life Care Planning Continued >