Elder law involves planning for the wide-variety of unique challenges facing the elderly including planning for the succession of their estates (see Estate Planning: Wills & Trusts), incapacity planning for personal care and financial matters (see Incapacity Planning; Guardianships & Conservatorships), and planning for health care and long term care and its substantial costs.

The substantial cost of nursing home care can quickly wipe out a family’s nest egg and effectively nullify an individual’s plan for the succession of their estate to their heirs.  Inadequate planning by married couples for these costs can also cause a spouse who is still living at home to be impoverished and without sufficient assets or income to provide for his or her needs.  The primary alternative to privately paying for the costs of long term care is the Medicaid program.

We have found that there are a lot of myths and misunderstandings in the community about Medicaid, how it works, how eligibility is determined, how the State looks at your assets in determining eligibility and recovering Medicaid payments, and what the rules are with respect to gifting assets to others.  An experienced elder law and Medicaid planning attorney can help dispel these myths and guide you through the ins and outs of the Medicaid program.  That attorney can also help assist with the Medicaid application and eligibility process and offer strategies and techniques that may be available for protecting assets and ensuring that the spouse living at home is not impoverished.

Whether you are facing long-term care issues yourself, or have a family member who is, we encourage you to contact our office to schedule an appointment to discuss your questions and concerns.  Many planning strategies that may be available are time sensitive so it is important not to delay in scheduling an appointment.

Attorneys:

• WILLIAM F. NICHOLS
• PHILIP A. PETERSON