Elder Law
In General
As people age, planning for their future becomes crucial. The Law Offices Of Michael T. Sawyier assists older clients and those who care for them to create practical estate plans, including Medicaid plans, durable powers of attorney, health care proxies, and living wills. We also help handle long-term health care issues, including guardianships.
Because Medicaid will only cover long-term care expenses if the recipient meets strict income and asset requirements, it is important to consider long-term care insurance, life settlements, and reverse mortgages, when possible, and to commence early asset planning in anticipation for the possibility of extended nursing home stays.
Powers of Attorney
Broad-ranging "durable" powers of attorney, that is, powers of attorney that continue in effect despite the legal disability of the person who grants them (the principal), are so important in estate planning that the AARP recommends that every one of its members should have such powers in place for both property transactions and health care. Otherwise, if a person becomes disabled, there is no legally effective alternative to a guardianship, which is an expensive, intrusive, and time-consuming (for the guardian) court-supervised procedure.
Our firm has assisted many clients in establishing these necessary powers.
Guardianship
If a person becomes incapacitated physically or mentally and does not have valid durable powers of attorney in place, it becomes necessary for a court to appoint a guardian or conservator to handle that person’s affairs and make all decisions. Even if that guardian is a close loved one (for example, a spouse), he or she must answer to the court for all decisions. This can quickly become cumbersome, expensive, and needlessly complicated. Therefore, it is extremely important to plan for the possibility of incapacity so that a trusted family member or other person will have the power to act on behalf of the beneficiary who wishes to confer that power, should an emergency arise. Our estate planning always includes durable powers of attorney for property and health care in order to prevent the need for a guardianship.
However, if a loved one does not have these powers of attorney, a guardianship becomes necessary to manage the incapacitated person’s affairs. Our proffessional staff are experienced in all stages of guardianship and would be happy to assist.
Long Term Health Care
Long-term health care insurance can itself be an essential form of asset protection for many clients, but the greatest care must be taken in each case to obtain the best-suited policy.
The same holds true for long-term care contracts, including all kinds of assisted-living arrangements: they can be either very beneficial or not depending upon the details.
With our professional staff’s extensive knowledge of contract law and network of contacts in these fields, our firm seeks to be of assistance to every interested client.
Medicaid Applications
Failure to plan how one will pay for long-term care, either through long-term health care insurance, reverse mortgages, or investments, can result in the need for Medicaid assistance. However, applicants will only qualify for Medicaid once almost all of their non-exempt assets have been “spent down,” often to the nursing home. Planning for the exemption of various assets and for the maximum deferral of any Medicaid recovery from a Medicaid recipient’s estate, can thus become crucial.
Our firm will assist clients with the federal and state requirements, the application process, and, if necessary, the appeals process.
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