The VA & Long Term Care

The Veterans Administration (VA) provides health care benefits to veterans. The plan covers a number of health care services, including preventative services, diagnostic and treatment services, and hospitalization. It may also cover nursing home and other long-term care options.
Who is Eligible?  To be eligible, you must not have been dishonorably discharged from the military. Your length of service may also be important. Former enlisted persons who started active duty before September 8, 1980, and former officers who first entered active duty before October 17, 1981, do not have a length-of-service requirement. Otherwise you must have 24 months of continuous active duty military service, though there are several exceptions for reservists, national guard members, service-connected disabilities, and hardship discharges, among other"  To receive care, most veterans must be enrolled in the VA health system. Eligibility for the health system depends on a number of factors, including the nature of your discharge from military service, your length of service, whether you have service-connected disabilities, your income level, and available VA resources, among others.

Pre-2001 trust may cost dearly in time, money and loss of control

Many couples created Revocable ’Living’ Trusts before the 2001 changes in the tax law, which increased the personal estate tax exemption many-fold over what it was in earlier years. Just before the new law, the personal lifetime exemption was $675,000. For persons dying in years 2006, the exemption has been increased to $2  million, and the amount of this exemption will increase still further during the remaining years of this decade. Many of these older trusts contain directions to split the trust estate into mandatory sub-trusts upon the death of the first spouse. This mandatory split was usually designed to preserve each spouse’s personal exemption, and thereby reduce or eliminate estate taxes over the span of two deaths; the ultimate goal was to transmit the maximum gift to the couple’s remainder beneficiaries, usually their children. However, these trust provisions directing the creation and funding of sub-trusts often still assume the existence of the older, lower exemption amount. In the current climate, these trust provisions may now: (a) no longer be necessary, (b) may undermine the couple’s goal to leave to the surviving spouse full access to the couple’s entire estate, and/or (c) may now only be appropriate to much larger estates. Further, setting up the by-pass or irrevocable trust under these old instruments will cause extra tax preparing, filing headaches and expense. For Help click on Law Office of Steven J. Feldman

Seniors & The Law

California Wills & Estate Planning Forms Available For Purchase

Click on California Legal Forms to find the following forms and then search "California":

* California Advanced Directive - living will, including power of attorney for health care which avoids conservatorship of the person.

* HIPPA Medical Release for your health care power of attorney

* California Statutory Will - Both Sexes

* California Statutory Financial Power of Atttorney - avoids conservatorship for the estate.

These forms will provide for a basic estate plan for a California resident. Inexpensive on-line conferences are also available to customize these forms and obtain further instruction.

The purchase of these forms does not create an attorney to client realtionship. If in doubt, please consult with an attorney to make sure that such are suitable for your circumstances.

Senior Scams, Part 2.

The charitable donation con. Fraudulent door-to-door deals. Financial Advisor and Investment Scams. Funeral and Cenetery Fraud. Home Repair Ripoffs. Identity Theft. Learn how to recognize fraud and not make a bad investment in this Podcasts .

Senior Scams, Part 1.

Seniors are subject to an army of telemarketers selling Revocable Living Trusts in what are call "Trust Mills." The object of these unqualified estate planners is to obtain your personal financial information for selling you high-commission financial products like annuities. Learn how to stop the telemarketers in the introductory Podcasts on Senior Scams.

Dual Eligibles Have Unmet Long-Term Care Needs

While individuals who qualify for both Medicare and Medicaid represent a relatively small share of the population, they consume a disproportionate amount of health care resources. Yet, according to a new Commonwealth Fund-supported study published in Inquiry, many "dual eligibles" still struggle with unmet long-term care needs. In examining results from a six-state survey of elderly dual eligibles living in the community (not in nursing homes), researchers Harriet Komisar, Ph.D., and Judith Feder, Ph.D., of Georgetown University, and Judith Kasper, Ph.D., of Johns Hopkins University found that more than half (58%) of respondents who needed assistance with activities of daily living said they were not receiving enough help. The 1999 survey, which was cofunded by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, found that many of those with unmet needs experienced serious problems, such as not being able to bathe or shower, or even going hungry. The authors say that the findings indicate paid home care could help. State Medicaid policies that expand access to paid care, they say, may be necessary to get more people needed long-term care."The NAELA eBulletin -- November 1, 2005."

New Medicaid Budget Bills

The House Energy and Commerce Committee adopted a fiscal year 2006 budget package this week that would cut $11 billion from the Medicaid program. The Senate Finance Committee has also approved cuts to the program, but the House plan differs in that it would not make cuts to Medicare. Both the House and the Senate are expected to act on the budget reconciliation bills during the week of October 31.

DMV & Seniors

Seniors face many challenges to getting their driver's license after age 70. Learn about the tests in the this new Podcasts. Also learn about when to use an attorney.

Probate Administration, Part 3

Part 3 of the Probate Administration Podcasts concludes probate administration by discussing how to wind up and then contrasting probate to living trust administration.