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What Exactly is “Elder Law”? | Chicago Elder Law Attorney

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February 28, 2014

- Chicago Elder Law, Eldercare Attorney

I get asked, “What exactly do elder law attorneys do?” all the time. My answer could go on forever. However, briefly stated, elder law attorneys like myself focus on “senior” estate planning (in addition to traditional estate planning) longevity planning (aka long-term care planning), Medicaid, Medicare, special needs trusts, and VA benefits for those over the age of 65. Many people assume that an elder law attorney’s area of expertise is strictly wills and trusts. Wills and trusts are certainly part of the equation, but the truth is there is so much more to elder law. Here’s something else you may not know: wills really only control what happens after you die. Therefore, today’s seniors need both an estate and a longevity plan because both combined will help their families know what their wishes are in the event that they become incapacitated before they die. Elder law is still very different in comparison to traditional estate planning (death planning). A traditional estate plan is designed to do the following things:
  1. Minimize estate taxes
  2. Avoid probate court
  3. Distribute assets from the deceased person to his or her heirs
Elder law, however, is essentially death planning plus long-term disability and care planning (longevity planning). So, an elder law attorney is not only thinking about what happens in the event of your death, but also about your long-term health needs during your lifetime. Today, it is typical to see families spending thousands upon thousands of dollars  ($8,000-10,000) when both a husband and wife have long-term care needs. The operative goal of an elder law attorney is to help families protect their assets during their lifetime, to avoid spending all of that money. Remember: Elder law attorneys are here to maintain your current quality of life as much as possible on the long term care continuum, make sure you do not go broke in a nursing home and not just decide what your kids inherit after you pass away. -Anthony B. Ferraro
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Choosing the Right Nursing Home | Chicagoland Elder Care Attorney

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February 19, 2014

- Alzheimer's Care, Chicago Elder law attorney

Choosing a nursing home for a loved one may be one of the most daunting things we have to do in life.  But, when a loved one is in a condition that requires them to be in a nursing home, as a caregiver or agent under power of attorney, it is your job to choose the place that is best for them.  You want them to get the proper medical attention while still feeling like they’re at home.  Your worst case scenario would be for them to feel neglected or to be treated poorly. There are ways to ensure that this does not happen. For starters, when beginning the nursing home selection process I recommend that you visit https://abferrarolaw.com/senior-resource-kits/alzheimers-resource-kit/.  There you will find the guide, “How to Choose the Right Nursing Home and Ensure Your Loved One Gets Great Care,” which includes: 1)      A Nursing Home Evaluation Form, which gives you a lot of insight pertaining to issues that people tend to overlook when choosing a nursing home; 2)      3 steps to make the nursing home transition a smooth one; and 3)      1 huge secret on how to connect with nursing home staffers so that your loved one gets the best treatment. After narrowing down the nursing home selections, the next best thing to do is to contact someone on the nursing home staff, such as the social worker, to voice your concerns and engage in further questioning on your nursing home of choice.  After contacting staff, they may offer to give you a tour of their facility to give you an even more in depth insight on what may soon be your loved one’s new home. All in all, throughout the whole process, make sure to involve your loved one. Make sure that they know that the journey they are about to embark on is not a scary one, but an exciting one. -Anthony B. Ferraro
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VA Benefit Eligibility | Illinois Elder Law Attorney, Anthony B. Ferraro,VA Accredited Attorney

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February 10, 2014

- Chicago area, Eldercare Attorney, Estate Planning Attorney

Attention! Many of today’s Americans are under the assumption that VA Benefits only apply to servicemen and women who were injured or disabled while serving.  VA Benefits do largely apply to those men and women; however, there are also other VA benefits available to wartime veterans who are senior citizens currently paying for long-term care.  Wartime veterans have earned this right simply by serving our country, even if they were not injured during their time of service. Note, wartime veterans and their spouses who do not have disabilities as a result of serving are eligible for the Special Monthly Pension benefit when they are 65 and older, permanently disabled and unable to work, homebound, or in need of regular aid of another person.  The Special Monthly Pension benefit is based on the need for financial assistance, so there are income and asset limitations. If any of the above situations apply to you, I recommend getting the necessary paper work ready in order to prove you qualify for such benefits.  This may require a doctor’s visit or paperwork from the nursing home or assisted living facility stating that you or your loved one is permanently disabled. -Anthony B. Ferraro
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Do You Need a New Will or Trust? | Chicagoland Estate Planning and Elder Law Attorney

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February 5, 2014

- Chicago area, Estate Planning Attorney

Financial institutions like banks are now demanding up-to-date documents when dealing with both powers of attorney and revocable living trusts. This impacts Medicaid and long term care. If you have a power of attorney for property, it probably says that your loved one can act on your behalf as your agent.  But because Medicaid has very complicated rules, someone acting on your behalf may need to make changes to the way your assets are held.  Typical power of attorneys or property do not allow your agent to make changes to your estate plan or create other documents that can protect you and your healthy spouse from going broke because of long term care costs. One thing many traditional estate planning attorneys are doing for married couples is creating a joint revocable living trust, which often transforms itself into an irrevocable trust when one spouse becomes disabled.  Once this happens, the healthy spouse would not be allowed to make changes in the way the assets are held; thus forcing the healthy spouse to spend an excessive amount of assets to care for the ill spouse before he or she can qualify for Medicaid.  This is something we elder law attorneys want to prevent from happening. Nobody wants to be out of money.  Our job as elder attorneys is to help you receive quality healthcare and preserve your options.   Thus, your plan should be updated to ensure absolute solvency if possible, legally and ethically.  This includes a power of attorney that allows your agent to be able to take very special actions to protect you and your loved ones financially. Please contact me today if you would like me to review your current documents to make sure you have the protection you deserve. -Anthony B. Ferraro
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The Cost of Alzheimer’s Care is Rising | Chicago Estate Planning & Eldercare Attorney-CPA Anthony B. Ferraro

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January 30, 2014

- Chicago Elder Law, Estate Planning Attorney

Yes, the cost to care for Alzheimer’s patients is rising and the rapid cost increases show no sign of stopping.  And unfortunately, that is not the only figure rising; the percentage of seniors with Alzheimer’s is also steadily increasing.  Statistics show that between 2010 and 2050, the number of people with Alzheimer’s is expected to jump from 5.5 million to 14 million. So, how do we pay for adequate Alzheimer’s care? In reality, many people do not understand the difference between Medicare and Medicaid.  Medicare simply does not pay for long-term care.  Medicare actually only cares about your loved one if they are going to get better, i.e. if they suffer from a stroke or a heart attack, and can recover with rehab.  And as we know, Alzheimer’s disease does not fall into that category; so if your loved one has Alzheimer’s, your loved one will have to rely on Medicaid if they do not have enough money to pay privately for care. Medicaid expenses for people with Alzheimer’s are very high due to the uninsured cost of long-term care.  Approximately half of Medicare beneficiaries with Alzheimer’s disease also qualify for Medicaid, because they exhausted their own financial resources to pay for all of their long-term care.  And when someone is relying on Medicaid, often times they can only keep $2,000 in savings and $30 per month. At least that’s what the federal and state governments want you to believe. There are numerous exceptions to this general rule however. And, there are certainly ways to protect you and your loved ones’ well being  assets so that you can work around this. Stay tuned for more. -Anthony B. Ferraro
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You May Need More Than Just Traditional Estate Planning! | Chicagoland Estate, Trust & Probate Attorney & Elderlaw Attorney-CPA, Anthony B. Ferraro

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January 23, 2014

- Chicagoland Elder Law, Estate Planning, Estate Planning Attorney

Why is it  important to stray from traditional estate planning? Because many professionals have been trained to prepare estate plans by using the “death plan” mentality. Also, since the world today is rapidly changing, doesn’t that mean our estate plans should too? Most people today tend to create “Sweetheart” wills at the suggestion their advisors. In this case, the attorney will ask you a couple of questions like: your name, your loved one’s name, and who you want to leave things too when you die. Today this is overly simplistic. What is most important is that people create wills that follow the “death” rules of estate planning, BUT also will address what will happen if you have a long-term illness before your death. Long term care requirements dramatically change both your wills, trusts and powers of attorney and your course of action. Therefore, you must address long term care issues. -Anthony B. Ferraro
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Who is a Qualified Elder Law Attorney? | Chicagoland Estate Planning & Eldercare Attorney-CPA Anthony B. Ferraro

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January 22, 2014

- Chicagoland Elder Law, Eldercare Attorney

Today I want to give you a brief lesson on what you need to know when selecting an elder law attorney.  Remember that an elder law attorney’s practice focuses on the areas of estate and longevity planning, Medicaid, special needs trusts, and VA benefits for those over the age of 65. Unfortunately, you will see general practitioners who also identify themselves as elder law attorneys.  The fact of the matter is, drafting simple wills and trusts DOES NOT make an attorney an elder law attorney.  Sure, wills and trusts are certainly part of the elder law process at times, but elder law consists of so much more than that. What is not often communicated to the public is that wills really only control what happens after you die.  Therefore, today’s seniors really need both an estate and longevity plan.  A longevity plan will allow for seniors’ families to know what their wishes are in the event that they become incapacitated before they die. A traditional estate plan (a.k.a. death plan) is designed to do three things:
  1. Minimize estate taxes
  2. Avoid probate court
  3. Distribute assets from the deceased person to his or her heirs
Elder law, on the other hand, is death planning plus long-term disability and care planning. I call all of this together “longevity planning.” In order to help yourself identify an  elder law attorney, ask the following questions:
  1. How many Medicaid applications does the firm do in a year?
  2. How many veterans does the firm assist with VA aid and attendance benefits per year?
  3. How many Elder Law oriented estate plans has the firm done this year?
  4. Are your powers of attorney documents tailored to senior issues?
The bottom line is, because the issues are so complex, you deserve to work with somebody who is experienced in elder law, not just estate planning. -Anthony B. Ferraro
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Why Estate Planning is Not a Do-It Yourself Project! | Chicago Estate Planning & Elderlaw Attorney-CPA, Anthony B. Ferraro

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January 15, 2014

- Chicago Elder Law, Estate Planning, Estate Planning Attorney

DO NOT CREATE YOUR OWN ESTATE PLAN. With today’s technology, there are many programs that allow us to create quick and cheap estate plans. Considering how busy the majority of us currently are, that sounds like a dream come true.  WRONG. The truth is, if you do not communicate with an Elder Law & Estate Planning attorney when creating your estate plan, you are only doing yourself a disservice.  In fact, you are potentially risking losing everything. The world of Elder Law is very complicated.  There is a lot of lingo and terminology that takes years of practice to fully understand.  The word income, for example, has a completely different meaning when it comes to different areas of the law.  So, if you do not understand Elder Law, how would you even begin to approach assessing your income when it comes to your estate plan?  If you attempt to create your own estate plan, the simplest misunderstanding or forgotten detail can cost you thousands of dollars, if not more.  The bottom line is, the only way to ensure your safety is to create an estate plan with an Elder Law & Estate Planning  attorney. You wouldn’t trust somebody without a medical degree to operate on you.  Why would you trust anybody but an Elder Law &  Estate Planning attorney to handle your estate plan? -Anthony B. Ferraro
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It’s Time to Update Your Estate Plan | Chicagoland Estate Planning & Elder Law Attorney-CPA Anthony B. Ferraro

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January 9, 2014

- Chicagoland Elder Law, Estate Planning, Estate Planning Attorney

Today, the world is quickly changing; medical care can be both impersonal and expensive.  But one area that has not changed with the times is traditional estate planning.  Traditional estate plans are designed to focus on just a couple of things and when creating them, most people tend to take the easy route.  Often times, people are in good health and think, “There’s nothing wrong with us now; we want our estate plan to be very simple.”  In those cases, their estate plans only really focus on who will get what when they die. The truth is, most of us are not going to die while we’re in good health.  As we venture into old age, many of us will, unfortunately, develop long-term illnesses and need specific care.  According to AARP, 70% of individuals aged 65 and older will spend part of their life living in a long term care facility.  The cost of long term care and Medicaid planning are probably not things that are included in the will or living trust you already have.  So shouldn’t we consider this when updating our estate plans? While the traditional estate plan details concerning who gets what when you die are important, it is equally, if not more important, to consider what could happen to you before you die.. -Anthony B. Ferraro
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Alzheimer’s Caregivers’ Advice | Illinois Estate Planning & Eldercare Attorney-CPA Anthony B. Ferraro

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January 8, 2014

- Alzheimer's Care, Eldercare Attorney, Estate Planning Attorney

Assuming the role of a caregiver for a loved one with Alzheimer’s is very hard. It can be a struggle, both physically and mentally.  As an Alzheimer’s caregiver, you are going to be approaching challenges that are both new and frightening. Alzheimer’s is a complex disease and it can affect your loved one in many different ways.  Someone with Alzheimer’s may struggle doing simple tasks such as getting dressed or eating.  The typical Alzheimer’s patient will also face confusion and, therefore, you will receive repetitive questions and see odd behavior. In a situation like this, it is normal to feel trapped.  However, I am here to assure you that there are ways to make you and your loved one’s journey through Alzheimer’s easier. First off, I suggest that you abferrarolaw.com/senior-resource-kits/alzheimers-resource-kit/.  There you will find many tools on how to cope through the Alzheimer’s journey, including the recording called, “Caring for and Communicating with the Alzheimer’s Patient.” Other helpful information covered on the above website includes paying for the cost of Alzheimer’s care, discovering hidden VA benefits, and how to approach crucial legal documents. -Anthony B. Ferraro
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