Personal Care Contracts and Medicaid

February 21, 2017

- Adult Illness, Alzheimer's and Dementia, Caregivers, Elder Law, estate planning

By attorney Rick Law of the Estate, Asset and Retirement Tax Lawyers at Law Elder Law in West suburban Aurora in Illinois. Seniors suffering from dementia who wish to qualify for state-paid nursing home care are required to spend down until they only have $2,000 in countable assets (this number varies from state to state). The state Medicaid agency is going to examine all major financial transactions that occurred during the five years prior to Medicaid application. This is where the personal-care contract needs to be very precise in how it details the care being provided. The state Medicaid agency will be looking to see if the caregiver agreement is being used to allow the parent to simply gift assets to children and still apply for long-term care on the state’s dime. State Medicaid agencies will generally look at two factors to determine whether a transfer of assets disqualifies the person receiving the care for Medicaid benefits:

the fair market value of the transaction
the intent behind the transaction

While that may sound simple enough, determining the prevailing price of eldercare services is not as easy as it sounds. Just about everyone, including hearing officers and judges, has a different opinion as to how to determine the prevailing price for caregivers. In some states, it may be essential that the personal-care agreement be entered into prior to services being rendered. In other states, those reviewing the contract will be looking for specifics such as how long the services will last, how many hours per week, what standards of services are being provided, and what, if any, provisions provide for a refund. Too many families needlessly lose everything they have. Don’t let that be you. If you need help paying the overwhelming cost of long term care, give our office a call at 800-310-3100. Your first consultation is absolutely free. We’ll let you know what steps you need to take, right now, to protect yourself and your family. Call now, because when you’re out of money, you’re out of options! Sincerely, Rick L. Law, Attorney, Estate Planner for Retirees. Rick has been named the #1 Illinois elder law estate planning attorney by Leading Lawyer Magazine. He has been quoted in the Wall Street Journal, AARP Magazine, TheStreet.com, and numerous newspapers and articles. His goal is to give retirees an informed edge when it comes to dealing with an uncertain future. Get flexible retirement strategies that work during good times and bad, plus information on how you can save your home and assets from being lost to the expenses of long term care. Call 800-310-3100 for your free consultation now!

Love and Affection

By Rick Law on

December 31, 2016

- Adult Illness, Caregivers, Elder Law, estate planning, Financial Planning

By elder law attorney Rick Law, managing partner at the multi-generation law form of Law Elder Law. Serving seniors and boomers in Western Chicagoland, Illinois. When someone provides a service for someone else, there is an expectation of compensation, but when the same services are performed by a family member, the presumption is that the services were performed gratuitously. Courts have historically held the presumption that when one family member provides a service for another family member, the person does so out of love and the services are considered gratuitous. Not only is there a historical prejudice against the adult child who is caring for an elderly parent, but in some states that prejudice is written in the administration rules of that state. It is your lawyer’s job to overcome the assumption that relatives perform services for each other out of love or mutual convenience. This can be quite a presumption to overcome, because the prejudice against contracts among relatives dates back to the 1800’s, when it was assumed that relatives performed services for the mutual convenience of everyone in their household. There are also deep-rooted cultural beliefs about caregiving among family members. For example, there are strong cultural beliefs at play that suggest parents should receive reciprocal free care from their children because of the years they spend as uncompensated caregivers raising their children. Your trusted elder law attorney should build into the language of the personal-care agreement that the transfers made under this contract are not for love and affection, but rather they are for services rendered to the elder by the caretaker for fair market value. If you’re ready to start getting your estate in order and secure your assets for the “worst-case” scenario, please give our office a call at 800-310-3100. Your first consultation is absolutely free. We’ll let you know what steps you need to take, right now, to protect yourself and your family. Call now. Sincerely, Rick L. Law, Attorney, Estate Planner for Retirees. Rick was named the #1 Illinois elder law estate planning attorney by Leading Lawyer Magazine. He has been quoted in the Wall Street Journal, AARP Magazine, TheStreet.com, and numerous newspapers and articles. Rick is the lead attorney for Law Elder Law, LLP, focusing in Estate Planning, Guardianship, and Nursing Home Solutions. His goal is to give retirees an informed edge when it comes to dealing with an uncertain future. Get flexible retirement strategies that work during good times and bad, plus information on how you can save your home and assets from being used to pay for long term care. Call 800-310-3100 for your free consultation now!

Is Your Disabled Child Protected After You Die?

By Rick Law on

December 26, 2016

- Adult Illness, Caregivers, Elder Law, estate planning, Financial Planning

By Rick Law, Elder Law Attorney and senior advocate at the multi-generation law firm of Law Elder Law in West suburban Aurora, IL. Serving seniors and their families in Western Chicagoland . What do you do if you’re an elderly parent still caring for a disabled child who can’t care for him or herself? Last week I wrote about “empty nesters” who have never really had an empty nest. These are parents of children with disabilities such as autism, cerebral palsy, hearing loss, mental retardation, vision impairment, muscular dystrophy, genetic and chromosomal disorders, Down’s syndrome, and fetal alcohol syndrome, to name just a few. Some disabilities are apparent at birth, and others are caused by accidents or manifest themselves as mental illness later in life, but the end result is the same: The child is being cared for by a loving parent who worries about who will provide care for that child once the parent is gone. The most common advice of the attorney who does not practice in the area of special needs trust planning (or what we prefer to call Tender Loving Care (TLC) Trusts) has been for the parent to disinherit the child. Disinherit means to make sure you leave that disabled child with absolutely no allocation of money directly. This gives the simplistic idea that one should just leave extra money to one of the other children who will provide care for the disabled child and money management. Even in the best of families, this is usually a disastrous idea for the following reasons:

It’s extremely difficult for an individual who receives extra money not to commingle that money with their own, and eventually treat it as their own. That money would become available in the event that the healthy child becomes divorced or is otherwise subject to loss to a creditor.
In many families the dynamic is such that the healthy children have some anger or resentment toward the disabled child because that sibling got more attention. Thus, healthy children may not want the role of caregiver and banker for their disabled sibling.
And most unfairly, leaving money to one child for disbursement to another child puts a target on the back of the healthy child, in that all complaints and concerns about money will be directed to that individual.

It is the job of the elder law and special needs attorney to assist families like this in developing proper planning so that we can help the parents to create a better way to manage both money and care after they are gone. A TLC Trust is designed to work in partnership with any public benefits such as Supplemental Security Income and Medicaid. It is a way for parents to leave money for the needs of their child beyond what public benefits would pay. A TLC Trust can provide supplemental care for recreation, social activities, pets, special therapies, entertainment, and even vacation opportunities for a child by the use of trust money. A TLC Trust can also purchase professional care management, which can enhance not only the dignity, but the quality of life of a disabled child. The TLC Trust is a far more loving and caring solution to the challenge of providing for a child with special needs. Before you disinherit your child with a disability – contact an elder law attorney who can assist you in designing a custom plan to meet the very special needs of your child, so that he or she can be given tender loving care after you have passed away. If you’re ready to start getting your estate in order and secure your assets for the “worst-case” scenario, please give our office a call at 800-310-3100. Your first consultation is absolutely free. We’ll let you know what steps you need to take, right now, to protect yourself and your family. Call now. Sincerely, Rick L. Law, Attorney, Estate Planner for Retirees. Rick has been named the #1 Illinois elder law estate planning attorney for the past 8 years in a row by Leading Lawyer Magazine. He has been quoted in the Wall Street Journal, AARP Magazine, TheStreet.com, and numerous newspapers and articles. Rick is the lead attorney for Law Elder Law, LLP, focusing in Estate Planning, Guardianship, and Nursing Home Solutions. His goal is to give retirees an informed edge when it comes to dealing with an uncertain future. Get flexible retirement strategies that work during good times and bad, plus information on how you can save your home and assets from being used to pay for long term care. Call 800-310-3100 for your free consultation now!

“Outmoded Medicare”

By Rick Law on

December 5, 2016

- Adult Illness, Caregivers, Long Term Care, Medicaid

By Rick Law, Elder Law Attorney at the Estate Planning Center at Law Elder Law. The multi-generation law firm of LEL serves seniors, boomers, and their families in Kendall, Kane, DuPage, Will, Cook and other counties in Illinois. The world was different in 1965. I remember most of the aged poor of our community went to the county home for the aged and infirm. Most men died before the age of 65, and women before the age of 70. There were few long-term care facilities, because few were needed. Today we have millions of people with long-term care needs. Many US citizens assume that Medicare is their right. They assume that the health reimbursement program provided by the United States government on behalf of persons who are over the age of 65, blind, and/or disabled has always been there, and always will be. But this is not the case. Instituted in July of 1965, The Medicare-Medicaid Act was part of a number of reforms implemented by President Lyndon Johnson and the Democratic majority, marking a major shift in our societal view of who should carry the cost of providing medical care for senior citizens. President Johnson stated: “No longer will older Americans be denied the healing miracle of modern medicine. No longer will illness crush and destroy the savings that they have so carefully put away over a lifetime so that they might enjoy dignity in their later years. No longer will young families see their own incomes, and their own hopes, eaten away simply because they are carrying out their deep moral obligations to their parents, and to their uncles and their aunts. And no longer will this nation refuse the hand of justice to those who have given a lifetime of service and wisdom and labor to the progress of this progressive country.” Medicare was built on a 1965 acute care model, designed to provide healthcare for the individual who has a probability of recovering from his or her disease. Medicare is not designed to pay for long-term care. Medicare was designed to ‘care’ about acute medical care; heart disease, gall stones or cancer. Medicare does not ‘care’ about diagnoses such as Parkinson’s Disease, Alzheimer’s, dementia, or long-term mobility problems. If you need long-term care, then you have lost the “diagnosis lottery”. If you need care in an assisted living facility or a nursing home, your care is not acute but long-term, and Medicare stops ‘caring’ about you. As soon as Medicare stops ‘caring’, you are on your own! You will need to have a substantial long-term care insurance plan, a deep pocket-book, or become impoverished. If you are impoverished as defined by the Medicaid program, then you will meet Medicare’s ugly sister, Medicaid. And that is a whole other story. Too many families needlessly lose everything they have. Don’t let that be you. If you need help paying the overwhelming cost of long term care, give our office a call at 800-310-3100. Your first consultation is absolutely free. We’ll let you know what steps you need to take, right now, to protect yourself and your family. Call now, because when you’re out of money, you’re out of options! Sincerely, Rick L. Law, Attorney, Estate Planner for Retirees. Rick has been named the #1 Illinois elder law estate planning attorney for the past 8 years in a row by Leading Lawyer Magazine. He has been quoted in the Wall Street Journal, AARP Magazine, TheStreet.com, and numerous newspapers and articles. Rick is the lead attorney for Law Elder Law, LLP, focusing in Estate Planning, Guardianship, and Nursing Home Solutions. His goal is to give retirees an informed edge when it comes to dealing with an uncertain future. Get flexible retirement strategies that work during good times and bad, plus information on how you can save your home and assets from being used to pay for long term care. Call 800-310-3100 for your free consultation now!

The Caregiver’s Contract

By Rick Law on

November 30, 2016

- Adult Illness, Caregivers

By elder care attorney and senior advocate Rick Law, founder and managing partner of the multi generation law firm of Law Elder Law, serving seniors boomers and their families in West suburban Aurora in Illinois. It is believed that caregiving has detrimental health and psycho-social consequences for caregivers. People frequently hear stories of the healthy wife taking care of her husband who is suffering from dementia. Often, when the husband finally passes, the wife’s health takes a quick downturn and she passes soon after. Being a caregiver, especially for a loved one, takes a toll. Caregivers are more likely to suffer from poorer physical and mental health than non-caregivers. Because of this burden, the family lawyer (or the lawyer in the family) is going to see more and more caregivers who want to create personal-care contracts that specify that the caregiver will agree to help the elderly person for a set amount of time in exchange for an hourly wage for these services. After the death of the affected loved one, lack of a personal-care agreement often leads to an estate administration problem. Many states provide a legal basis for an uncompensated caregiver to file a claim against the estate. The decedent’s creditors, provided they have an allowed claim, generally will be ranked ahead of the beneficiary when it comes to collecting on a claim. If the family caregiver does not have a personal-care contract, the caregiver will have a hard time establishing a status as a creditor with an allowed claim. In fact, many states’ dead man’s statute, which makes any testimony showing that the decedent entered into an express oral contract inadmissible, will stop caregivers in their tracks if they do not have a written contract. Even if caregivers are able to imply an oral contract existed, they are faced with the common-law presumption that the services were rendered gratuitously. It is possible to rebut this presumption, but it is a difficult road. Some states are recognizing this problem and addressing the needs of the family caregiver. The Illinois Probate Act permits family members who live with and care for a “disabled person” to file a claim for reimbursement in probate court upon the disabled person’s death. Too many families needlessly lose everything they have. Don’t let that be you. If you need help paying the overwhelming cost of long term care, give our office a call at 800-310-3100. Your first consultation is absolutely free. We’ll let you know what steps you need to take, right now, to protect yourself and your family. Call now, because when you’re out of money, you’re out of options! Sincerely, Rick L. Law, Attorney, Estate Planner for Retirees. Rick has been named the #1 Illinois elder law estate planning attorney for the past 8 years in a row by Leading Lawyer Magazine. He has been quoted in the Wall Street Journal, AARP Magazine, TheStreet.com, and numerous newspapers and articles. Rick is the lead attorney for Law Elder Law, LLP, focusing in Estate Planning, Guardianship, and Nursing Home Solutions. His goal is to give retirees an informed edge when it comes to dealing with an uncertain future. Get flexible retirement strategies that work during good times and bad, plus information on how you can save your home and assets from being used to pay for long term care. Call 800-310-3100 for your free consultation now!

The Caregiver’s Burden

By Rick Law on

November 25, 2016

- Adult Illness, Caregivers

By Rick Law, elder law estate planning attorney, and founder of the multi-generation law firm at Law Elder Law. LEL is home to the Estate Planning Center at Law Elder Law in Aurora, IL. Personal-care agreements are important for the person receiving the care, but they are also important for the caregivers. Individuals that take on long-term-care duties often see a decrease in earning potential and frequently have to cut into their own savings to provide for the person they are caring for. Caregivers usually cannot afford to quit their nine-to-five job, but they may be forced to cut back their hours in order to care for an elderly parent. These caregivers often put their own retirement at risk to care for a parent. A 2009 national survey of caregivers showed that over half of the responding caregivers reported a medium to high level of burden. A 2010 national survey of the full-time workforce also came to the conclusion that individuals who were employed full time and who also had caregiving responsibilities suffered from lower well-being than those without such responsibilities. Extensive data about the characteristics of caregivers and care recipients is available from an in-depth survey of a nationally weighted sample of caregivers providing assistance to persons people aged 50 and or older conducted in 2009 by the National Alliance for Caregiving and the AARP, Nat’l Alliance for Caregiving, Caregiving in the U.S. 2009: A Focused Look at Those Caring for the 50+ (2009), in which surveyed caregivers were more likely to report a high level of burden if they were primary caregivers, they were older, they were in fair or poor health, they were not employed, they had lower incomes, or the care recipient lived with them, id.; the survey used an index to measure the burden of care based on the number of hours of care per week provided and the number of instrumental activities of daily living performed. The survey, conducted by Gallup and Healthways, used an index consisting of six areas—life evaluation, emotional health, physical health, healthy behavior, work environment, and basic access to necessities—to measure overall well-being. Too many families needlessly lose everything they have. Don’t let that be you. If you need help paying the overwhelming cost of long term care, give our office a call at 800-310-3100. Your first consultation is absolutely free. We’ll let you know what steps you need to take, right now, to protect yourself and your family. Call now, because when you’re out of money, you’re out of options! Sincerely, Rick L. Law, Attorney, Estate Planner for Retirees. Rick has been named the #1 Illinois elder law estate planning attorney for the past 8 years in a row by Leading Lawyer Magazine. He has been quoted in the Wall Street Journal, AARP Magazine, TheStreet.com, and numerous newspapers and articles. Rick is the lead attorney for Law Elder Law, LLP, focusing in Estate Planning, Guardianship, and Nursing Home Solutions. His goal is to give retirees an informed edge when it comes to dealing with an uncertain future. Get flexible retirement strategies that work during good times and bad, plus information on how you can save your home and assets from being used to pay for long term care. Call 800-310-3100 for your free consultation now!

Feeling Trapped As a Caregiver

By Rick Law on

November 21, 2016

- Alzheimer's and Dementia, Caregivers, Elder Law, estate planning, Financial Planning

By Elder Law Attorney Rick Law. As an attorney advocate for senior care in the Western Chicago suburbs, Rick Law and the friendly and experienced staff at Law Elder Law are here to help you get all your ducks in a row and plan for the worst-case scenario. Recently Loretta, a caregiver client, visited our office and I sat down with her to ask about her experience as a caregiver for her husband, who has been affected by Alzheimer’s for the past decade. Serving as a caregiver for a loved one with long-term care needs has a unique set of feelings and experiences, which we at LEL strive to understand and accommodate. One of her strongest statements was the feeling that “It makes you feel so trapped… financially and socially… there are just so many unexpected areas of burden. The weight of it all traps you underneath.” As a caregiver, you are often left with few choices save for how you will respond in any given situation. Because of this, it is common for many caregivers to burn out. You can’t control your schedule. You can’t control your loved one’s incontinence or sleeping times. You can’t control what they are going to say or what they are going to do. You lose all freedom. Often you find that you lack control over the most basic areas of your life. As for social activities, Loretta told us “We both love music, and Stephen and I used to attend concerts together. After he was diagnosed it became more difficult to take him along, and eventually it got to the point where it was just too much effort and he didn’t enjoy it anymore.” Even having friends over is difficult. “What do you say to them?” she said, “And what do they say to you? It’s extremely awkward, disheartening, and embarrassing. In addition, there are times when Stephen became very angry, and because I’m doing the care-giving, I’m right there for him to express his frustration. I don’t want other people to see that. Remember, you can’t control anything. You lose all your freedom.” As I listened to Loretta share her experience caring for Stephen at home, I could not help but admire once again all the caregivers out there. Her story served as yet another reminder of why we at Law Elder Law do what we do: provide counsel and help to those who lovingly sacrifice their wealth, health, freedom, and careers to provide loving care for a spouse, child, or parent. If you’re ready to start getting your estate in order and secure your assets for the “worst-case” scenario, please give our office a call at 800-310-3100. Your first consultation is absolutely free. We’ll let you know what steps you need to take, right now, to protect yourself and your family. Call now. Sincerely, Rick L. Law, Attorney, Estate Planner for Retirees. Rick has been named the #1 Illinois elder law estate planning attorney from 2008-2016 by Leading Lawyer Magazine. He has been quoted in the Wall Street Journal, AARP Magazine, TheStreet.com, and numerous newspapers and articles. Rick is the lead attorney for Law Elder Law, LLP, focusing in Estate Planning, Guardianship, and Nursing Home Solutions. His goal is to give retirees an informed edge when it comes to dealing with an uncertain future. Get flexible retirement strategies that work during good times and bad, plus information on how you can save your home and assets from being used to pay for long term care. Call 800-310-3100 for your free consultation now!

Personalizing the Care Contract

By Rick Law on

October 24, 2016

- Adult Illness, Alzheimer's and Dementia, Caregivers, Elder Law, estate planning, Long Term Care

By Estate Planning Attorney Rick Law. Rick and his daughter Diana are the lead attorneys at Law Elder Law in the West Chicagoland suburb of Aurora, IL, just off of the Farnsworth exit of the I-88 tollway. A qualified and experienced elder law attorney will customize a personal-care agreement for your loved one as much as possible to make it a powerful document that will stand up to potential legal challenges. A generic contract that simply states that the elder is being provided care is not going to stand up to the scrutiny of either the state’s Medicaid department or the Department of Veterans Affairs. The affected loved one may need to qualify for public benefits; therefore, compliance with the often unfathomable regulations of the Medicaid department and Veterans Affairs must be taken into consideration. This includes specific items to clearly demonstrate what activities of daily living are being provided. Personal-care agreements should incorporate the elder’s answers to questions like, “What do you like to eat? What do you hate to eat? Would you like to rise early or sleep in? How often do you wish to have your hair done?” This level of personalizing the care contract can give a much more persuasive argument if the contract is later challenged. Sample daily log sheets so that the caregiver can record activities on a daily basis should be included by your attorney. Refer the family to a bookkeeping and payroll service to handle the appropriate and timely employment and tax-return filings. On occasion the affected loved one has an adult child who is a nurse, occupational therapist, or other licensed health-care professional who is legally qualified to do more health-care than a typical layperson. In those situations, it is important to draft those health-care details into the agreement so as to provide a legal and contractual basis for a higher level of compensation than could be paid to a nonprofessional. The typical nonprofessional caregiver will be compensated based on the normal regional private-pay rate for a non-skilled in-home care provider. A professional may be compensated at a professional rate for performing a care service within that person’s scope of expertise. It will always be necessary to keep proper records noting the hours worked, as well as the type of care given during those hours. Too many families needlessly lose everything they have. Don’t let that be you. If you need help paying the overwhelming cost of long term care, give our office a call at 800-310-3100. Your first consultation is absolutely free. We’ll let you know what steps you need to take, right now, to protect yourself and your family. Call now, because when you’re out of money, you’re out of options! Sincerely, Rick L. Law, Attorney, Estate Planner for Retirees. Rick has been named the #1 Illinois elder law estate planning attorney from 2008-2016 by Leading Lawyer Magazine. He has been quoted in the Wall Street Journal, AARP Magazine, TheStreet.com, and numerous newspapers and articles. Rick is the lead attorney for Law Elder Law, LLP, focusing in Estate Planning, Guardianship, and Nursing Home Solutions. His goal is to give retirees an informed edge when it comes to dealing with an uncertain future. Get flexible retirement strategies that work during good times and bad, plus information on how you can save your home and assets from being used to pay for long term care. Call 800-310-3100 for your free consultation now!

Drafting a Powerful Personal-Care Agreement

By Rick Law on

October 18, 2016

- Caregivers, Elder Law, Long Term Care

By Elder attorney Rick Law of the Estate Planning Center at Law Elder Law, a multi-generation law firm serving seniors and their families in the West suburbs of Chicago, IL. Drafting an interfamilial care agreement is not a one-size-fits-all, cookie-cutter task. Similar to creating an estate plan, simply pulling out a standard, generic employment agreement and changing the names will not do in this situation. After meeting with the client and family, the next step in the process involves obtaining a personal-care plan. A personal care plan can be initiated by a telephone conference involving the client, the family, and the affected loved one’s personal physician. A personal-care plan is the foundation upon which the personal-care agreement is built. In addition, it provides written evidence of the health condition that necessitates and justifies in-home personal care. This is vitally important when defending payments being made between family members. For people with Alzheimer’s, the care plan recommendation will state that the caregiver is needed for health care, hygiene, welfare monitoring, nutritional management, and assistance with various activities of daily life. The recommendation will typically end with the statement that “without this care, the patient would require care in a nursing facility.” Most family members are not licensed health-care professionals. A licensed health-care professional, such as a medical doctor, physician’s assistant, or other qualified individual, needs to be in charge of the case management and serve in an oversight capacity. An alternative method of creating a care plan is to hire a licensed geriatric care manager to go to the person’s house and do an assessment of the person’s needs. The geriatric care manager is trained to do a survey of the physical environment within the home and an inventory of all resources available to the individual. After completing the assessment of the individual, the environment, and the resources, a personalized care plan is created. With the assessment in hand, the lawyer will be able to draft a customized personal-care agreement. The agreement is tailored around what the care manager has identified as necessary care and other circumstances. If your loved one has memory problems and you’re afraid of the consequences that may bring, give our office a call today at 800-310-3100. Your first consultation is absolutely free. We’ll let you know what steps you need to take, right now, to protect yourself and your family. Call now. Sincerely, Rick L. Law, Attorney, Estate Planner for Retirees. Rick has been named the #1 Illinois elder law estate planning attorney for the past 8 years in a row by Leading Lawyer Magazine. He has been quoted in the Wall Street Journal, AARP Magazine, TheStreet.com, and numerous newspapers and articles. Rick is the lead attorney for Law Elder Law, LLP, focusing in Estate Planning, Guardianship, and Nursing Home Solutions. His goal is to give retirees an informed edge when it comes to dealing with an uncertain future. Get flexible retirement strategies that work during good times and bad, plus information on how you can save your home and assets from being used to pay for long term care. Call 800-310-3100 for your free consultation now!

Escalation of Care Required

By Rick Law on

October 13, 2016

- Alzheimer's and Dementia, Assisted Living, Caregivers, Elder Law, estate planning, General Interest, Long Term Care

By Rick Law of the Estate Planning Center at Law Elder Law. Rick Law and daughter attorney Diana Law are the lead attorneys at the multi-generational law firm of Law Elder Law. Serving seniors and their families through elder law services, estate planning, guardianship, probate, wills and trusts, and much more in Kane, Kendall, DuPage, Will and Cook counties in Illinois. A client walks into a lawyer’s office and says, “I have been going over and taking care of my elderly mother for the past few months for a few hours a day. Now she’s been diagnosed with Alzheimer’s, and this is going to take up a lot more of my time and energy. I may need for her to move in with me and my husband, and I am going to need to start charging her. I want to set up a personal-care agreement for her.” In this situation it is not too late to create a valid personal-care agreement even though care has already been provided for free, because at this point the client is saying that the care needs have intensified and it’s time for them to start being paid. The key for Medicaid eligibility is that someone can never be compensated for care that was being provided gratuitously. In the Medicaid context, care provided without a properly drafted and medically justified personal-care agreement is presumptively gratuitous. For example, the parents lived with their son for two years and he did many things for them gratuitously, and then suddenly he says he wants to receive payment. He says that not only does he want to receive payment going forward, he wants to be compensated for all that previous care. That will be a big issue for Medicaid eligibility for the affected loved one, because a retroactive payment will be viewed as a gift and could create a substantial period of ineligibility for the person needing Medicaid. The reality is that a lot of times people incrementally get into these situations. So if you the individual seek out lawyers early in that process, your lawyer would probably want to have them set up a low-level personal-care agreement. As the care increases, so would the amount that caregivers are being paid proportionally to the amount of hours they’re working over time. An elder law attorney will have ancillary documentation in place to validate the changes of care level needed. If your loved one has memory problems and you’re afraid of the consequences that may bring, give our office a call today at 800-310-3100. Your first consultation is absolutely free. We’ll let you know what steps you need to take, right now, to protect yourself and your family. Call now. Sincerely, Rick L. Law, Attorney, Estate Planner for Retirees. Rick was named the #1 Illinois elder law estate planning attorney by Leading Lawyer Magazine. He has been quoted in the Wall Street Journal, AARP Magazine, TheStreet.com, and numerous newspapers and articles. Rick is the lead attorney for Law Elder Law, LLP, focusing in Estate Planning, Guardianship, and Nursing Home Solutions. His goal is to give retirees an informed edge when it comes to dealing with an uncertain future. Get flexible retirement strategies that work during good times and bad, plus information on how you can save your home and assets from being used to pay for long term care. Call 800-310-3100 for your free consultation now!

Personal Care Contracts and Medicaid

Love and Affection

Is Your Disabled Child Protected After You Die?

“Outmoded Medicare”

The Caregiver’s Contract

The Caregiver’s Burden

Feeling Trapped As a Caregiver

Personalizing the Care Contract

Drafting a Powerful Personal-Care Agreement

Escalation of Care Required

Estate, Asset & Retirement Tax Attorneys

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