Long Term Care
What The Advice Of A Qualified Senior Estate Planning Attorney Could Mean For You.
By Rick Law, Elder Law Attorney and Senior Advocate in Western Chicagoland, Illinois. The elder law a!orney provides legal advice and counsel to seniors so they can protect their home, their loved ones and their independence. We counsel clients so that they know the law. Just as a tax attorney advises clients how to arrange their financial affairs to provide the best financial outcome under the law, we counsel our clients on how to arrange their affairs to provide the best financial benefits under the law, as it relates to long-term care. We work within the law to lessen the financial assault of long-term health care expenses. We wish to provide a means to help our clients to pay for quality healthcare and to avoid being in a situation where they have been reduced to having only $2,000 of assets and a personal needs allowance of only $30. Some of the options that exist under the law include:
- Helping couples with long-term care issues to improve the quality of life for both the ill spouse and the well spouse.
- Helping couples with long-term care issues plan for improved survivor care financial benefits after the death of the ill spouse.
- Assisting the over-65 wartime veteran who may qualify for certain benefits to pay for in-home healthcare assistance and/or assisted living facility costs.
- Creating supplemental care trusts designed to pay expenses for frail seniors so they will be able to use their own assets for personal and medical expenses, while at the same time qualifying for Medicaid to pay for their nursing home care.
- Providing seniors with appropriate estate planning and trusts designed to fulfill the goal of leaving a legacy to the family.
- Assisting senior couples distressed by long-term care issues to improve the well spouse’s quality of life both now and after the death of the ill spouse.