Skip to main content
Category

Government Benefits

What are the non-financial requirements to qualify for VA benefits?

By Government Benefits, Veterans Affairs

To qualify for VA benefits, there are many financial and non-financial requirements for veterans and veterans’ spouses to meet. Listed below are some of the non-financial requirements:

  • Veterans or their spouses applying must be at least 65 years old or designated as disabled if younger.
  • Veterans must be “wartime veterans” which means that they served in the military for at least 90 days during the dates below. Also, the service is not limited to combat service.

According to Paying for Senior Care, the dates are:

  • World War II: Dec 7, 1941 – Dec 31, 1946
  • Korean War: Jun 27, 1950 – Jan 31, 1955
  • Vietnam War: Aug 5, 1964 – May 7, 1975 (or Feb 28, 1961 – May 7, 1975 for Veterans who served in Vietnam)
  • Gulf War: Aug 2, 1990 – Undetermined

 

  • Veterans cannot have been dishonorably discharged
  • A higher benefit is granted to veterans who are disabled
  • For spouses, the surviving spouse must have lived with the veteran at the time of his or her death and must be single at the time of the application.

If you need legal advice for VA benefits, please contact our office at (941) 906-1231 for an initial consultation.

March 14, 2017
Love0

What are some conflicts that arise from receiving VA benefits?

By Government Benefits, Veterans Affairs

Qualifying for VA benefits can be a complicated and extensive process due to certain requirements and conflicts with other government programs. Listed below are some rules and guidelines for veterans to follow to receive their benefits:

  • Because veterans cannot receive both VA Disability compensation and the VA Aid and Attendance Pension, they will receive the higher of the two programs
  • Veterans are able to receive both Aid and Attendance and Veterans Directed Home and Community Based Services
  • A surviving spouse of a veteran cannot receive both Dependent Indemnity Compensation (DIC) and a death pension on that veteran. However, the surviving spouse can opt for DIC and qualify for additional assistance of $300 a month.
March 10, 2017
Love0

Does the VA pay for assisted living?

By Government Benefits, Long-Term Care, Veterans Affairs

The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs does pay the rent of assisted living facilities for veterans that need certain eligibility requirements. However, it may pay for extra services that are essential in assisted living facilities.

Most veterans are expected to pay for assisted living facilities independently or through their long term care insurance companies. As a result, it is common for veterans to pay for assisted living using Aid and Attendance. Aid and Attendance is a pension for veterans over the age of 65 who need assistance with their daily living activities. This pension can be utilized for whatever purpose the veteran designates (i.e. assisted living rent, board, other services, etc.). Aid and Assistance can grant up to $2,120 a month in assistance for veterans.

If you need legal advice for VA benefits, Medicare, Medicaid planning, estate planning, probate or trust administration, please contact our office at (941) 906-1231 for an initial consultation.

March 7, 2017
Love0

Restricted Filing: Changes to Social Security May Affect Retirement Planning

By Asset Protection Planning, Elder Law, Government Benefits

In 2015, Congress passed the Bipartisan Budget Act of 2015 which put an end to Social Security strategies that allowed couples to grow their spousal benefits. The two strategies “file and suspend” and “restricted filing” were used by married couples and were known as “claim now, claim more later.”

 

Restricted Filing

 The Congressional legislation banned restricted filing for individuals under the age of 62 as of January 2016. Restricted filing allowed an individual who was eligible for both a spousal benefit and a retirement benefit to choose just the spousal benefit at the retirement age of 66. Thus, the benefit could continue to grow at 8% each year and then that individual could opt for a larger benefit at any time up to the age of 70.

 

Despite these changes, there are still ways to grow your Social Security benefits. One method of accomplishing this is by deferring your payout. Because Social Security grows by 8% each year between your retirement age (usually 66 or 67) and 70, you can amass a sizeable increase if you choose to defer. Deferring payment also helps spouses by increasing the Social Security survivor benefit.

March 3, 2017
Love0

File and Suspend: Changes to Social Security May Affect Retirement Planning

By Elder Law, Government Benefits

In the fall of 2015, Congress voted down the Social Security strategies known as “file and suspend” and “restricted filing” which were collectively called “claim now, claim more later.” These practices allowed couples to increase their benefits by thousands of dollars. However, because of the Bipartisan Budget Act of 2015, spousal benefits could cost Americans millions of dollars.

 

File and Suspend

 File and suspend was a strategy utilized by married couples about to retire. One spouse would apply for Social Security upon retirement and then ask to suspend their benefits. The other spouse would then be eligible for a spousal benefit, which is half the normal benefit. While this process is happening, the spouse with suspended benefits would watch their Social Security benefit increase at 8% each year until the spouse turned 70.

However, now due to the changes enacted in Congress, spousal benefits may only be received when the spouse whose financial record is being used for the application is currently receiving their own benefit.

 

February 28, 2017
Love0

What are Medicaid’s Asset Transfer Rules?

By Asset Protection Planning, Government Benefits, Medicaid Planning

Transferring one’s assets prior to applying for Medicaid can create several problems. The government does not want individuals transferring all of their assets to children and relatives in order to qualify for Medicaid. Thus, Congress has put in place rules and penalties for transferring assets.

Some transfers that are deemed inappropriate by Medicaid include refusing to take an inheritance that is left to you, adding a person’s name to an asset, selling an asset for less than its fair-market value, and purchasing non-Medicaid compliant annuities.

The penalty period is determined by dividing the amount transferred by the average private cost of a nursing home in your state, so determined by Medicaid.

When applying for Medicaid, individuals must disclose all transactions during a period of time called the “look-back period.” As of 2005, the Deficit Reduction Act increased this period from 3 to 5 years.

Recipients of financial transfers who are exempt from Medicaid penalties include a spouse, a disabled child, a trust for the benefit of a disabled child, and a trust for a disabled individual under 65. And exemptions also apply to the transfer of a home. You may transfer your home without the fear of penalties to your spouse, a child under the age of 21 who is disabled, a sibling who has lived in the home and holds an equity interest, and a “caretaker child.” A caretaker child is a child of the applicant who lived in the house for at least 2 years prior to the applicant’s nursing institutionalization and provided care for the applicant.

Please contact our office to schedule an initial consultation for any of your Medicaid Planning, Estate Planning, or Veterans Benefits needs.

December 30, 2016
Love0

Special Needs Trust Fairness Act

By Asset Protection Planning, Government Benefits

Yesterday a historic bill was signed into law by President Obama.  It allocates over $1 billion to fund Alzheimer’s research to find a cause and a cure, and methods of prevention.  Since so many of our elderly we serve and their families are devastated by this terrible disease, we have been given hope that the necessary amount of attention has been given by this bipartisan legislation to address this issue which left unchecked, could overwhelm our institutional care programs and service delivery infrastructure.

In addition it immediately gives a disabled individual, who is legally competent, the right to establish their own self- funded d4A Special Needs Trust.  This is a trust which exempts assets from being considered by Medicaid.  However all self- settled special needs trust are subject to a Medicaid payback on the death of the beneficiary.  This will end the foolish waste of time getting an elderly parent or a court to establish an individual SNT for a person who could do so himself or herself, but for the mistake made in the original OBRA ’93 act that left out the word “individual.”

If you have further questions on this topic please contact our office at (941) 906-1231 to schedule an appointment with one of our attorneys.

December 14, 2016
Love0

Is a Third-Party Supplemental Needs Trust right for you?

By Asset Protection Planning, Estate Planning, Government Benefits

While a first-party supplemental needs trust is designed to allow a disabled beneficiary place their own funds or assets in a trust, a third-party supplemental needs trust is meant for family members to assist a person with disabilities.

Just like a first-party supplemental needs trust, the assets in the third-party trust do not jeopardize the beneficiary’s eligibility for Supplemental Security Income (SSI). A third-party supplemental needs trust can hold any assets that the family wishes to provide (e.g. stocks, bonds, houses, etc.). Rather than giving the disabled individual the funds directly, the family can transfer them to the trust in order to provide a benefit to the beneficiary while not disqualifying the beneficiary from receiving government benefits.

While the beneficiary of the first-party supplemental needs trust must be below the age of 65, the age of the beneficiary does not matter for a third-party supplemental needs trust. Another key difference is that there is no payback requirement for a third-party supplemental needs trust. This means that when the beneficiary passes away, the remaining assets in the trust can be passed to relatives or charity instead of being used to reimburse the government.

If you have further questions on this topic or wish to set up a third-party supplemental needs trust, contact our office at (941) 906-1231 to schedule an appointment with one of our attorneys.

October 21, 2016
Love0

Is a First-Party Supplemental Needs Trust right for you?

By Asset Protection Planning, Estate Planning, Government Benefits

A first-party supplemental needs trust is created to allow disabled persons to receive the benefit of their funds in a trust while still qualifying for and receiving government benefits. An alternative to this trust is a pooled trust. A pooled trust is created by a non-profit organization, and individual beneficiaries can create accounts within the trust.

By pooling the assets of disabled persons, the organization can manage one master trust and maximize the benefits for the beneficiaries. The non-profit can make more stable investments and provide more services than a normal supplemental needs trust.

Most people with special needs join a pooled trust when they do not have anyone to create a first-party supplemental needs trust for them. And just like a first-party supplemental needs trust, a pooled trust is used for people to qualify for and remain eligible to receive government benefits, such as Medicaid and SSI.

A couple advantages of a pooled trust are the low costs and the fact that the funds will be used to help others with disabilities.

If you have further questions on this topic, contact our office at (941) 906-1231 to schedule an appointment with one of our attorneys.

 

October 18, 2016
Love0

What is the Medicaid Estate Recovery Program?

By Estate Planning, Government Benefits, Medicaid Planning

If individuals receive Medicaid benefits during their lifetimes, Medicaid may have a claim against their estates for any amount spent on the recipient. This is called the Medicaid Estate Recovery program. The program, which operates on a state and federal level, is designed to recover the assistance payments from the assets in the estate.

Estate recovery applies to anyone who received government benefits and were age 55 years or older at the time of their death. The law requires that the personal representative or attorney of the estate send a copy of the death certificate to the Agency for Health Care Administration to determine whether Medicaid provided assistance. If so, a claim is then filed with the probate court.

The main targets of this program are nursing home residents who were also Medicaid recipients during their lifetime. If the Medicaid recipient leaves behind a spouse, a child under the age of 18, or a blind/disabled child, the estate recovery does not apply.

Bach & Jacobs, P.A. provides assistance to personal representatives and trustees who are responsible for administering estates and trusts. If you have been named as a personal representative or trustee for someone who has recently died, contact our firm for a consultation with one of our attorneys.

October 11, 2016
Love0