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How to Vote While Living in a Nursing Home

By Elder Law, Long-Term Care

Voting is an important facet of democracy, but for many seniors, it can become increasingly difficult to get to the polls. For seniors who live in nursing homes, it can be even more challenging.

While it is necessary in Florida to physically cast a ballot, Florida allows absentee voting. The requirements for absentee voting vary by state, and some states require an excuse such as a physical disability to vote absentee. However, Florida and 36 other states do not require an excuse. A form of absentee voting used by 23 states, including Florida, is mobile polling. Mobile polling allows residents to vote from within their facility. To access mobile polling, contact your local elections office. Florida also offers supervised voting for absent electors. The supervisor of elections, pursuant to 101.65, F.S., is required to provide supervised voting at nursing homes if requested by the facility. Teams of at least two people, representing at least two parties, are provided for assistance. The senior can receive help from the supervised voting team or a person of the elector’s choice to cast the ballot.

Florida and 36 other states also allow early voting for those who can’t make it on Election Day. Early voting allows voters to visit an election office early without having to provide an excuse. In Florida, you can also receive personal help during early voting without having to explain the extent of your disability.

October 14, 2016
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Florida Right to Medical Marijuana Initiative finds support with seniors

By Elder Law, Health

In November, the Florida Medical Marijuana Legalization Initiative, also known as Amendment 2, will be on the ballot again after its defeat in 2014. The amendment has been surrounded by controversy with people on both sides advocating for its success and defeat. Supporters claim the passing of this amendment could help treat problems like chronic pain, glaucoma, cancer, PTSD, Parkinson’s disease, multiple sclerosis and more, which is an interest to many elderly people in Florida.

If the amendment passed, medical marijuana would be legal for individuals with specific diseases or individuals with conditions that are debilitating, AS determined by a physician. The amendment also has provisions that would require the Florida Department of Health to oversee marijuana production and distribution centers. In addition the Department of Health would also issue identification cards for patients and caregivers.

The amendment would provide about 450,000 Florida residents with access to full-strength cannabis.

In order for Amendment 2 to pass it would need a 60% supermajority. In 2014, the amendment received 57.62% of approval from Florida residents, and was just shy of receiving the supermajority.

Read more about the amendment here: https://ballotpedia.org/Florida_Right_to_Medical_Marijuana_Initiative,_Amendment_2_(2016)

 

September 23, 2016
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NYT: Forced arbitration clauses in nursing home contracts hurt seniors

By Elder Law, Long-Term Care

In a recent New York Times article called “Nursing Home Residents Still Vulnerable to Abuse,” the author discusses how federal regulations fail nursing home residents by not protecting them from mandatory arbitration clauses in contracts.

According to the article, forced arbitration requires residents to settle any conflicts regarding services through private arbitration rather than public lawsuits. Arbitration allows nursing homes and corporations to avoid liability, and preserve their reputations. Nursing homes also employ these clauses because private arbitration is much faster than litigation.

The article goes on to state that the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, which could have banned nursing home contracts from using arbitration clauses, allowed for homes to use them as long as they disclosed the clauses before making residents sign the contract.

Most of the disputes brought against nursing homes do not involve money but rather allegations of neglect and abuse. Unfortunately, the continuation of these arbitration clauses works to the detriment of the most vulnerable seniors.

Read the full article here: http://www.nytimes.com/2016/07/25/opinion/nursing-home-residents-still-vulnerable-to-abuse.html?rref=collection%2Ftimestopic%2FElder%20Care&action=click&contentCollection=timestopics&region=stream&module=stream_unit&version=latest&contentPlacement=3&pgtype=collection

September 16, 2016
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Dept. of Elder Affairs designates Tallahassee as first Dementia Caring Community in Fla.

By Elder Law, Health

Leon County and the City of Tallahassee are the first Dementia Caring Community in Florida, under a new designation in April 2016 by Sam Verghese, Secretary of the Florida Department of Elder Affairs.

According to Verghese, the initiative stems from the fact that Florida has the second highest incidence of Alzheimer’s disease in the United States. The community is part of the Department’s Dementia Care and Cure Initiative and will support individuals and families affected by the disease.

The department and city are currently in the process of creating a community work plan to take action at a local level. The city will work to achieve several goals for the Alzheimer’s and Dementia community through “awareness, assistance, and advocacy,” according to Verghese.

This announcement also comes with the news that the governor appointed four people to the Alzheimer’s Disease Advisory Committee.  Three of the appointees will serve three-year terms and one will serve a two-year term.

August 6, 2016
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How to Become a Florida Resident

By Elder Law, Estate Planning, Government Benefits, Tax Law

Becoming a Florida Resident can lead to significant benefits in access to both beautiful beaches and tax benefits.  One of the most important steps to becoming a resident is submitting a Declaration of Domicile.  In Sarasota County you will need to fill out the Declaration of Domicile and bring it to the Recording Department on the first floor of 2000 Main Street, Sarasota, FL 34247.  You will also need to pay a $10.00 fee for recording the Declaration.  A link to the Declaration of Residency form can be found below:

http://sarasotaclerk.com/FileLib/domicile.pdf

In addition to submitting the form above, consider taking the following steps to declare Florida as your residency:

  • Change your voter registration to Florida and vote here
  • Surrender your out-of-state driver’s license and obtain a Florida drivers license (or a Florida ID card if you do not drive)
  • Register your cars in Florida
  • If you belong to any out-of-state private clubs, change your status from resident to non-resident
  • File your federal income tax using your Florida address
  • If you have taxable assets that require it, file a Florida Intangible Personal Property Tax Return
  • Make primary banking accounts in Florida
  • Update estate planning documents using Florida documents and laws and declare yourself to be domiciled and a resident of Florida
  • Document that the majority of your time is spent in Florida through receipts or other relevant documentation. Report yourself as a Florida resident and use your Florida address when traveling and staying in hotels

 

For help updating your estate planning documents to reflect your Florida residency, contact one of our experienced estate planning attorneys at (941) 906-1231.

March 11, 2016
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Obtaining a Florida Death Certificate

By Elder Law

In order to obtain a death certificate for a death that occurred in Florida, you can fill out the form available from the link below and mail it with payment (amount determined through form) to:

State Office of Vital Statistics

Attn: Client Services

P.O. Box 210

Jacksonville, FL 32231-0042

Before mailing the form, call the Florida Dept. of Health, Bureau of Vital Statistics at (904) 359-6900 to ensure you are following the most up to date process to receive a death certificate quickly.

Certificate Request Form

Alternatively, you can order a copy of a death certificate through your local County Health Department.  Call your department for its particular instructions.

Anyone may order a Florida Death Certificate which does not include a cause of death.  However, a certificate with cause of death may only be ordered by the decedent’s spouse, parent, child, grandchild, or sibling who is 18 years of age or older.  If you are not a relative described above, you may still obtain a death certificate with cause of death if you provide documentation of your interest in the estate of the decedent.  Such documentation may include a Will, an insurance policy, etc.  For any death which occurred over 50 years ago, anyone may request a death certificate with cause of death.

February 16, 2016
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How do recent changes in Medicare rules affect access to Speech Generating Devices for patients?

By Medicare

Medicare has changed their coverage of Speech Generating Devices which affects many people’s access to devices they rely on to communicate.  In April of 2014, Medicare changed their categorization of Speech Generating Devices (SGDs) which electronically generate voices for patients who are unable to speak due to ALS or spinal cord injuries.  The policy change by Medicare had three major results:

  • SGDs were no longer purchased for patients by Medicare.  Instead, they became “capped rental” items meaning Medicare would pay for their rental for 13 months, after which they became the property of the patient.
  • SGDs would no longer be covered when a patient was in a hospital, nursing home, or home hospice program.
  • SGDs which had been provided previous to September of 2014 would no longer be covered because they were considered to have extra communication features. These features include the ability to access the internet and communicate with people long-distance.  Previously, patients had been able to pay extra to access these features from their devices but under the new Medicare rules, no device could have these features.  Devices owned by patients after the rental period also could not be upgraded at the cost of the patient.

Many patients also need eye-gaze technology to use SGDs and, although Medicare had covered these costs to allow patients the ability to communicate in the past, after these rule changes they began routinely denying coverage of eye-gaze devices.

Advocates for patients in need of SGDs have been trying to enact change and in late April, 2015, succeeded in getting the Steve Gleason Act passed through the Senate.  This act would return the ability to upgrade devices to be able to use the internet and long-distance communications on SGDs to patients.  It would also allow patients to retain their devices and coverage when entering hospitals or care programs.  This legislation is awaiting approval in the House.  Also in late April, Medicare changed their definition of what technologies SGDs could access to allow again for patients to access the internet and other services through their SGDs.  Although this policy has not yet gone into effect and SGDs are still being rented by Medicare instead of purchased, advocates are hopeful that changes will take place soon to ensure patients are given the technologies they need to communicate.

December 15, 2015
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New law signed by President Obama will require hospitals to provide Observation Status notice to patients:

By Elder Law, Medicare

When an individual goes to the hospital, they may not be admitted right away.  If one is not “admitted” to the hospital, Medicare will not pay for hospitalization and a patient may have a large medical bill as a result.  There may be a period in which an individual is being “assessed”.  This is called “Observation Status”.   Observation status ends once a patient is admitted or discharged.

After a three (3) night hospital stay, Medicare will cover rehabilitation.  Previously, patients are not aware of the difference between observation status and being admitted.  The new law known as Notice of Observation Treatment and Implication for Care Eligibility (NOTICE) Act signed by President Obama will take effect one year from August 6, 2015, the date it was signed.  Hospitals have to develop a notification system within this year.

The new law will require the hospitals to give notice to the patients who have been under observation status for more than 24 hours of their outpatient status within 36 hours or upon discharge, whichever happens sooner.  The notice must advise the patient of their outpatient status and advise that their stay does not qualify for rehabilitation services covered by Medicare because they did not meet the three (3) night requirement.

This is one step closer to ensuring hospital patients are properly being informed.

October 7, 2015
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Who is entitled to a Veteran’s Educational and Training Benefits?

By Government Benefits, Veterans Affairs

The Survivors’ and Dependents’ Educational Assistance (DEA) program provides that certain dependents of Veterans completely disabled or killed in active duty are eligible to receive educational opportunities.  Eligible dependents include sons, daughters, or spouses of a Veteran who experienced total disability in active service in the armed forces, who died with this disability, who is missing in action or captured by a hostile force, or who was forcibly detained by a foreign government.  A complete list of eligibility can be found here:  Click This Link
Qualified dependents are eligible to receive up to 81 months of education including degree and certificate programs, apprenticeships, or on-the-job trainings.

To apply for these benefits, fill out VA Form 22-5490, available at the following link: Click This Link

Those eligible but already enrolled in schooling must give the above application to their school and ask the school to complete VA Form 22-1999, available at the following link: Click This Link

September 15, 2015
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How Does Your State Rank Regarding Long Term Care?

By Long-Term Care

A:  A new study from AARP indicates long term care varies dramatically in cost and quality depending on where a person lives in the United State.  You can find the ‘scorecard’ that ranks all the states based on 26 different variables here: http://www.longtermscorecard.org/ Unfortunately, Florida ranks in the bottom 25% based on the study’s criteria.

All the more reason to have a Board Certified Elder Lawyer advise you about your options.  You can listen to a recent NPR story about the study here: http://www.npr.org/blogs/health/2014/06/19/323356217/how-your-state-rates-in-terms-of-long-term-care.

To make an appointment with Board Certified Elder Lawyer Babette B. Bach, contact Bach & Jacobs today.

July 25, 2014
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