Massachusetts Estate Planning and Elder Law

Estate Planning When Your Child is an Addict

People often consider putting an estate plan together when they are going through a crisis. But how often do they think about doing (or re-doing) their estate plan when their child is in crisis?  A recent article in the Boston Globe about parents of heroin or oxycontin addicts who have formed support groups made me wonder how many of these parents have changed their Wills, Trusts, or life insurance policies  to reflect the crisis that their children are in. It would be quite dangerous (and perhaps even deadly) for an addicted child to inherit money outright. 

Even an adult child who is having problems with gambling, alcohol or drugs should probably not receive large inheritances outright, and should certainly not be named as your Power of Attorney (the person who would be managing your property in the event of your disability.)  If an adult child is named, and there has been a severe change in their circumstances, you should review your estate plan. 

While it can be distressing to admit, you must let your attorney know about these issues when you are planning your Wills, naming beneficiaries on insurance policies or retirement accounts, and when choosing agents to serve under the various documents.  Your attorney can let you know about the various strategies that exist to make sure that your child is protected in the event of your death - both from the danger of having access to no money, and the danger of having too much. 

(For information on the support systems available in Massachusetts for parents of addicts, visit  http://learn2cope.org/ .)

New Local Web-zine, with a Focus On Parkinson's Disease

Cindy Beth Bittker, the creator of the new web-zine Hull Magazine, has put a special focus on Parkinson's Disease in her online magazine.  In addition to containing tons of information about the lovely little seaside town of Hull, the magazine also offer articles on Parkinson's and links to Parkinson's support groups and other resources.

This month, she is featuring an interview with Jim Maurer, a 75 year old Hull resident who was diagnosed with Parkinson's at age 55.  Jim talks about his journey with the disease, his advocacy work, and the importance of  funding for continued research. 

A Financial Checklist for Parents of Children with Special Needs

Financial and estate planning is important for every family, but more so for those families who have children with special needs.  MassMutual has a recent article on Helping to Build the Financial Future of Your Child with Special Needs, which provides a checklist for parents to consider when planning.  The list includes:

• Investigating what government benefits your child and family might be eligible for,
• Making sure your health plan is adequate for your child's present and future needs,
• Considering the financial needs of your child's guardian in the event of your death, and making sure the guardian will have adequate information regarding your child's needs,
• Thinking about where your child will live when they are older, and
• Making sure that your estate plan is adequately set up to provide for your child, while still allowing them to maintain the public benefits to which they are entitled. 

Old Enough for an Elder Law Attorney?

I often have people ask me, "how old do you have to be to need an elder law attorney?" I usually say that there is no age limit, and if you think you might get old some day, you need an elder law attorney.  I have some clients who are in their 40's, but want to do some long term planning to make sure they will have enough to live on when they retire, and they have questions about long term care insurance and what that pays for.  I have clients in their 50's who are very sick, and at the end of their lives. I have clients in their 60's who are planning for retirement. And I have clients in their 80's and 90's - some of whom are living in a nursing home or assisted living, and others who live at home and are still driving. 

I also have clients who are in their 30's, with young children who have disabilities.  You see, part of elder law is also disability law - helping parents plan for their children's future, and making sure that the resources needed to care for their children, who may never live independently, will be there even after the parents pass away.  Through the drafting of special needs trusts and other instruments, inheritances can provide for the supplemental needs while the medical coverage and payments from government programs are not jeopardized.

So, whether or not you need an elder law attorney is not based on your age, but rather on your circumstances, your children's circumstances and if you plan on getting old some day.

Choosing Guardians for Your Child with Special Needs

Choosing a potential guardian for a child is no easy task for any parent, but it may be even more difficult for a parent of child with special needs.  In addition to things like "will my kids be comfortable in their home?" you also have to consider

• do the guardians live near my child's medical providers? do they live near better (or less stellar) medical providers?
• would the guardians be willing to learn the procedures necessary to care for my child's feeding tube, catheter, or other medical devices?
• could the guardians handle my child's hyperactivity or bi-polar disorder? are they willing to learn?
• have I left enough resources either through life insurance policies or other means so that the guardians could renovate their house to accommodate my child's wheelchair, pay for a nurse or other home help to come in and assist them in learning how to perform any special procedures, or even stop working to care for my child full time?
• have I spoken to the proposed guardian to make sure they are comfortable with taking on these additional responsibilities in the event of my death?

The proposed guardian does not have to be able to do all those things now, but they do need to love your child and be willing to learn to raise a child with special needs - whether they are medical, neurological, or a combination.       

Another important thing to consider is having all of your child's medical information - diagnoses, doctors, therapists, surgeries, medications (with dosage, prescribing doctors, reason for medication), x-rays, cd's with MRI's or cat scans or endoscopies, IEP's, recommended books- gathered in a binder  for your potential guardian, or in the event of any emergency where that information might be needed. Just make sure to keep it up to date.

I work with families of children with special needs to prepare for their future with special needs trusts, wills, guardianships and other planning tools.

New Year's Resolutions

People make New Year's Resolutions about a lot of things - getting in shape, stopping smoking, getting organized, drawing up their Will and other planning documents.  And just as your personal trainer can give you information about the best way to get in shape and guide you on your way, your doctor can offer assistance in stopping smoking and your local organizing whiz can help you find the best way to manage your paper - your attorney can help you figure out the best way to form your estate plan.

Don't be afraid to contact your attorney and say "I know I need to have an estate plan, but I don't know what I need and I'm not sure how to distribute things."  That's OK. I have many clients who call up with the same concerns.  The initial meeting with my clients involves gathering a lot of information from them, and asking a lot of questions to help them form in their own mind what they want. Through the questions I ask, they can figure out who the best person is to serve as their agent under a Durable Power of Attorney, who they should appoint as guardian for their young children, or as trustee of their trust.  And through our conversation, we can decide if they just need a will, or if a trust of some sort would work best for them. 

So, give your personal trainer a call and let him know your fitness goals - he can help you get there.  Then, make an appointment with your attorney and let her know what your goals are for your and your family's future - and she can help you get there.

Planning for a Child with Special Needs

Planning for a child with special needs requires more than just making sure that you leave some money for them. Many times, children (including adult children) are receiving Medicaid or other government benefits due to their disability.  This is true even if they have private health insurance as well, since private health insurance doesn't cover everything. 

A Special Needs Trust, also called a Supplemental Needs Trust, can be a good tool in planning for your disabled child, as discussed in this recent New York Times Article. (You may need to register to read it, but registration is free.)  A special needs trust will allow your disabled child to continue to receive the necessary benefits under Medicaid or Social Security, while having money set aside to pay for those items and services that are necessary, but not otherwise covered. 

In general, the funds in a Special Needs Trust cannot be used to pay for food or shelter, since that is what Social Security Disability Insurance pays for, but they can be used to pay for things such as travel, clothing, classes, transportation, hobbies, vacations, haircuts,  TV's, DVD's, etc. In addition, because the funds are from a third party, meaning they did not belong to the beneficiary, the Trust does not compromise the beneficiary's government benefits. 

It is not just wealthy families who set up Special Needs Trusts.  A Special Needs Trust can be funded with bequests from the parent's (0r even grandparent's) Wills, and life insurance policies.  You can look out for your child while you are alive, and a Special Needs Trusts can help you provide for your child after you are gone.