When a court decides that a special needs individual
needs someone to act as their legal representative, that individual is referred
to as a ward of the state. The first order of business for the courts is to
assign a guardian for the ward. In Bonita Springs, the courts like to act
quickly in these cases to help protect the interests of the ward. That is why
it is important for Bonita Springs families to understand the qualifications
for being a guardian in the event that the family experiences an unexpected
tragedy.
When a Medicaid recipient who was living in an assisted
living facility that was partially or wholly paid for be Medicaid passes away,
Medicaid will do what is known as an estate recovery. Under state and federal
laws, Medicaid is allowed to liquidate portions of the deceased’s estate to
recover as much of the costs of long-term care as possible. Under some
circumstances this would include the home of the deceased if the deceased had a
financial interest in the home. But there are instances where Medicaid cannot
liquidate a home to recover costs.
Estate planning is a complicated process that should
only be handled by an experienced professional. Every Port Charlotte resident
should have an estate in place that is administered by an expert, and every
resident should also be tutored on the kind of mistakes that can damage your
estate and make protecting your assets difficult.
Medicaid planning is a very important part of the elder
law process. If you do not prepare for Medicaid properly, you could wind up
losing assets that are very important to you and your family. Luckily, there
are assets that are already exempt from Medicaid which you and your family are
allowed to keep, even after the Medicaid recipient has passed away.
There is a lot for a Medicaid applicant to understand
when it comes to applying for Medicaid benefits. One of the more significant
topics to understand is Medicaid penalties and how they can affect your ability
to qualify for Medicaid. If you do your Medicaid application planning well in
advance, then the penalties are not quite as intimidating. But if you waited
until it was time for you or your loved one to transfer to assisted living to
submit your application, then you could be looking at penalties.
As you start to transition your life to an assisted
living facility, you will need to get the Medicaid application process started.
It is important to understand that the Medicaid application process is
complicated and can take a long time. It is not something you should try to do
without the help of an experienced legal professional. There can be a lot of
different things that affect your Medicaid application and your ability to get
the benefits when you need them.
When most people think of estate planning, they often
feel it is reserved for elderly people with considerable financial means. Any
person with a family and assets of any kind needs to think about protecting
what they have right now. There can come times when estate planning is simply
too late and should have been done years earlier. There are many good reasons
why you should not procrastinate with your estate plans any longer.
Any person with special needs who is under the age of
18 automatically falls under the protection and guardianship of their parents.
If the parents are no longer alive or unable to be suitable guardians, then the
court will assign guardians that will look after the child. A guardian is
responsible for making sure the child is taken care of, all paperwork for their
condition is filled out and filed, and the child’s finances are taken care of.
When you start utilizing an estate planner, you will
hear a lot about the probate court and what it will want to do with your
estate. A large portion of estate planning deals with making sure that
everything is in order so the estate is not slowed down during the probate
process. There are even some trusts that can be put in place to avoid probate,
which would allow a smooth transfer of your assets to your beneficiaries after
you have passed away.
When you are unable to speak for yourself, you want to
be sure that you are getting the right kind of healthcare. There are instances
people never think of where they are unable to make decisions for themselves
and an important decision might need to be made. For example, if you are under
anesthesia during surgery and a decision needs to be made, then what would
happen? The laws in your state protect you by allowing doctors to make
decisions in situations like that to save your life. But if your healthcare needs
differ from the state’s standard procedures, then you need to have a healthcare
proxy in place.
