Author: Linda Ershow-Levenberg

On February 20th, the federal Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) launched a new rating system for nursing homes which is based on factors that go beyond self-reported data, and will reflect auditing of self reports. Staffing levels must be reported quartely, and will be cross-matched against payroll records to verify accuracy. The use of antipsychotic medications will now be a...

Some members of Congress are taking an interest in the need to provide care planning services for patients who have Alzheimers’ dementia. This proposal could be of tremendous benefit to patients and their family caregivers. S. 857 was introduced March 25, 2015 and referred to the Senate Finance Committee because it deals with a Medicare benefit. The title is “A bill to amend title...

On a very long flight back from Vietnam last week, I had a chance to see the film “Still Alice” starring Kate Bosworth. What a sympathetic and genuine depiction of the distress experienced by Alice, an accomplished university professor, wife and mother, when she learns that she has developed Alzheimer’s Disease at age 50. The rapid progression of the genetically-based early...

There are times that an individual with disabilities who is under 65 receives a lump sum of money at a time when s/he is receiving benefits through Supplemental Security Income (SSI), Medicaid or the Division of Developmental Disabilities (DDD). The problem of course is that those are all means-tested benefits and the participant is at risk of losing eligibility if they retain the assets....

When a Medicare patient has been treated for three days or more as an admitted inpatient in a hospital, they may need subacute treatment for maintenance of their fragile condition, or for cognitive or physical rehabilitation. If a physician prescribes those services and they need to be performed by licensed personnel (nurses, physicians, physical and occupational therapists, for example) in an...

Child moves into parent’s home with his family, with no lease, no written agreement. Stays there for decades and at some point, the parent dies.What rights do they have, and what obligations?  Aging parent moves into child’s home, perhaps a “mother-daughter” structure or perhaps using a bedroom within the main part of the house, with an informal arrangement for sharing...

Federal law requires that nursing home patients be given the same services and same level of care regardless of whether who is paying for it — Medicaid or otherwise. The federal “bill of rights” for nursing home residents is at 42 U.S.C. 1396r(c)(4)(A): “(4) Equal access to quality care.(A)  A nursing facility must establish and maintain identical policies and practices...

There’s no doubt about it, long-term care insurance is expensive, and the premiums can be steep if you wait until after age 70 to first buy a policy. Some companies have gotten approvals for big premium increases on old policies. The marketplace has shrunk as companies have left the business, and some companies create bureaucratic barriers to paying claims. However, there’s also no...

Parents of children with special needs are typically aware that their child may need to be financially eligible for important governmental programs through Medicaid, SSI or the DDD. Under these programs, there is an limit on the amount of assets the child can have. These parents will often consider (1) leaving the child’s share of the estate in a supplemental needs trust, or (2) not...

A person who receives Medicaid or SSI (Supplemental Security Income) can not have more than $2,000 in countable, available resources while they receive these benefits. There are also limitations on their monthly income, and things that don’t seem like “income” can still be counted as such.  If the person is under 65 and is about to receive a lawsuit settlement, it is well...