“Keep it Simple” by signing a Last Will and Testament
Countless times, clients have told me they just want things kept “simple” if they die. Yet they never signed any Last Will and Testament. Why? “too complicated.” I’ve had meetings with panicky children who are dealing with a health crisis or death of a parent, who have just learned that in mom or dad’s quest for “simplicity,” they had never...
What’s a Trust? and Who’s who?
Oftentimes, a client will come to talk to me and say “I want to put my assets into a trust.” My question of course is, What are you trying to accomplish? Who suggested it?What do you think a trust is?” Sometimes the answer is, “so my assets don’t get spent on a nursing home.” Often the client says,”I don’t want my assets to be spent on a...
NJ Tax Court again confirms – inheritance tax is based on what the Will said
Transfer Inheritance Tax must be paid in NJ when wealth is transferred at death to certain categories of recipients. There is no tax on transfer to charities or to “Class A” beneficiaries – these are spouses, lineal descendants and lineal ancestors as well as step children. However there is a tax of 11% on everything above $25,000 per person that passes to a sibling of the...
Veterans Administration proposes look-back for special pension program
Presently, the VA Special Pension program bases eligibility on a “snapshot” of the income, expenses and very low assets of the applicant as of the time of the application. There is no specific asset limit, no look-back or transfer penalty (unlike Medicaid), and the applicant’s income is offset by qualified recurring medical expenses to see if the remaining income is below the...
Special Needs Trust Fairness Act is up again in the House
The Special Needs Trust Fairness Act (https://www.congress.gov/bill/113th-congress/house-bill/2123) was introduced in the last Congress and was designed to allow individuals with disabilities to establish a Special Needs Trust for themselves so that they could transfer excess assets into the trust and preserve the assets while also remaining or becoming eligible for crucial benefits under...
Medicaid’s MAAC meetings are open to the public
The public is allowed to attend the quarterly meetings of the Medical Assistance Advisory Council (MAAC). The council provides input to the state Director of the Division of Medical Assistance and Human Services (DMAHS) in the design and implementation of the NJ Family Care/ Medicaid Long-Term Services and Supports programs. Federal law and State statute provides for the establishment...
Brain injury caused by Blast trauma is often invisible
There is a fascinating article in the February 2015 issue of National Geographic Magazine on the subject of research into soldiers’ exposure to blasts (explosions) and the traumatic brain injury that results from that exposure — “The Invisible War on the Brain” by Caroline Alexander. This has been referred to as the “signature injury” of the wars in Iraq and...
Applicants need an advocate during Clinical Assessment for NJ Medicaid Services
The State of New Jersey has not yet proposed new regulations covering the details of its NJ FamilyCare MLTSS Medicaid program. However, the details can be found by reading the Contract which must be signed by a participating Contractor to the program. The Contract is 118 pages long. It does cross-reference certain federal and state regulations. Of course, an applicant first has to become...
Applying for NJ MLTSS? Here are the acronyms you need to know
You probably know by now that NJ Medicaid’s Home and Community Based Services are now being administered NJ FamilyCare and that the State’s Comprehensive Medicaid Waiver has created a whole new landscape that is centered around managed care. http://www.state.nj.us/humanservices/dmahs/home/mltss.html When applying for these services you will encounter a lot of code words. For...
Understanding Alzheimers Disease and Creating a safe environment for aging
I just came across a great article in the Journal of Family Practice (January 2015) by Marisa Mendola PhD and Barry D. Weiss, MD, called “Addressing Alzheimers: A pragmatic approach.” JFP_06401_Article1 The article is, of course, addressed to physicians who may be noticing signs of cognitive impairment in their patients or who have been alerted that “there seems to be...