Category Archives: Walnut Creek Elder Law

VA Benefit May Help Cover The Costs of In Home Care or an Assisted Living Facility

The Veteran’s Administration has a pension benefit known as Aid and Attendance, for the benefit of older, disabled war time veterans who have served at least one day in the service during an official wartime period. This benefit can help pay the costs of in home care, board and care and assisted living facilities. The […]

How Much Can I Have In IRA’s and Still Qualify for Medi-Cal?

We are often asked the question as to how much you or your spouse can have in IRA’s and 401k’s and still qualify for Medi-Cal. The Medi-Cal applicant, or the ill spouse, can have any amount of IRA’s, 401k’s etc. These are so-called “qualified funds.” The only requirement is that the Medi-Cal applicant must be […]

Does Your Trust Have a Mandatory Bypass Provision?

Most modern Revocable Living Trusts do not have a Mandatory Bypass Provision, which is usually good planning. This provision is normally NOT necessary, and if you have one, it can cause unnecessary headaches after the first spouse dies. A mandatory bypass provision will require splitting and re-titling of the trust assets between a Revocable Survivor’s […]

Springing vs. Immediate Financial Powers of Attorney

You should have a Financial Durable Power of Attorney (DPA) as part of your asset protection estate plan. This DPA allows your attorney in fact, such as your spouse or a child, to handle various financial matters and transactions for you. Categories of these powers include real estate, banking, financial institutions, retirement plans, trust activities, […]

Using An Annuity For Medi-Cal Eligibility For Spouses

In previous blogs, we have discussed various techniques, within the regulations, for obtaining Medi-Cal qualification for an ill spouse, when the couple has excess assets. These techniques include “spending down,” gifting and filing a court petition to obtain an order that allows the couple to keep all of their assets. In certain circumstances, especially between […]

2017 MEDI-CAL DESK REFERENCE

2017 MEDI-CAL DESK REFERENCE Divestment Penalty Divisor $8,189.00 Individual Resource Allowance $2,000.00 Monthly Personal Needs Allowance $35.00 Community Spouse Resource Allowance $120,900.00 Monthly Maintenance Needs Allowance $3,023.00 Resource Allowance for a Couple (Husband and Wife both in facility) $2,000.00/each MICHAEL J. YOUNG, ATTORNEY AT LAW Elder Law Planning, Estate Planning, Trusts, Probate, Real Estate, Preservation […]

Do not Listen To Your Neighbors Regarding Medi-Cal Eligibility

Do not listen to your neighbors regarding Medi-Cal eligibility! Over the last number of days, we have been told by several individuals who are interested in our services, that their understanding is that they would never qualify for Medi-Cal based upon “advice” they received from their neighbors. In each case, the advice was wrong. One […]

Medi-Cal Recovery Will Be Limited to Probate Estates after January 1, 2017

We have recently blogged about the new legislation Governor Brown signed, effective January 1, 2017, which changes the rules regarding recovery by the state for payments it has made to nursing homes for Medi-Cal recipients. Under the old law, the only way we could avoid recovery was to ensure that there was nothing in the […]

John Hancock Has Dropped Traditional Long Term Care Insurance – But All Is Not Lost!

Forbes Magazine has recently reported that John Hancock is the latest insurance company to drop out of the traditional long term care insurance market. John Hancock has been one of the largest providers over the years, having sold some 1.2 million traditional long term care insurance policies. It is estimated that there are now less […]

‘Tis the Season for Stress’ – Special Challenges

Once again the Holiday Season is upon us. ’Tis the season’ for mixed blessings. Along with the joys of the season come the stressors. This year you wonder how you will manage to get everything done. Your “to-do” list, as always, seems never ending with shopping, baking and decorating. This year, however, you know at […]