Can Elder Financial Abuse Be Stopped?

The numbers are chilling. One in ten Americans age 60+ has experienced elder abuse. One of the most common forms of elder abuse is financial, says a recent article from Forbes titled “What Is Elder Financial Abuse—And How Do We Prevent It?”

Financial elder abuse is defined as when someone illegally or improperly uses an elderly person’s money for their own use. Elderly people are easy victims for obvious reasons. They may be mentally vulnerable, suffering from Alzheimer’s or other form of dementia. They may also be lonely and find the company of a new “friend” is so delightful that it impairs their judgement.

Financial elder abuse occurs most often from adult children, but also in nursing homes and assisted living facilities. Be on the watch for those new friends who enter senior’s lives, especially if they seek to limit contact with family members.

Caregivers or nursing staff have access to resident’s possessions, including checkbooks, ATM cards and credit cards. Monitoring an aging parent’s bank accounts on a regular basis should be part of caregiving by adult children. Unusual transactions, large withdrawals or unlikely purchases by credit card should immediately be reported to their bank or credit card company.

Less obvious and harder to track, is when someone forces a nursing home resident to sign legal documents transferring ownership of homes, cars, bank accounts and even investment accounts. They may also be pressured into creating a new will.

Here are some red flags to watch for:

New names being added to bank accounts or on credit cards.
Finding unpaid bills, letters from collection agencies or past due notices from creditors, especially when the person has sufficient funds.
Relatives who suddenly show up and want to be involved with an aging senior, including estranged children.
The unexpected transfer of any kind of asset to someone who is not a family member.
Any change in habits concerning money, including someone who was never worried about money suddenly being concerned about paying bills.

The elderly are often scared to report being victimized. They may fear further loss of control over their lives or be embarrassed to have been scammed. If a caregiver is stealing, they may also be physically threatened, or frightened of losing their familiar care provider.

Talk to your estate planning attorney, speak with the local Adult Protective Services office, or contact the National Elder Fraud Hotline, if you are concerned about a loved one being financially exploited. If you believe a loved one is in physical danger, contact the local police. Don’t hesitate to ask for help.

Reference: Forbes (Nov. 9, 2021) “What Is Elder Financial Abuse—And How Do We Prevent It?”

How to Avoid Medicaid Estate Recovery

Medicaid is a government program that helps seniors and others pay for long term care. However, it’s not always free, explains the article “What Is Medicaid Estate Recovery?” from AOL.com. The Medicaid Estate Recovery Program (MERP) is used by states to recover costs from estates with funds. The goal of Medicaid estate recovery is to make the program affordable for the government, but it can have a severe impact on the beneficiaries of Medicaid recipients. An estate planning elder law attorney should be contacted, if you believe you or a loved one may need Medicaid.

Seniors are eligible for Medicare when they turn 65. This program pays for many healthcare expenses, but not for long-term care in a nursing home. Medicaid is used when someone does not have long term care insurance or enough money to pay for long-term care out of pocket. Medicaid can also be used for long-term or nursing home care, if steps have been taken to protect assets. This usually includes strategies, like trusts and Medicaid Asset Protection Trusts (MAPT).

A federal law passed in 1993 (the Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act) requires states to attempt to seek reimbursement from a Medicaid beneficiary’s estate after they have died. Some of the costs that the state will try to recover include:

Nursing home costs
Home and community-based services
Medical services received through a hospital where the recipient is a long-term care patient
Prescription drug services for long-term care recipient

The recovery program lets Medicaid pursue any eligible assets owned by the estate. While this depends upon where you live, any assets that are part of the probate estate could be attached, including:

Bank accounts
Your home or other real estate
Vehicles or other real property

In addition, some states allow Medicaid to recover assets that are not subject to probate, including jointly held accounts, Payable-On-Death (POD) bank accounts, real estate owned in joint tenancy with right of survivorship, living trusts and any other assets that the Medicaid recipient had a legal interest in.

An estate planning elder care attorney in your state will know what types of assets your state tends to pursue and will help you understand what can and cannot be used for Medicaid benefit recovery.

Note that while Medicaid cannot take the primary residence while the recipient is still living, they can place a lien on the home. If the recipient passes away and a beneficiary inherits the home, they will not be able to sell the property until the lien has been satisfied.

For beneficiaries, Medicaid recovery means a smaller inheritance. However, that’s not the only thing to be mindful of. There are laws known as “filial responsibility laws” that allow healthcare providers to sue the children of long-term care recipients to recover nursing care costs. This is not commonly done as of this writing, but the costs of COVID may change this in the near future.

Strategic planning can help you or loved ones avoid the financial impact of Medicaid estate recovery. If you are eligible and can afford to buy a long-term care policy, that may help to cover most of the cost of care. Another option is to remove as many assets from the probate process as possible. An estate planning attorney will be able to help you create a plan to protect your assets.

Reference: AOL.com (February 5, 2021) “What Is Medicaid Estate Recovery?”

Visiting Grandma at the Nursing Home

In spots where visits have resumed, they’re much changed from those before the pandemic. Nursing homes must take steps to minimize the chance of further transmission of COVID-19. The virus has been found in about 11,600 long-term care facilities, causing more than 56,000 deaths, according to data from the Kaiser Family Foundation.

AARP’s recent article entitled “When Can Visitors Return to Nursing Homes?” explains that the federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) has provided benchmarks for state and local officials to use, in deciding when visitors can return and how to safeguard against new outbreaks of COVID-19 when they do. The CMS guidelines are broad and nonbinding, and there will be differences, from state to state and nursing home to nursing home, regarding when visits resume and how they are handled. Here are some details about the next steps toward reuniting with family members in long-term care.

When will visits resume? As of mid-July, 30 states permitted nursing homes to proceed with outdoor visits with strict rules for distancing, monitoring and hygiene. The CMS guidelines suggest that nursing homes continue prohibiting any visitation, until they have gone at least 28 days without a new COVID-19 case originating on-site (as opposed to a facility admitting a coronavirus patient from a hospital). CMS says that these facilities should also meet several additional benchmarks, which include:

a decline in cases in the surrounding community
the ability to provide all residents with a baseline COVID-19 test and weekly tests for staff
enough supplies of personal protective equipment (PPE) and cleaning and disinfecting products; and
no staff shortages.

Where visits are permitted, it should be only by appointment and in specified hours. In some states, only one or two people can visit a particular resident at a time. Even those states allowing indoor visits are suggesting that families meet loved ones outdoors. Research has shown that the virus spreads less in open air.

Health checks on visitors. The federal guidelines call for everyone entering a facility to undergo 100% screening. However, the CMS recommendations don’t address testing visitors for COVID-19.

Masks. The federal guidelines say visitors should be required to “wear a cloth face covering or face mask for the duration of their visit,” and states that allow visitation are doing so. The guidelines also ask nursing homes to make certain that visitors practice hand hygiene. However, it doesn’t say whether facilities should provide masks or sanitizer.

Social distancing. The CMS guidelines call on nursing homes that allow visitors to ensure social distancing, but they don’t provide details. States that have permitted visits, state that facilities enforce the 6-foot rule.

Virtual visits. Another option is to make some visits virtual. Videoconferencing and chat platforms have become lifelines for residents and families during the pandemic. Continued use after the lockdowns can minimize opportunities for illness to spread.

Reference: AARP (July 22, 2020) “When Can Visitors Return to Nursing Homes?”

Can I Get Paid to Be a Caregiver for a Family Member Who’s a Vet?

AARP’s recent article entitled “Can I Get Paid to Be a Caregiver for a Family Member?” says that you may be able to get paid to be a family caregiver, if you’re caring for a veteran. Veterans have four plans for which they may qualify.

Veteran Directed Care. Similar to Medicaid’s self-directed care program, this plan lets qualified former service members manage their own long-term services and supports. Veteran Directed Care is available in 37 states, DC, and Puerto Rico for veterans of all ages, who are enrolled in the Veterans Health Administration health care system and require the level of care a nursing facility provides but want to live at home or the home of a loved one. A flexible budget (about $2,200 a month) lets vets choose the goods and services they find most useful, including a caregiver to assist with activities of daily living. The vet chooses the caregiver and may select any physically and mentally capable family member, including a child, grandchild, sibling, or spouse.

Aid and Attendance (A&A) Benefits. This program supplements a military pension to help with the expense of a caregiver, and this can be a family member. A&A benefits are available to veterans who qualify for VA pensions and meet at least one of the following criteria. The veteran:

Requires help from another to perform everyday personal functions, such as bathing, dressing, and eating
Is confined to bed because of disability
Is in a nursing home because of physical or mental incapacity; or
Has very limited eyesight, less than 5/200 acuity in both eyes, even with corrective lenses or a significantly contracted visual field.

Surviving spouses of qualifying veterans may also be eligible for this benefit.

Housebound Benefits. Veterans who get a military pension and are substantially confined to their immediate premises because of permanent disability are able to apply for a monthly pension supplement. It’s the same application process as for A&A benefits, but you can’t get both housebound and A&A benefits simultaneously.

Program of Comprehensive Assistance for Family Caregivers. This program gives a monthly stipend to family members, who serve as caregivers for vets who require help with everyday activities because of a traumatic injury sustained in the line of duty on or after Sept. 11, 2001. The vet must be enrolled in VA health services and require either personal care related to everyday activities or supervision or protection, because of conditions sustained after 9/11. The caretaker must be an adult child, parent, spouse, stepfamily member, extended family member or full-time housemate of the veteran.

Reference: AARP (May 15, 2020) “Can I Get Paid to Be a Caregiver for a Family Member?”

Estate Planning Blog Articles

Estate & Business Planning Law Firm Serving the Providence & Cranston, RI Areas

Can Elder Financial Abuse Be Stopped?

How to Avoid Medicaid Estate Recovery

Visiting Grandma at the Nursing Home

Can I Get Paid to Be a Caregiver for a Family Member Who’s a Vet?

Join Our eNewsletter

Recent Posts

Can Elder Financial Abuse Be Stopped?

How to Avoid Medicaid Estate Recovery

Visiting Grandma at the Nursing Home

Can I Get Paid to Be a Caregiver for a Family Member Who’s a Vet?

Categories

Email/Social Media

Quick Links