Today, elder people are living longer than ever before, and growing in number. According to the National Center for Health Statistics, the average life expectancy in the U.S. is estimated to be 78.7 years. So if you or your family member is a disabled person, you need to take care of your future. Special needs call for long term health care. Disability planning is the best solution to ensure that you or a disabled member of your family will receive quality health care without putting your property at risk.
At Shtark Law PC, our dedicated elder law attorneys will provide you with practical legal advice on disability planning and draw up the optimal plan. We approach each case individually to make sure that the disability plan can fully respond to your needs.
What is a Disability Plan?
Shortly, disability planning is a method of planning long term care for disabled individuals which aim is to ensure that a person will be provided with the necessary long-term care, and to protect his or her individual or family’s assets against dwindling.
Disability planning is done individually for each case, as a range of circumstances have to be taken into account. However, a typical plan includes disability estate planning, setting up a special needs trust, Medicaid planning, planning for nursing home care and guardianships.
Disability estate planning
While planning disability, it is a good idea to consider a carefully tailored estate plan that will serve you twice. First of all, wills and trusts secure your possessions from losses when you need long term care. Next, estate planning will ensure that your accumulated assets will be passed to the people of your choice. In fact, there is a range of estate planning options. Don’t hesitate to get in touch with Shtark Law experts to draw up an estate plan that will best determine your requirements.
A Special Needs Trust
Setting up special needs trust is one of the most typical disability planning strategies. It is a legal arrangement and fiduciary relationship that enables a disabled individual to get income without losing their eligibility for the public assistance disability benefits. The special needs trust assets may include those gifted from family members during their lifetime, or provided by other family members or life insurance proceeds at their own death as an inheritance for someone with special needs.
Medicaid planning for disability
At Shtark Law PC, we consider Medicaid planning to be one of the most efficient solutions for disability planning. Our lawyers can offer you legal options to become compliant with the Medicaid regulations. Medicaid helps you to avoid using up your accumulated assets on long term care, nursing home care, as well as a range of medical equipment and services.
Nursing home care
Medicaid benefits can help you to cover nursing homes expenses, which can cost up to $90,000 per year in New York.
In a situation when one spouse is in need of nursing home care, we offer our assistance with the protection of the couple’s property. Our experts can offer you legal ways to shield the couple’s belongings, so a community spouse won’t get impoverished while the other spouse is staying in a nursing home.
If you are a single parent who requires nursing home care, we will help you to figure out if it is possible for you to transfer your estate to a child or children in order to be eligible for Medicaid.
Guardianship planning for disability
If your family member suffers from disability, you might want to consider guardianship. It is the legal process that confers decision-making power on another individual. The decisions involve health care, finance management and personal issues. Our experts will explain you the rights and responsibilities of your chosen guardian, so you can be sure that your loved one is safe and cared for.
Planning for Disability Attorney
At Shtark Law, a law firm in New York, an elder law attorney will develop a personalized understanding of your unique needs, values and goals. Given this, we will work out a comprehensive plan that will determine your current and future needs.
Without relevant disability planning, disability is very likely to put your financial stability and security at grave risk. Not to mention, disability significantly affects physical and emotional wellbeing, as well as personal independence and family dynamics. At Shtark Law PC, we realize that, and do our best to give you and your family members peace of mind: we offer the legal guidance to protect your financial needs and to access high quality personal care.
In Conclusion
Planning disability is a right solution if you or your family members live with disability. Get in touch with our elder law and disability planning attorneys who will walk you through all the aspects of disability planning. Considering your individual needs and values, we will tailor a viable strategy to ensure that you will get quality health care in coming years, without spending up your accumulated assets. Shtark Law elder law experts in New York offer estate planning, setting up disability trusts, Medicaid planning and other options.