The New York State budget passed in April 2020 for the fiscal year 2020-2021 includes changes to the Medicaid program that may greatly impact those seeking Medicaid for long term care assistance. Particularly, many seniors and disabled individuals who require a home health aide or assisted living services will likely face greater challenges to retain … Read More
My Loved One Just Died. How Do I Pay for the Funeral?
Tragically, this is a question I have been asked more than once in recent days. During this horrible COVID-19 pandemic, young adults, without any savings, are being left with the tremendous and heartrending responsibility of arranging a funeral for the untimely death of a parent, and do not have the means to pay for it. … Read More
When Should I Contact An Elder Law Attorney?
All too often, I meet with new clients that need assistance with elder law long term care planning for a loved one, but have either waited too long or show up after they have followed improper advice from well-meaning individuals who were not elder law attorneys. In this post you will learn when you should … Read More
How Much Does An Estate Plan Cost?
When the phone rings in my firm with a potential new client, one of the first questions we are asked is, “how much will an estate plan cost?” The challenge we have in answering that question, is that every person has a different idea of what an estate plan is and therefore they are often … Read More
What is a Power of Attorney and Why Is It So Important to Have This Estate Planning Document?
The benefits of a highly detailed, comprehensive power of attorney are numerous. A power of attorney is a document that appoints an agent to act on behalf of the principal. The “principal” is the person who is creating the power of attorney. The principal is appointing an “agent” to have the authority to take legal … Read More
Planning for the Possibility of Long Term Care
The Unpopular Topic of Discussion Every Family Needs to Have Just bringing up the possibility of someone in your family becoming mentally or physically incapacitated is often difficult. We tend to think of only the very elderly needing long-term, hands-on care, but a recent report by the Alzheimer’s Association found that one in ten Americans … Read More
Feeling Squeezed in the Middle of a Generational Sandwich?
How to Take Care of Yourself as You Take Care of Others Raising your kids, working, trying to take care of yourself, and now caring for an aging parent? That makes you part of the Sandwich Generation. You are not alone—almost half of America’s 40- and 50-year olds are in the same boat. Most of … Read More
Why Avoid Probate in Surrogate’s Court and How?
Many people have been told that it is important for people to “avoid probate.” But just because people may have heard that term, doesn’t mean they know exactly what probate means, why it can be a problem or how to successfully avoid it. In this post, we will take a look at the term probate … Read More
