How to Choose the Best Home Care Provider for Your Parents
Choosing the correct home care provider for your aging parents is a huge responsibility. This person will be looking after the needs of those who taught you to walk, talk, and care for yourself. To ensure your parents are well cared for in their golden years, consider...
If Co-Owner of Family Farm Goes to Nursing Home, Would This Affect the Ability to Sell the Farm?
It depends. Do any of them live on the farm? The Medicaid rules with respect to real estate are very different depending on whether it’s a home or an investment property, and the rules vary by state. There are in fact special rules for transfers of homes between...
Is It Legal to Get a Will Changed If the Person Has Alzheimer’s and Dementia?
No. You have to be legally competent to execute a will. Even a guardian or conservator cannot create a will. However, they can create a trust that can substitute for a will. To do so, someone will have to be appointed and then seek court approval for the new estate...
Skilled Nursing Facilities vs. Nursing Homes: What’s the Difference?
Many use the terms “skilled nursing facility” and “nursing home” interchangeably. However, they are separate care facilities. Although skilled nursing facilities and nursing homes sound similar, they have fundamental differences, including the level of medical care...
How to Know If Your Aging Parents Need Home Care
As our parents get older, we must make tough decisions regarding their health care. It can be hard to know when to bring in professional support in the form of home care. Consider the following as you decide whether your aging parents need home care. What Is Home...
Do Medicare or Medicaid Cover Senior Day Care Services?
Many seniors do not necessarily need the constant care of a nursing home but could benefit from participating in a senior day care program one or more days per week. Senior day care usually refers to the daytime supervision of individuals in a group setting in a...
What Is Spousal Impoverishment?
Spousal impoverishment is a concern for older couples when one spouse needs long-term care and applies for Medicaid. If one spouse requires care in a skilled nursing facility and the other remains at home, the spouse at home might face significant financial hardships....
How Much Long-Term Care Insurance Should You Purchase?
Long-term care insurance helps you prepare for financial costs associated with aging, such as nursing home care, assisted living, or in-home care. Yet long-term care insurance policies vary widely in terms of the amount of coverage and how long the protection lasts....
Nine Types of Dementia
The term “dementia” is thrown around a lot in discussions of elderly individuals, but what exactly does it mean? Dementia is a general term for memory loss that is severe enough to interfere with daily life. This general term encompasses many different diseases, of...
What Is Community Medicaid?
Medicaid is a federal program administered on a state-by-state basis. There are several types of Medicaid — including Community Medicaid. Community Medicaid covers care and medical services that enable a recipient to remain in their home or community as long as...
What Is a Life Estate?
The phrase “life estate” often comes up in discussions of estate and Medicaid planning, but what exactly does it mean? A life estate is a form of joint ownership that allows one person to remain in a house until his or her death, when it passes to the other owner....
Do All the Kids Have to Sign Papers When One Brother Is Trying to Get Guardianship of Our Mother?
No, but depending on your state’s guardianship laws, it may save time. Whenever someone seeks guardianship, they must give notice to all the next of kin. Typically, part of the process includes a period of time during which the next of kin can object to the...
Long-Term Care Question: My Mother in Assisted Living Has Outstanding Credit Card Debt – What Should She Do?
You could file for bankruptcy on your mother’s behalf, but it is doubtful that would be necessary. Your mother is what is often referred to as “judgment proof,” meaning that even if she were successfully sued, her creditors wouldn’t get anything. She/you could either...
Four Provisions People Often Forget to Include in Their Estate Plan
Even if you've created an estate plan, are you sure you included everything you need to? There are certain provisions that people often forget to put in a will or estate plan that can have a big impact on a family. 1. Alternate Beneficiaries One of the most important...
How Long Should I Hold on to Important Documents?
It is hard to know what documents to trash and when. Before you know it, your spare room, office, basement, or garage is overflowing with boxes of papers that all seem important. Trying to weed through the mess and figure out what to toss? Keep reading. Which...