What you Can and Cannot Do with a Qualified Income Trust
People who seek New Jersey Medicaid for long term care (in a nursing home, assisted living facility or with home health aides) are often told they should use a Qualified Income Trust (QIT, aka Miller...
View ArticleWill our Future Caregivers be Robots?
America has an aging population. As the baby boomer generation grows older (and wiser) and lifespans continue to increase, more and more people are going to need long term care. Today, long term care...
View ArticleWhat does Medicaid Reform mean for You?
The United States is rethinking how it pays for healthcare. There has been a lot of public discussion about the fate of the Affordable Care Act – whether it will be repealed, and if so, what its...
View ArticleWhy your special needs trust should be drafted by a special needs lawyer
Special needs trusts (also called supplemental needs trusts, supplemental benefits trusts, and SNTs) are used to set aside money for a disabled person to supplement rather than supplant government...
View ArticleDon’t Lose Supplemental Security Income (SSI), Social Security Disability...
Supplemental Security Income (SSI) and Social Security Disability (SSD) are monthly payments to an individual who is disabled per Social Security definition. Medicaid can cover health care for people...
View ArticleWhat should you do now to protect against nursing home costs?
People occasionally ask me: What should we do now to protect ourselves against nursing home costs and other long term care costs? My answer is, it depends entirely on your circumstances right now. If...
View ArticleMedicaid to Pay for Long Term Care in Nursing Home, Assisted Living, or Home
Medicaid can pay for long term in a nursing home, assisted living facility, or at home with aides, but with long term care costing thousands of dollars each month, long term care could easily wipe out...
View ArticleNJ Medicaid increases Penalty Divisor
Today, New Jersey Medicaid increased the penalty divisor for applicants who make gifts. This is a very good thing for people who need Medicaid to pay for long term care. If you apply for Medicaid to...
View ArticleNegligence vs. Abuse in a Nursing Home: What’s the difference?
We’ll occasionally be posting blog articles from other attorneys on topics that may be relevant to our clients. This one is from a Phoenix-area law firm on nursing home abuse and neglect, a topic we...
View ArticleFive Reasons why Estate Planning is Important
This is another in a series of guest articles we’ll be posting from attorney colleagues across the country on issues relevant to our readers. Enjoy! Because we never know what the future holds, it’s...
View ArticleNo, you Shouldn’t Put your House in your Kids’ Name to Protect against...
As New Jersey elder care lawyers, we often meet with families that include a loved one who needs long term care, such as in a nursing home. Nursing home are is incredibly expensive, typically ranging...
View ArticleIs Medicaid Planning Ethical?
The New York Times recently published a thought-provoking article by Ron Lieber on the ethics of Medicaid planning. The article posed the question of whether it’s ethical to engage in Medicaid...
View ArticleAre you Worth the Money?
Why should you pay a lawyer to do something that you could do yourself for free? I get asked that question from time to time. And my answer is, you shouldn’t. I certainly wouldn’t. However, there may...
View ArticleHow Tax Reform hurts People on Medicaid
Not to get political here, but… I’ve been following President Trump and Republicans’ proposed tax reform with interest. If you’re also interested, you can read all about it elsewhere, including how...
View ArticleUnderstanding Medicare
Medicare is a health insurance program sponsored by the federal government. Medicare is available to most people at age 65, but younger people may qualify for Medicare when collecting Social Security...
View ArticleTax Reform– Medical Expense Deduction Lives
What a difference a few months can make! On November 21, 2017, Mark Friedman, Esq. wrote a blog entry explaining that the then tax reform bill would eliminate the deduction for medical expenses...
View ArticleWill NJ Medicaid pay for my care at home?
We get asked this question a lot. And the answer is maybe. New Jersey Medicaid can pay for home health aides to come to your home and provide care to you. However, there are two caveats to that. First,...
View ArticleDoes my will cover my retirement accounts?
Everyone should have a will. It’s the most basic component of an estate plan. In it, you set forth your directions on how your property should be distributed after you die, who should manage your...
View ArticleSpecial Needs Trusts and Retirement Accounts
A special needs trust is important if you have a child or grandchild, or another person in your life, with disabilities who you want to leave property to when you pass away. A lot of people with...
View ArticleNew Jersey and Estate Tax – Will They or Won’t They?
For a while now, New Jersey estate planners have been playing a guessing game. Guessing whether New Jersey will bring back the estate tax. The estate tax is a tax that your estate pays when you pass...
View ArticleNJ Medicaid and Qualified Income Trusts
Lately we’ve been hearing a lot from people with questions about Qualified Income Trusts (QIT’s) – aka Miller Trusts. We have a whole page on our website devoted to QIT’s, with lots of information. But...
View ArticleNJ Medicaid Planning and your Power of Attorney
If you think you may need long term care in the future, and are interested in doing asset protection planning or Medicaid planning to protect your assets for your spouse or children, one of the best...
View ArticleNJ Medicaid to issue new Regulations on Trusts
New Jersey’s Department of Human Services, Division of Medical Assistance and Health Services (DMAHS), recently posted notice that it will issue new regulations on how Medicaid laws and rules apply to...
View ArticleNJ Medicaid Changes Penalty Divisor
New Jersey Medicaid recently changed the way it calculates penalties for gifts. New Jersey residents can qualify for New Jersey Medicaid, a government program that can pay for long term care in a...
View ArticleUsing Qualified Income Trusts to Qualify for Medicaid to Fund Long Term Care
To qualify for Medicaid to fund long term care in New Jersey, your monthly Medicaid countable income must not exceed Medicaid income caps– $2,250 per month for an unmarried applicant in 2018. However,...
View ArticleNew SSI POMS on Sole Benefit Rule for SNT’s
A few months ago, the Social Security Administration released new POMS on the sole benefit rule for first-party special needs trusts. A first-party special needs trust (SNT) is an SNT established to...
View ArticleMedicare Open Enrollment, Original Medicare Parts A and B, Medicare Part C...
The following article was written by guest author Lindsay Engle, editor of Medicare FAQ, and Lindsay is solely responsible for its content. As with all our blog posts, please remember that this...
View ArticleAffordable Care Act Portal Can Help You Find Health Insurance
Governor Murphy’s Administration announced that the Affordable Care Act’s open enrollment period runs through Dec. 15, and http://www.GetCovered.NJ.gov provides a portal for New Jersey residents...
View ArticleShould You Choose Original Medicare or a Medicare Advantage Plan?
Medicare Primer Original Medicare covers hospitalization, professional fees and other common health care costs. Many participants in Original Medicare also purchase Medicare Supplement (a.k.a....
View ArticleTaxation of Settlements
Per Internal Revenue Code section 61 all income is subject to income tax unless excluded in tax law. Therefore, a settlement is taxable income unless the taxpayer proves that an exception applies....
View Article2019 NJ Medicaid income limits
New Jersey’s Department of Human Services, Division of Medical Assistance and Health Services (DMAHS), the state agency that administers Medicaid, released 2019 NJ Medicaid income eligibility standards...
View ArticleMaximize Your Social Security Benefits
The Social Security Administration administers several programs. Supplemental Security Income or SSI is a financial need based benefit to help people who can’t earn enough to get by due to disabilities...
View ArticleOriginal Medicare vs. Medicare Advantage– Which is Right for You?
The Choice is Yours You have a choice whether to stick with Original Medicare or sign up for a Medicare Advantage Plan. Both Original Medicare and Medicare Advantage Plans cover most kinds of...
View ArticleMark R. Friedman named to Rising Stars
FriedmanLaw attorney Mark R. Friedman was selected to the New Jersey Super Lawyers Rising Stars list for 2019. Or rather, I was selected to the list. It was gratifying. I’ve put together a lot of...
View ArticleSocial Security and Social Media (Disability)
The New York Times reported on social media and disability that the Trump administration is looking into using social media to root out people who are receiving disability payments but shouldn’t be...
View ArticleRequired Minimum Distributions from IRA, 401(k), 403(b), Profit Sharing &...
IRAs and employer sponsored saving or retirement plans (“Plans”) are a great way to save for retirement. Typically, they defer income tax for many years and Plans often include employer contributions...
View ArticleSpecial Needs Trust Distributions, Credit Cards, Debit Cards & True Link Cards
A special needs trust (sometimes called supplemental needs trust, SNT, supplemental benefits trust, or SBT) is a great way to make funds available to benefit a person with disabilities without...
View ArticleAre Big Changes Coming to Retirement Plans and IRAs?
Since the enactment of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA), major changes to the rules governing Individual Retirement Accounts (IRAs) and 401(k) and other retirement plans have...
View ArticleNew Jersey Hospital Safety Grades Are Released for Spring 2019
Note: This blog post is by our office manager, Nancy Hochenberger. Thanks Nancy! -MRF The Leapfrog Group recently released their Spring 2019 Hospital Safety Grades report for hospitals nationwide....
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Lawrence Friedman honored with NJICLE award
Lawrence Friedman was honored at the New Jersey Institute for Continuing Legal Education’s (NJICLE) Excellence in CLE Awards Ceremony on June 17, 2019. Larry was awarded NJICLE’s Distinguished Service...
View ArticleGeneral Electric and Long Term Care
Hey folks! Some light summer reading for you this late August. General Electric (GE) has been in the news lately. Harry Markpolis, a financial type who sounded early warnings on the Bernie Madoff...
View ArticleDraconian Penalties When Settling Personal Injury and Worker Compensation...
Medicare secondary payer law (42 U.S.C. §1395y(b) et seq,) provides that Medicare shall not fund care for which another entity or person is liable such as injuries due to auto accident, negligence, or...
View ArticleMedicare and Medicaid to Fund Nursing Home Rehabilitation and Long Term Care
Medicare is a federal government program to provide health care for most people who are age 65 or older, totally and permanently disabled so that they can’t work, or have ALS (Lou Gehrig’s Disease) or...
View ArticleShould Your Special/ Supplemental Needs Trust Include Medicaid Pay Back Terms?
Supplemental Security Income (SSI), Medicaid, subsidized housing, and some other disabilities programs limit benefits to people with minimal assets (also called resources) and income. However, because...
View ArticleSecure Your Financial Future After the SECURE Act
Just last month the President signed into law the brand new Setting Every Community Up for Retirement Enhancement Act of 2019 as part of the year end Further Consolidated Appropriations Act. Why should...
View ArticleWe will continue serving our clients
We are facing a public health crisis with the coronavirus pandemic, and economic uncertainty from the lockdown meant to slow its spread. So much feels uncertain right now. But there is one thing of...
View ArticleMaking a Will during a Pandemic
As I read the news during this coronavirus pandemic, every day I read more about the toll this virus is taking. In the US, it seems like New Jersey and the New York area are particularly hard hit,...
View ArticleWhat We’ve Been Doing to Keep You Safe
It’s been a pretty wild couple months. First things got bad. Then they got better. Now they look like they’re getting bad again. We are continuing to serve our clients and the public throughout this...
View ArticleVirtual reality therapy for people with dementia
There was an interesting article in the New York Times today about how some long term care facilities are using virtual reality headsets to help some dementia patients. As an example, they profiled an...
View ArticleMark Friedman awarded NJSBA Distinguished Legislative Service Award
I’m pleased to say that the New Jersey State Bar Association (NJSBA) awarded me the Distinguished Legislative Service Award for my work with the NJSBA’s government affairs team on guardianships over...
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