Answer Bar: Elder Law and Medicaid Essentials

Session 1: Medicaid Update - Latest developments affecting planning and applications for Medicaid to pay for nursing home care and home care, including new COVID-19 policies, new policies exempting certain retirement accounts from countable assets, status of Lady Bird Deeds and Transfer on Death Deeds, current Medicare and Medicaid eligibility numbers, summary of all 109 Texas Medicaid programs (and 9 other means-tested benefits).

Session 2: Overview of Medicaid Planning - What non-elder law attorneys need to know about planning for long-term care. 
 
Session 3: Drafting for Incapacity Definition in Trusts and Powers of Attorney - Examine the commonly-used definitions of incapacity, individually-created definitions of incapacity, and the pros and cons of using common definitions versus creative language.

Session 4: Advising Clients Nearing 65 - Turning 65 can be a watershed event in our client's lives. They face many decisions about retirement, concerning Medicare, Social Security, and estate planning. Get tips to help you prepare to advise your clients about some of these important decisions.   

Session 5: In Quest of the Perfect Medicaid Application - Although it may not be possible to guarantee that every Medicaid application will be accepted upon the first filing, learn time-tested tips to improve the odds.

Session 6: Top Ten Medicaid Estate Recovery Issues - 2019 and Forward - Texas Health and Human Services Commission and Office of Inspector General-MERP resolved several MERP issues in 2019 and early 2020 but there are still outstanding issues that must be addressed by practitioners. The author will provide an overview of changes and suggested good practices in resolving MERP issues.

Session 7: Role of the Guardian - Examine the duties and responsibilities of a guardian under Texas law and guardianship administration, from initiation to closing, including the code requirements of selling and leasing property, ethical issues, and more.

Session 8: Did I Do That? Understanding Supports and Services and Alternatives to Guardianship - Exploring the range of supports and services and alternatives to guardianship and a decision tree to determine the necessity of a guardianship in the continuum of care.

Session 9: Out of the Woodwork: Unethical Practices by Geriatric Professionals - With the increase of an aging population, comes an increase in service providers willing and wanting to help older adults. Not every professional has the client's best interest in mind. A summary of professionals that may take advantage of clients and how to spot them will be discussed, as well as what type of credentialing the professionals should have.

Session 10: Defensive Case Management for Elder Law Attorneys - Learn a systematic approach to capturing data and using the system to defend against attempts by your clients' family members who want to involve you in disputes they have with other family members.  

Includes: Video Audio Paper Slides