New York Estate Planning & Elder Law Blog

New York Assembly Holds Hearings on Medical Aid in Dying

Published on: April 15, 2018 | by Ettinger Law Firm

The New York Assembly health committee recently held the first of two meetings on a proposed legislation that would allow some terminally-ill individuals with less than six-months to live the option to use medication to die in their sleep in cases where their suffering is unbearable. The committee members heard testimony from a variety of individuals including patients and their families, health care providers, legal experts, medical ethicists and religious leaders.

The committee’s exploration comes in the wake of a ruling by the New York Court of Appeals last year that ruled against three terminally-ill patients asserting they had a Constitutional right to die under their own conditions. The petitioners asked the Court of Appeals to shield their doctors from criminal charges in cases where physicians prescribe patients a lethal medication to end their lives.

New York’s Medical Aid in Dying Act, sponsored by Assemblywoman Amy Paulin and Sen. Diane Savino, would permit terminally-ill patients deemed mentally fit to end their lives by using medication provided to them by a physician. Proponents of the law assert that doctor-assisted dying is oftentimes the only alternative to a long and agonizing death, during which the patient may experience complete loss of their bodily functions and mental faculties.

Changes to National Labor Laws May Change Home Health Care for Those Who Need it the Most

Published on: April 9, 2018 | by Ettinger Law Firm

If you have a beloved elder who currently needs or will eventually need long term, in-home health care, you need to know about new changes to federal labor laws that may not only raise the cost of these services but potentially alter quality aspects. In addition to federal labor and wage laws, state and even local laws may impact what you pay for in home health care and who provides it.

When a person suffers from dementia, alzheimer’s, or or another cognitive health condition, he or she will likely need the aid of a home health care aide to provide even the most basic of care needs. For many years, home health care providers who also lived in the patient’s home were subject to different portions of the federal Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) which made them exempt from overtime and would essentially earn less than minimum wage because the individual was expected to be on call even during the evening.

However, a recent legal decision determined these in-home health care workers were not overtime exempt and must be paid one and a half times their average hourly wage when working more than 40-hours per week. This meant that it became economically feasible for many families to maintain constant care to their loved one from a familiar person that could be counted on to provide attentive, individualized service to the patient.

Immigration Policy Could Affect Home Healthcare Market Providers

Published on: April 6, 2018 | by Ettinger Law Firm

The Trump administration recently issued a directive to revoke the Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for tens of thousands of immigrants from poverty stricken countries living in the country, many of whom who have found roles in the home healthcare market. With the cost of in-home and assisted living facility growing every year, the change could potentially add to those costs and put seniors and the disabled in a more difficult financial situation.

Approximately 59,000 Haitians came to live in the United States after the 2010 earthquake which devastated the country. Nursing homes and in-home care providers are already reporting staffing shortfalls as immigrants who found employment in their sectors have returned home for fear of forced deportation after losing their legal status. Even despite the threat of deportation, many immigrants working in nursing homes and as in-home health aides do not stay long in these jobs as they find professions in much higher paying sectors of the economy.

In Boston, Massachusetts for example, some elder care providers are speaking out about the selfless, hard work that their immigrant employees living on TPS status perform for long hours and modest pay. With many coming from nations where the witnessed humanitarian crises and seek to give back as part of the aid they themselves received in their times of need.

Government Accountability Office Report Says Evaluations on CMS Experiments are Incomplete

Published on: April 2, 2018 | by Ettinger Law Firm

A recent report by the Government Accountability Office (GAO) claims state and federal agencies tasked with evaluating experimental programs from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Studies (CMS) fail to properly evaluate the initiatives. According to the report, some states can take years to finish evaluations and complete reports on programs implemented to help save taxpayers money and improve patient care.

Furthermore, when reports do become available CMS often fails to give the public access in order for ordinary people to see for themselves what works and what does not for the working poor of America. While many experts studying the issue found the shortcomings to be troubling, many were not surprised at the way states and federal agencies go about evaluating what incremental changes to CMS programs could be worthwhile.

Some states do not even finish their evaluations and complete reports until after the federal government approves the experiments for a second time. Such moves often leave observers scratching their heads as to how states can continue to receive funding for experiments on CMS programs without even taking into account whether they have a positive impact on the health and wellness of state residents or the programs fiscal soundness.

Assisted Living Facilities in Many States Have Little Federal Oversight Despite CMS Funding

Published on: April 1, 2018 | by Ettinger Law Firm

The dream of Americans is to age with dignity and independence while enjoying their golden years with family and friends and avoiding the need for any type of long term institutionalized care. However, trends in aging show that more and more Americans these days are relying on some type of intermediate institutionalized care before eventually moving into a nursing home to receive the attentive services they need.

However, despite receiving an estimated $10 billion in federal funding from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Studies (CMS), states encounter little oversight from regulators over the quality of care residents receive. Furthermore, over half the states do not report “critical incidents” to the federal government that include unexplained deaths, abuse, neglect or financial exploitation. All of that is according to a recent report from the Government Accountability Office (GAO).

Advocacy group Justice for Aging issued its own response to the GAO report to highlight the lack of accountability from many states and facilities receiving CMS funding. The directing attorney for Justice in Aging went as far as to point out that even among the 22 states that do provide the federal government with data on critical incidents the information is hard for the public to obtain and may not even illuminating enough.

Department of Justice Announces Charges in $500 Million Elder Fraud Schemes

Published on: March 27, 2018 | by Ettinger Law Firm

The U.S. Department of Justice recently announced hundreds of indictments against individuals engaged in often elaborate schemes to defraud hundreds of thousands of elders across the country. The Justice Department said in a statement that it levied charges against over 250 defendants for their roles that contributed to an estimated $500 million in total financial damages against victims.

“Today’s actions send a clear message: We will hold perpetrators of elder fraud schemes accountable wherever they are,” Attorney General Jeff Sessions said in announcing the charges at a press conference. The Department of Justice coordinated with dozens of federal and local agencies to make the arrests, including working with Federal Bureau of Investigations, the Federal Trade Commission and state attorneys generals.

The perpetrators of the scheme allegedly used everything from mass mailing system and telemarketing schemes to identity theft to commit financial crimes against some of the most vulnerable portions of the population. In the past several years, the Senate Aging Committee received thousands of calls from individuals complaining they were either victims or an attempted target of some type of elder fraud.

Checklist for Reviewing Your Estate Plan

Published on: March 22, 2018 | by Ettinger Law Firm

Comprehensive estate planning should be a continuing process. It is important to review your estate plan periodically, especially after major life events occur. An experienced estate planning attorney that helps you review your comprehensive estate plan as part of their service can make sure that you address changing needs and circumstances. The following can also provide a framework for you to start thinking about what to look for when reviewing your estate plan.

Start with Your Will

This is often a good place to start in creating your estate plan and in reviewing it. As time goes on, you are likely to experience a number of changes. Your family may grow to include additional beneficiaries. You are also likely to acquire a number of different assets. An effective Will will take all of this into consideration and include detailed instructions for distributing the assets within it.

Turning Down an Inheritance

Published on: March 20, 2018 | by Ettinger Law Firm

There are many reasons why discussing your comprehensive estate plan with your beneficiaries is important. Not only can it help clarify your decisions and provide the reasoning for some choices that may otherwise cause conflict and strife, but it can prepare beneficiaries for their role in the estate plan.

Sometimes, circumstances arise in which a beneficiary may not want the inheritance that is being left to them or it may simply not be practical to accept it. When these situations arise, the beneficiary may have the option of turning down – or disclaiming – the inheritance.

Reasons for Disclaiming an Inheritance

Your Estate Plan and Retiring Abroad

Published on: March 19, 2018 | by Ettinger Law Firm

Retirement is a time to relax and enjoy the things you have worked hard for all of your life. For many people, that means spending more time at the golf course or spoiling grandchildren. For others, it means adventure and traveling to places they have always wanted to go. In many cases, a person or couple’s objectives in retirement can best be met by retiring abroad. Whether you are doing so for the cost of living, to be closer to family, or just because you want to there are important considerations to keep in mind when it comes to your comprehensive estate plan.

Taxes

No matter what country they live in, citizens of the United States are still required to pay taxes to Uncle Sam. If you maintain residence in a state, that state may also continue to impose taxes on you. While you would likely be paying those taxes if you remained in the United States, living abroad could also subject you to taxes in the host country. That means you may face issues of double taxation, and that can have a significant impact on the assets you retain within your estate.

The Role of a Trust Protector

Published on: March 17, 2018 | by Ettinger Law Firm

Comprehensive estate planning is a long-term process. It is not complete simply because the many pieces of your estate plan have been considered and put into place. Your estate plan must be reviewed periodically, and with so much at stake it must also be protected. In addition to taking important basic precautions to protect your estate plan, you may also benefit from an additional form of protection by enlisting a trust protector.

What is a trust protector?

For estate plans that have a trust in place, and especially for those with several different trusts in place, it is important to ensure that trusts are administered in a legal way that meets your goals for establishing the trust. When you establish a trust, you must also designate a trustee. Trustees are entrusted with administering a trust according to the terms of the trust and the goals you have established for that trust.