Families who have a child with a disability understand that his or her basic needs can be covered through Medicaid/SSI. However, eligibility requires impoverishment. Thus, there is no money to pay for “extras” like going to a movie or taking a vacation. If a person with a disability receives a lump sum of money that could be used to pay for these supplemental items, he or she will most likely no longer be eligible for government benefits. Until recently, families have been told to disinherit their child, who has a disability, when formulating their estate plans, to avoid the loss of any current or future benefits. Read More
Attorneys and Financial Advisors are often asked to help individuals with disabilities plan for the receipt of a lump sum that can result in the termination of eligibility for public assistance. The lump sum may come from a personal injury settlement, a bequest from an estate or trust or a back payment from Social Security. In other situations, it is the family seeking out counsel on including a disabled child in their estate plan. Read More
For the providers of support services for individuals with disabilities, the task of maintaining and meeting the guidelines of “means-tested benefits” can be quite taxing and time consuming. Means-tested benefits are benefits available to people with minimal income and minimal assets or resources. If a person’s income or assets/resources exceed the specified limit, he or she will not be eligible for the benefit. Two primary examples of means-tested benefits are Supplemental Security Income (SSI) and Medicaid. Read More
