My parents are not behaving normally...What do I do?

Recently, I have had a number of intake calls requesting assistance from concerned children about their aging parents. I have heard everything from an abusive parent, to a parent who constantly wanders away. Just last week I received a call from a daughter who's mother was verbally abusing her father and verbally keeping him "locked away" in their home. The daughter was very distraught and wanted to have her father liberated from the home. After further discussion, I discovered that the father was still of full mind, and clearly able to make sound decisions. Although the mother's general behavior has gotten more aggressive, she still was also competent. So to sum up the situation, we have a concerned daughter and competent parents who are beginning to see changes in personality as they age. The question naturally arises then, how do we deal with this situation?

If the parents are still competent, the best thing you can do is ensure that their Last Will and Testament is up to date and that you are named as their preferred guardian in that document. Guardianship will be discussed in another article, but it basically gives you full control over someones life. In this case, like a reverse parent-child relationship. If you have the proper provision in place, once you parents mental faculties diminish to a point where they no longer can make sound decisions for themselves, you are ready to step in and the court will provide less hurdles when choosing who to appoint. Additionally, you should be named under their Powers of Attorney for Property and Powers of Attorney for Health Care. Under these documents, you can assist them with their medical care, and have the authority to get their medical records when they are unable to make medical decisions. Under their Power of Attorney for Property, you will be able to concurrently make financial decisions with them, on their best behalf. This can assist you when a parent makes less than perfect financial decisions, to set up automatic bill pay or other options to ensure that they are provided for. These documents are always revocable, so if your parents don't like the job you are doing, they can revoke your authority. You should always speak with an attorney, and it is frequently best to have a group meeting with your parents and the attorney to discuss the options available to you, and what steps you should take next. In a situation like this, a parent who is getting more passive may feel more comfortable in voicing their opinion when they know their child is assisting in securing the family finances. I would be happy speak with you about your family at my Elder Law Office for no charge. I know that having parents personality change as their grow older is difficult, let's talk about ways to make that transition as painless as possible.

Oak Lawn Elder Law | Changes in Medicaid Eligibility Rules

New eligibility rules (Public Act 97-689 in Section 75) took effect on June 14, 2012.  These new Medicaid eligibility rules were negotiated last fall between the Department of Healthcare and Family Services and the Joint Committee on Administrative Rules.  Some of these changes include the following: (1) A home transferred into a trust after the bill becomes a law may not be considered homestead property.  If the home was transferred into a trust before the bill becomes law, it prevents a person from being eligible for long-term care if the person’s equity interest in this homestead exceeds the minimum home equity as allowed under federal law. (2) People over the age of 65 can no longer participate in a federally created OBRA Pooled Trust unless the beneficiary is a ward of the county public guardian or the State guardian. Other changes were also made, so if you have any questions in regards to changes or any other eligibility questions call a knowledgeable attorney:

Law Office of Jonathan W. Cole

5013 W. 95^th Street

Oaklawn, Illinois 60453

708 529-7794

Oak Lawn Elder Law | Proper Prior Planning

Proper Prior Planning Prevents Poor Performance: This concept is not foreign to anyone. In anything that you do, prior planning is the only way to ensure a successful event. Whether it is a picnic or retirement, you need to have the proper items to make the event comfortable and rewarding. Just like a picnic, there are some items that are of more importance than others. There are also items that will only be used at different stages of the event. A picnic needs food, drinks, and entertainment. How you fit those needs has some commonalities and some unique items to yourself.  For most individuals, the drink portion of a picnic involves some prepackaged beverage. Whether that beverage is water, wine, pop, or juice, it usually comes in a self contained and sealed container. Similar to the beverage category of a picnic, Elder Law Planning has commonalities and uniqueness. This comes in the form of the documents that need to be prepared and steps that need to be taken to ensure a plan is in place.

 As is discussed before, there are multiple stages of planning that is needed. I categorize the stages into three parts. The first part is the Preparing Stage. The second part is the Utilization Stage. The final part is the Assistance Stage. The Preparing Stage is similar to packing the picnic basket. You gather all of the supplies you believe that you will need for the picnic. If you do not have all of the materials, you purchase the required items from the store so that your basket is complete. In Elder Law, This is when you purchase the Estate Planning Documents such as a Will or Trust and fund the proper vehicles to fill your basket. The Utilization Stage is the picnic itself. This is when you enjoy the items in your basket. This stage is when you enjoy the fruits of your planning and reap the benefits that your foresight provided. The Assistance Stage is similar to the period after the picnic. This is when you pack up the leftover food and clean up your picnic site. All three stages will have to be done, with or without planning. How painful the completion of these stages are, will be determined by planning. Additionally, if you plan ahead you will have a lower overall cost of the picnic.  The proper planning for your senior years is like the proper planning for a zoo picnic. If you bring a sandwich to the zoo that you made at home, it will cost much less than if you wait and purchase a sandwich from the zoo food court.

For more information on Elder Law call:

Law Office of Jonathan W. Cole
5013 W. 95th St.
Oak Lawn, IL 60453
708-529-7794