Kole Long asked to speak with families at SBACFL conference

This past weekend (April 18) I had the privilege to speak to families at the Spina Bifida Association of Central Florida’s Education Days annual conference. The day long conference took place at the Rosen Centre in Orlando, Florida. Families gathered to listen to various professionals address topics that affect those with Spina Bifida. 

I was asked to talk to parents about the important role of a Special Needs Trusts in their Estate Plan. I was able to give guidance and answer questions on how a Special Needs Trust can be used as a inheritance tool for their children with Spina Bifida, allowing money to be held for their children without disqualifying them for their much needed benefits. 

If you are interested in having a speaker at your conference or event, contact our office via email or by calling 800-669-2499, option 3.



Kole J. Long
Elder Law Attorney
Co-Trustee, Guardian Trusts

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

(d)(4)(A) vs. (d)(4)(C) - The Great Debate

Image
We are seeing a lot of attorneys drafting d4A Special Needs Trusts for disabled beneficiaries under age 65 when they should use a Pooled Trust.  We administer both individual and our pooled SNT, so it doesn't really matter to us.  I will propose a thought that there is never a good reason to draft an individual SNT over our Pooled Trust.  The traditional arguments for drafting a stand alone (d)(4)(A) SNT over a pooled trust include:  1) I want to be the trustee (or name a family member), 2) I want the trustee to pay back the Medicaid lien and then the rest go to designated beneficiaries and 3) I want to invest the funds, or have my investment person handle the investments.  I will take each of these points in turn.  Individuals do not know how to administer trusts in general, let alone SNT's.  The federal law and policy is constantly changing, particularly for beneficiaries receiving S upplemental S ecurity I ncome, or SSI.  It is extremely difficult to keep up with these
Read more

2019 Social Security and Medicaid Income and Asset Limits

Happy New Year! We wanted to keep you updated with the 2019 eligibility figures for Medicaid and Supplemental Security Income (SSI).  The resource limit for a single person stays the same ($2,000) for SSI and long term care Medicaid programs. For a spouse at home of a person qualifying for long term care Medicaid (often referred to as the "community spouse"), the resource limit has increased to $126,420.  The income limit (maximum Federal benefit rate) for SSI is now $771 per month which then makes the Medicaid income limit $2,313 (always 3 times the SSI limit).  Medicare Part B monthly premiums have increased. According to  www.medicare.gov , the standard Part B premium amount will be $135.50 per month. However, most people will pay less. The monthly personal needs allowance for people on Medicaid in a nursing home remains at $130.  Finally, the home equity exclusion for Medicaid eligibility went up to $585,000.  For a chart of these figures click  here .
Read more
Image
Congratulations to Co-Trustee Kole Long on becoming Board Certified in Elder Law. Kole joins only 113 other Florida lawyers to hold this distinction. Board Certification recognizes attorneys’ special knowledge, skills and proficiency in various areas of law and professionalism and ethics in practice. Approximately 7% of all Florida lawyers are Board Certified in any specialty. In addition to serving as Co-Trustee for Guardian Trust, Kole is a practicing attorney with Special Needs Lawyers, PA which is the only law firm with 4 Florida Bar Board Certified Elder Law Attorneys. Help us to congratulate Kole for achieving this commendable honor!
Read more