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New York Times exposes "certified senior financial advisors"

Tens of thousands of financial advisers are working hand-in-hand with insurance companies to market themselves to older Americans using impressive-sounding credentials like “certified elder planning specialist,” “registered financial gerontologist,” “certified retirement financial adviser” and “certified senior adviser.” Many of these titles can be earned in just a few days from for-profit businesses, and sound similar to established credentials, like certified financial planner, that require years of study, difficult tests and extensive background checks.

New York Times - For Elderly Investors, Instant Experts Abound

One in three seniors have not talked to a doctor about all their medications

According to a new study, 40 percent of seniors responding to a survey reported not adhering to their "doctor's orders" regarding their medication regimens. Among those who gave a cost-related reason for not complying with their drug regimen, 39 percent did not talk to their physicians about it—even though lower-cost alternatives were available.

Physician-Patient Communication About Prescription Medication

Government Accountability Office Study Finds Transfers by Elderly Are Infrequent and Small

A new Government Accountability Office (GAO) study concludes that few of the elderly are transferring assets in order to become financially eligible for Medicaid coverage of long-term care, and that of the transfers that are made, the amounts are modest. The study also finds that the impact of the Deficit Reduction Act of 2005 (DRA), which imposed harsh new asset transfer provisions, is uncertain.

"This report confirms that the Medicaid long term-care program is not rife with cheats and scam artists," House Energy and Commerce Committee Chair John Dingell (D-MI) said in a statement issued along with House Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Health Chair Frank Pallone (D-NJ), House Oversight and Government Reform Committee Chair Henry Waxman (D-CA) and Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-OH), all of whom requested the report.

Medicaid Long-Term Care: Few Transferred Assets before Applying for Nursing Home Coverage; Impact of Deficit Reduction Act on Eligibility Is Uncertain

Aged, Frail and Denied Care by Their Insurers

Mary Rose Derks was a 65-year-old widow in 1990, when she began preparing for the day she could no longer care for herself. Every month, out of her grocery fund, she scrimped together about $100 for an insurance policy that promised to pay eventually for a room in an assisted living home. Conseco denied long-term-care payments for Mary Derks, who has early-stage dementia, hypertension and diabetes. She bought the policy to avoid burdening her family, but it sold part of its farm-equipment dealership to pay for her care. On a May afternoon in 2002, after bouts of hypertension and diabetes had hospitalized her dozens of times, Mrs. Derks reluctantly agreed that it was time. She shed a few tears, watched her family pack her favorite blankets and rode to Beehive Homes, five blocks from her daughter’s farm equipment dealership. At least, Mrs. Derks said at the time, she would not be a financial burden on her family. But when she filed a claim with her insurer, Conseco, it said she had waited too long. Then it said Beehive Homes was not an approved facility, despite its state license. Eventually, Conseco argued that Mrs. Derks was not sufficiently infirm, despite her early-stage dementia and the 37 pills she takes each day. After more than four years, Mrs. Derks, now 81, has yet to receive a penny from Conseco, while her family has paid about $70,000. Her daughter has sent Conseco dozens of bulky envelopes and spent hours on the phone. Each time the answer is the same: Denied.

Full New York Times article

States Go After Living Trust Scams (From Elder Law Answers.com)

Estate Planning Lessons to Be Learned From Anna Nicole Smith (From Elder Law Answers.com)

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