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November/December 2007
Firm News
Walking For An Important Cause
On October 7, 2007, the annual Memory Walk run by the Cleveland Area Chapter of the Alzheimer’s Association was held at Tower City Center in Downtown Cleveland. Daniel P. Seink Co., Ltd., a sponsor of the event, had a booth at the 1.3 mile walk which helps fund vital research and the programs and services of the Alzheimer's Association. It was touching to see generations of a family walk in honor of a loved one, a picture of their family member held up by a grandchild or employees of one nursing home wearing shirts saying they were walking for a residents afflicted with Alzheimer’s. We cheered on the walkers and passed out provisions (mini M&M’s!) so everyone could “keep up their strength.” Anyone interested in participating in next year’s Memory Walk can visit the website www.alzclv.org or call the local Alzheimer's Association at 216-231-1330.
Attorney Claudia Rose at the Daniel P. Seink Co., Ltd. booth at the 2007 Memory Walk in Cleveland
Medicaid/Benefits Law
Study Finds Higher Costs for Caregivers of Elderly
On November 19, 2007, the New York Times reported that: "The out-of-pocket cost of caring for an aging parent or spouse averages about $5,500 a year, according to the nation’s first in-depth study of such expenses, a sum that is more than double previous estimates and more than the average American household spends annually on health care and entertainment combined."
Full New York Times article
The High Cost of Caring For Mom
Bill Camarata, who joined a study on caregivers' sacrifices, takes care of his mom: "I don't question it, I just do it," he says.
Full Cleveland Plain Dealer article
Sacrifices made by those caring for their elderly parent (Cleveland Plain Dealer, November 20, 2007)
Survey of Caregivers (Cleveland Plain Dealer, November 20, 2007)
Ohio Medicaid at Bottom of the List for Senior Care
A study says Ohio's Medicaid program is one of the most expensive in the country at providing long-term care for senior citizens because it relies too much on nursing homes. Ohio ranks 49th in providing seniors with less-expensive, in-home care services. The study says only Mississippi's Medicaid program spends less on home care.
Full Article on the WKYC Website
Study Says Medicare Part D Saves Seniors Only 6%; Will Cost Taxpayers $395 Billion It was touted as a landmark effort to lower drug costs for seniors, but the government prescription program known as Medicare Part D has not had the sweeping impact some had hoped it would, according to a new study.
"The rhetoric surrounding Medicare Part D's potential impact on seniors' medication use and savings on drug costs doesn't match the reality," said study co-author Frank Lichtenberg, a business professor at Columbia University.
Full ABC News story
Strategies to Avoid Medicare’s Big Hole
The Medicare doughnut hole is the federal provision that older Americans love to hate.
And that is not expected to change next year, when the doughnut hole — the nickname for a big financial gap in each person’s Medicare prescription drug coverage — gets slightly larger. If the past is a guide, many people will struggle to secure a full year’s supply of the drugs they need.
Full New York Times Article
In Hospice Care, Longer Lives Mean Money Lost Hundreds of hospice providers across the country are facing the catastrophic financial consequence of what would otherwise seem a positive development: their patients are living longer than expected.
Full New York Times Article
Disability Cases Last Longer as Backlog Rises Steadily lengthening delays in the resolution of Social Security disability claims have left hundreds of thousands of people in a kind of purgatory, now waiting as long as three years for a decision.
Two-thirds of those who appeal an initial rejection eventually win their cases.
But in the meantime, more and more people have lost their homes, declared bankruptcy or even died while awaiting an appeals hearing, say lawyers representing claimants and officials of the Social Security Administration, which administers disability benefits for those judged unable to work or who face terminal illness.
Full New York Times Article
State of Ohio Long Term Care Consumer Guide Website
Long Term Care Consumer Guide
The Basics of Medicare and Medicaid
Kaiser Family Foundation Website
Estate Planning
According to a Survey in USA Today less then one quarter of parents have a will
Full USA Today Article
Even if you don't have a large estate, young families should have estate planning in place to provide for their minor children if they were to pass away unexpectedly. While a will is an important component in such a plan, there are additionally issues to consider and discuss. The law firm of Daniel P. Seink Co., Ltd. is experienced in counseling young families in these matters.
Do Not Bury Your Dollars in Irrevocable Funeral Trust Policy
Full Fox Business News Article The law firm of Daniel P. Seink Co., Ltd can prepare non-insurance based Irrevocable Funeral Trusts.
Ohio Medicaid Estate Recovery - Does the State Have a Statute of Limitations?
By James C. Bates, Esq.
The State of Ohio has long held that they do not have a Statute of Limitation when it comes to Medicaid Estate Recovery. The State claims they are not barred by the six month limit to make a claim against an estate under the probate rules. Sadly, the Courts have supported the State’s position. It makes no difference if they claim assets long after they have been distributed from the estate and spent or invested. The 2005 Estate Recovery overhaul was not supposed to change this portion of Estate Recovery. But did it?
The answer is unclear, but possibly the state may now have a one year limit upon which to make a claim. Ohio Revised Code Section 2117.061(E) states in part
“The administrator of the medicaid estate recovery program shall present a claim for estate recovery to the person responsible for the estate of the decedent or the person’s legal representative not later than ninety days after the date on which the medicaid estate recovery reporting form is received under division (B) of this section or one year after the decedent’s death, whichever is later." The statute provides certain time requirements of when the “person responsible for the estate” must file a “Medicaid estate recovery form” with the State of Ohio. Ohio Revised Code Section 2117 clearly defines “the person responsible for the estate” and the “Medicaid estate recovery form.” However, currently no such "Medicaid estate recovery reporting form" has yet to be issued. If a Probate Estate is open there is a Standard Probate Form that must be sent to the State of Ohio, but it does not meet the statutory requirements of a “Medicaid estate recovery form.”
Notice that in Ohio Revised Code Section 2117.061(E) they not only mention the "person responsible for the estate" but also the "person’s legal representative." Wonder who that is? It is also quite clear that if you submit the "Medicaid estate recovery reporting form" the state has 90 days to make their claim. I would assume it means if they miss their deadline their claim is barred. However, what does the one year period apply to? If you submit the form late or if you never submit the form? I don't see any qualifier in the statute so I tend to think we now have a one year statute for claims by Medicaid. However, I'm sure Medicaid doesn't agree with me.
If you have any questions on the above topics, please call our office at (800) 393-2324 or use our FREE E-MAIL RESPONSE SERVICE.
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