Planning for Your Care or the Care of a Loved One as You Age
Elder law is an important legal area that is focused specifically on the needs of the elderly. This is a relatively broad legal area that includes retirement planning, issues related to life insurance, managing medical costs, estate planning, protecting medical decisions, and much more. Actions in this legal area can either be taken for yourself or on behalf of a loved one who may not be able to care for themselves.
Planning for Medi-Cal
One of the most important aspects of elder law is making sure you are properly taken care of in regards to your physical health. For those in California, this often means using the Medi-Cal system, which is California’s Medicaid program. This program is designed to help low-income individuals, but even those with significant assets can qualify for it in many situations.
Specifically, if you or a loved one will require long term care or admission into a nursing home, Medi-Cal will cover most of these expenses. This, however, is only if you qualify for the program. Our team can help you position your assets in such a way as to ensure you qualify for Medi-Cal without having to go broke first! Ideally we can help you prepare for this far ahead of time so you can maximize your savings. Even if you were notified that long-term care is necessary right away, we can help protect your assets or those of a loved one.
When Is Elder Law Used?
You can begin using the concepts of elder law while you are still fairly young to help you to prepare for the future. As you or a loved one gets older, however, the elder law actions that need to be taken become more critical and time sensitive. The following are some of the areas where an elder law attorney can help.
- Medi-Cal Planning – Planning for Medi-Cal is critical for protecting your assets and ensuring you get the care that is needed.
- Power of Attorney – Many elderly people become unable to make their own financial or medical decisions. Granting someone the legal ability to take care of these things is very important.
- Life Insurance – Identifying what you want to happen with any life insurance money that will be generated upon your death is very important for the care of your loved ones.
- Wills & Trusts (Estate Planning) – Estate planning will help protect your assets and your loved ones when you are gone. When done properly, it will also help ensure you have access to the assets you need as long as you live.
- Prevention of Abuse – As you age, you become more vulnerable to abuse. Your loved ones can help provide you with protections using elder law.
Fighting for the Rights of the Elderly
Whether you need help with elder law yourself or for a loved one, we are here for you. Our team treats every client like family and will help provide you with the legal protection and planning that is needed. Please contact us to discuss your needs today.
