As of May 1^st, 2012 the Department of Children and Families has amended their Medicaid rules to increase the penalty divisor for uncompensated transfers (i.e. gifting) from $5,000 to $6,880.  This new penalty divisor reflects the estimated monthly average cost of skilled nursing home care in the state of Florida.   In Sarasota County, this author is seeing an average monthly care cost of $8,000. Nonetheless, this is an improvement.  Anyone who anticipates needing to apply for Medicaid for skilled nursing home care costs should avoid gifting and should not gift without consulting with a board certified elder law attorney.

Contact our office to schedule an initial consultation for any of your Medicaid Planning, Estate Planning, or Veterans Benefits needs.

Babette B. Bach, Esquire, Board Certified Elder Law

Bach & Jacobs, P.A.

240 S. Pineapple Avenue, Suite 700

Sarasota, FL 34236

941-906-1231

941-954-1185 facsimile

www.bachjacobs.com

Bach & Jacobs, P.A. offers the following services to meet  lifetime legal needs of our clients:
    • Medicaid
    • Long term care planning
    • Estate planning
    • Probate
    • Guardianship
    • Tax law

For more info go to: http://www.bachjacobs.com/

Babette B. Bach, Esquire, Board Certified in Elder Law
Fredric C. Jacobs, Esquire, Board Certified in Tax Law
240 S. Pineapple Avenue, Suite 700
Sarasota, FL 34236
941.906.1231
941.954.1185 fascimile

The Veterans Administration has a 30 day respite program. This is not a new program however it is not highly publicized.  It is known as the “respite” program primarily to assist caregivers of veterans.  It provides the caregiver some personal time away.  It can vary in the hours, but can provide up to 6 hours per day, for a maximum of 30 days.  If the Veteran is already receiving services from a homemaker or home health program, the maximum time allowance still remains 6 hours per day. 

Planning 6-8 weeks in advance for these services is highly recommended.

The primary V.A. physician or the V.A. social worker has to refer the Veteran for this program.  Upon receipt of the referral, they will process the request for services.

For non-service connected disability, there is $15 co-pay per day.

The alternate program in this category is the “on campus” program at the Bay Pines V.A. Center in St. Petersburg, Florida, which offers up to two 15 day in-house stays in a year with a minimum of 5 day stay.  This program is available as long as the Veteran does not have dementia and does not wander.  The two 15 day stays can not be taken all together. Skilled nursing is not provided with the on campus program.

You can qualify for both the on campus stay and the at home respite services. 

For more information on these programs, please call (727) 398-6661.

If you need legal advice for Medicaid planning, VA planning or estate planning, please contact our office for an initial consultation.

Babette B. Bach, Esquire, Board Certified Elder Law

Bach & Jacobs, P.A.

240 S. Pineapple Avenue, Suite 700

Sarasota, FL 34236

941-906-1231

941-954-1185 facsimile

www.bachjacobs.com

There are some VA benefits to help with home care, assisted living benefits costs for veterans or their surviving spouse.  These benefits are for non-service connected disabilities.  There are three basic requirements.  One must be a wartime veteran (or their surviving dependents) who is totally disabled and in financial need.  This program is called “Aid and Attendance”.  It will cover certain home care costs and assisted living expenses if all eligibility requirements are met. 

            A married veteran can receive a maximum benefit of $2,020/month,

            A single veteran can receive $1,704/month       
            A surviving spouse of a veteran can receive $1,094/month.

There is an asset test ($80,000.00 for both a couple and a single veteran) and an income test (after deducting un-reimbursed medical expenses or health care expenses) and a medical need test (needing assistance with 3 activities of daily living).

In order to apply for these benefits, one must have excellent documentation.  Remember, it is important to keep copies of honorable discharge papers, marriage licenses, death certificates and proof of medical expenses.

If you need legal advice for VA planning, Medicaid planning or estate planning, please contact our office for an initial consultation.

Babette B. Bach, Esquire, Board Certified Elder Law

Bach & Jacobs, P.A.

240 S. Pineapple Avenue, Suite 700

Sarasota, FL 34236

941-906-1231

941-954-1185 facsimile

www.bachjacobs.com

Sarasota County property owners need to remember that they may qualify for exemptions if they are disabled veterans.

• There are three types of exemptions available to Veterans:
  • Service Connected Disability Exemption - $5,000
    • You must be a permanent resident of the state of Florida and a Veteran
    • Veterans entitled must submit VA Letter #27-125 stating that they have a permanent disability to a degree of 10% or more
      • Contact Department of Veterans Affairs at (800) 827-1000 to request this form.
    • A spouse of a deceased honorably discharged Veteran who was married for a minimum of 5 years is also eligible
  • Total and Permanent Disability Exemption (Service Connected) - Ad Valorem Taxes Waived
    • Available to any honorably discharged veteran and deemed totally and permanently disabled, surviving spouse of the disabled veteran, and spouse of the veteran who died from service connected causes while on duty.
    • Veteran must be a permanent resident of State of Florida or have been so at the time of death and veteran or surviving spouse must own and occupy property in Sarasota County as their permanent residences as of January 1st of the year for which the exemption is being filed.
  • Disabled Veteran's Property Tax Discount - % Discount
    • Available to any honorably discharged veteran who is at least 65 years old and is deemed to be totally and permanently disabled to a degree of 10% or more. 
    • All or portion of such disability must have been combat related and the veteran must have been a resident of Florida at the time of entering the military.
    • Veteran must own and occupy property in Sarasota County as their permanent residence as of January 1st of the year for which the exemption is being filed.
• See www.sc-pa.com/content/veterans.asp for additional requirements and for complete explanation of each exemption or contact the Sarasota County Property Appraiser's office at (941) 861-8200.

Bach & Jacobs, P.A.
Babette B. Bach, Esquire, Board Certified Elder Law
Fredric C. Jacobs, Esquire, Board Certified Tax Law
240 S. Pineapple Avenue, Suite 700
Sarasota, FL 34236
(941) 906-1231
www.bachjacobs.com

    There are substantial tax deductions for long-term care insurance premiums paid in 2011.  When preparing your 2011 tax returns remember that:

             Premiums for "qualified" long-term care policies will be treated as a medical expense and will be deductible to the extent that they, along with other unreimbursed medical expenses (including "Medigap" insurance premiums), exceed 7.5 percent of the insured's adjusted gross income. If you are self-employed, the rules are a little different. You can take the amount of the premium as a deduction as long as it does not exceed your net income derived from the self employment minus the deduction for 50% of the self employment tax and any deductions for contributions to qualified retirement plans or SEPS. Your medical expenses do not have to exceed 7.5 percent of your income if you are employed.

     The deductibility of premiums is limited by the age of the taxpayer at the end of the year, as follows (the limits will be adjusted annually with inflation):

Bach & Jacobs, P.A.
Babette B. Bach, Esquire, Board Certified Elder Law
Fredric C. Jacobs, Esquire, Board Certified Tax Law
240 S. Pineapple Avenue, Suite 700
Sarasota, FL 34236
(941) 906-1231
www.bachjacobs.com

  Often family members are given copies of wills for safekeeping, but trouble arises when someone dies and the original will is lost.  In Florida, when an original will is known to have existed but can not be located, there is a presumption that the person destroyed the will with the intent to revoke it.  Therefore, a party probating a lost will must present evidence at a hearing to overcome this presumption.  Don’t panic, as it is possible in most cases to overcome this presumption.

     Florida courts will allow testimony at a hearing from a disinterested witness to prove the execution and contents of a lost will.  If there is an exact copy of the lost original will, the testimony of only one witness to the will execution is required.  However, an unsigned draft of a will does not constitute an exact copy.  If there is no exact copy of a signed will, then the testimony of two disinterested witnesses are required to prove the execution and content of the document.  In every case, a hearing is required in order to satisfy the requirements of Florida Statute 733.207 and relevant Florida case law.  

Contact the law firm of Bach & Jacobs, P.A. for an initial consultation. 
Babette B. Bach, Esquire, Board Certified Elder Law
Fredric C. Jacobs, Esquire, Board Certified Tax Law
240 S. Pineapple Avenue, Suite 700
Sarasota, FL 34236
(941) 906-1231
www.bachjacobs.com