Protecting Assets While Qualifying for Medicaid

Agenda / Content Covered

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1. Applying for Medicaid - The Four Eligibility Requirements
   9:00 - 10:30, Glenn A. Jarrett
   1. Medical Eligibility: The Needs Assessment
   2. Resource Eligibility: Exempt vs. Countable Assets
   3. Income Eligibility
   4. Transfer Eligibility
      1. The Lookback Periods
      2. Transfers and Penalty Periods
         1. Transfer Penalty
         2. Penalty Beginning Date
         3. Partial Months of Ineligibility
         4. Monthly Maintenance Need Allowance (MMMNA) for the Community Spouse
         5. Annuity Transfer Rules and Tactics
   5. Estate Recovery Rules
   6. Current Medicaid Planning Programs and Rules
2. Pre-Need Asset Planning
   10:45 - 12:00, Ellen B. LaPlante
   1. Medicaid Planning for Single vs. Married Applicants
   2. Transferring Real Property without Jeopardizing Medicaid Eligibility
      1. When Does the Home Become a Countable Asset?
      2. How is "Intent to Return Home" Interpreted?
      3. Titling of the Home and Basic Homestead Issues in a Medicaid Planning Context
   3. Life Estates
   4. Asset Valuation - Fair Market Value under DRA
   5. Using Life Insurance to Spend Down
   6. Interstate Transfers
   7. Protecting Veterans Benefits
   8. The Gifting Powers in Powers of Attorney
3. Trust-Based Medicaid Planning in Detail
   1:00 - 2:15, Ellen B. LaPlante
   1. Choosing the Assets for Funding the Trusts
   2. Key Provisions and Sample Trust Language
   3. Self-Settled Trusts and Their Impact on Eligibility
   4. Using Income-Only Trusts
      1. Purpose of Using IOTs
      2. Principal Distribution Provision
      3. Taxation of IOTs
         1. Income Taxation and Tax Reporting
         2. Gift Tax and Reporting
4. Using Special Needs Trusts - Sample Trust Review
   2:30 - 3:30, Glenn A. Jarrett
   1. When Can SNTs be Used?
   2. Drafting an SNT - Common Mistakes to Avoid
   3. Documenting the Assets Transfer into the Trust
   4. Choosing a Suitable Trustee
   5. Sample Special Needs Trust Document Review
5. Applied Legal Ethics
   3:30 - 4:30, Daphne Moritz
   1. Avoiding Conflicts of Interest (Who is Your Client?)
   2. Dealing with Clients' Diminishing Mental Capacity
   3. Spotting and Preventing Elder Abuse
   4. Appropriate Client Communications
   5. Navigating through Family Conflict
   6. Setting and Collecting Attorney Fees

Accreditation Details:

GLENN A. JARRETT is a partner in the South Burlington law firm of Jarrett & Luitjens, PLC, which limits its practice to estate planning, elder law, Medicaid planning, special needs planning, and probate and trust administration. Mr. Jarrett is certified as an elder law attorney (CELA), by the National Elder Law Foundation, an organization accredited by the American Bar Association. He is a member of the National Academy of Elder Law Attorneys (NAELA) and is co-chair of the Governor's Commission on Alzheimer's Disease and Related Disorders. Mr. Jarrett is a member of the Chittenden County and Vermont bar associations. He is the chair of the Vermont Bar Association's Elder Law Section. Mr. Jarrett earned his A.B. degree, with honors, from Middlebury College; and his J.D. degree from Georgetown University Law Center, where he was a senior editor of Law and Policy in International Business, Georgetown's International Law Review.

ELLEN B. LaPLANTE is an attorney with Unsworth LaPlante, PLLC, where her focus is to provide clients with guidance in estate planning, elder law, and Medicaid preparation. She has offices in Essex Junction, Vermont; and Albany, New York. Ms. LaPlante is a member of the American Academy of Estate Planning Attorneys. She is a member of the National Academy of Elder Law Attorneys, the Vermont Bar Association, and the New York State Bar Association. She graduated from the Virginia Polytechnic Institute (Virginia Tech) in Blacksburg, Virginia; and earned her J.D. degree from The Catholic University of America, Columbus School of Law in Washington, D.C.

DAPHNE MORITZ is of counsel at Sheehey Furlong & Behm P.C., where she practices in all areas of estate planning and administration, with a focus on asset protection planning, addressing elders' concerns, and helping families with family members who have special needs. Ms. Moritz also works with entrepreneurs to form their companies and with small business owners and farmers in their succession planning. She is licensed to practice in both Vermont and New Hampshire state and federal courts and is a member of the Vermont Bar Association. Ms. Moritz is member of the Thompson Senior Center Board in Woodstock, Vermont and on the Board of Directors of the New Hampshire/Vermont Council of Charitable Gift Planners. Ms. Moritz has been the executive editor of NAELA News, a national industry publication, and is the author of Ethical Considerations in Handling an Estate Plan and Engagement of A Practical Guide to Estate Planning in Vermont. She received her B.A. degree, cum laude, from Dickinson College; and her J.D. and M.S.E.L. degrees, magna cum laude, from Vermont Law School.