Elder Law & Guardianship Law for Illinois Seniors

Hynds, Rooks, Yohnka & Bzdill is highly experienced in providing planning and advice to clients dealing with issues relating to aging and disability. If you need help with Medicaid, a guardianship for a person who is no longer able to manage their own affairs, or any other age-related issue, please contact us for an appointment.

Medicaid Planning?

One of the most difficult situations seniors and their families face is long-term nursing care. One way to plan for it is to have long-term care insurance, but this is a relatively new product and many of today’s seniors cannot afford such coverage. Most people who face long-term nursing care are forced to spend their own savings until they qualify for assistance from Medicaid.

Unlike Medicare, which is available to all eligible seniors, Medicaid is a need-based program that only becomes available after certain “impoverishment” criteria are met. However, it is not sufficient to simply transfer your assets to your spouse or children. The qualification for Medicaid benefits for long-term health care is subject to significant government regulation. The policy of the federal government is that individuals cannot deliberately impoverish themselves and still receive Medicaid.

As part of the Deficit Reduction Act of 2005 (“DRA”), Congress passed changes to the Medicaid eligibility rules. The states were required to pass enabling legislation and regulations interpreting the new rules. Illinois was one of the last states to act and, effective January 1, 2012 it implemented new regulations. 

Under the rules, for 2012, if a spouse requires nursing home care, the spouse at home is allowed to retain in his or her name the family residence and assets having a fair market value of $113,640.00. In addition, the spouse at home is allowed to shelter $2,841.00 per month of income, or $34,092.00 annually. These dollar amounts are adjusted annually. All other assets and income must be applied towards long-term nursing home care or medical expense before Medicaid is available. For the surviving spouse or a single person, these exemptions are not available and all assets must be used until the estate is reduced to $3,000.00 for a couple and $2,000.00 for a single person, before Medicaid is available. In addition, a person is allowed to prepay funeral expenses subject to certain limitations.

At the time application is made for Medicaid benefits, the Department of Public Aid applies a "look-back" period in determining eligibility.  The Department reviews all transfers made without fair payment during the "look-back" period.  If there are any applicable transfers during this period, no Medicaid benefits are available during what is termed the “penalty” period. If the transfers occurred before the applicable look-back period, they have no effect on the availability of Medicaid benefits. The changes made by Congress in the DRA set the look-back period of 5 years regardless of whether the transfer was outright or in trust. Estate planning clients should consult with their HRYB attorney concerning the new developments in the law.

Special Needs Trusts

A specialized form of Medicaid planning, Special Needs Trusts are set up to benefit a Medicaid recipient by providing benefits not otherwise covered by Medicaid. These Trusts are usually set up by family members to benefit younger Medicaid recipients such as children with severe disabilities. Please contact us for more information.

Guardianships

A guardianship proceeding allows a court to give someone the authority to make decisions and manage the affairs of a person who, because of a disability, cannot manage his or her own affairs. The best advance planning is to avoid guardianship issues by having in place durable powers of attorney for property and health care that will give someone the authority to make decisions for a disabled person without having to petition a court. If there are no powers of attorney in place, an interested person can apply to the court for a guardian to be appointed. Guardianship proceedings may also be necessary to handle the affairs of minors.

Hynds, Rooks, Yohnka & Bzdill has extensive experience in dealing with guardianship issues. In fact, since 1985, Diane Yohnka Jorstad has been appointed by successive Illinois governors as Public Guardian for Grundy County, the person Grundy County authorities turn to to provide guardianship representation. If you need an attorney to help you with a guardianship, please contact us for an appointment.

Last updated on 02/02/2012