Caregiving Contracts Valuable Tool Between Family Members

Category: Elder Law

From Elderlawanswers.com - Put Caregiving Arrangements in Writing, Lawyers Advise. The article emphasizes some valuable points about the need for a Caregiving Contract.

"A formal caregiver contract can outline the responsibilities of a caregiver, and specify the payment he will receive for services rendered and expenses, the article states. A contract ensures that the cost of care is paid at the time it is received and is not left for family members to wrangle over as part of a later division of assets."

Importantly, in the New Jersey, without a Caregiving Contract in place, payments to the family member caregiver from the senior family member can be deemed a transfer/gift from the senior family member to the family member caregiver, and disqualify the senior family member from Medicaid.

For Medicaid Recipient, Either Spouse's Annuity must Name State as Beneficiary

Category: Elder Law,

Courtesy of Elderlawanswers.com, the DRA has been "corrected" to clarify that an annuity owned by a Medicaid recipient or his or her spouse must name the state as the primary remainder beneficiary for Medicaid benefits paid to either spouse, not just benefits paid on behalf of the owner of the annuity.

Tax Bill Makes Change in DRA Annuity Provision - Elder Law Answers Articles: "The recently enacted Tax Relief and Health Care Act of 2006, H.R. 6111, includes several “technical corrections” to the Medicaid provisions of the Deficit Reduction Act of 2005 (DRA). One was made to the annuity rules in the Deficit Reduction Act of 2005 (DRA) transfer-of-asset provisions.

The DRA requires that Medicaid long-term care applicants name the state as the remainder beneficiary of annuities in which they have an interest, in an amount equal to what the enrollees receive in coverage from the state, 42 U.S.C. §1396p(c)(1)(F)(i). The DRA provided that state remainder rights were equal to the amount paid on behalf of an “annuitant”; the Tax Relief bill replaced this with “institutionalized individual.”

Thus, if the wife of a nursing home resident purchases an annuity, under current law she must name the state as the remainderman for her own potential benefits. Under the change, she may have to name the state as the remainderman for her husband’s care instead. The change is retroactive to the bill's enactment."