If My Husband Dies, Do I Have To Pay His Medical Bills?
Video Summary
If my husband dies, do I have to pay his medical bills? The answer to the question is no, you do not. That is unless you have signed to be responsible, uh, for his medical bills. So whenever, if you do lose your spouse you do not have to pay their medical bills. Most of them are usually covered by insurance, but you’re not personally responsible to pay them. If you have any questions, give me a call at (727) 847-2288.
- Published in Estate Planning, Probate, Videos
If I Go To A Nursing Home, Will They Take My House?
Video Summary
If I go to a nursing home, will they take my house? The answer is no. Nursing homes usually are charged for their services. This is usually after you go to the hospital, you go to rehab, and then it’s determined that you need skilled nursing care. The cost of the nursing home, it runs about $8,000 or more per month. In the event that you cannot afford the $8,000 a month, you would need to apply for Medicaid or have your power of attorney or agent apply for a nursing home for you. There are two tests to obtain Medicaid so that the state would pay for your stay. One is an income test and the other is an asset test. And the asset test exempts your home from the determination. And also your home is exempt from the payment of creditors’ claims including, Medicaid reimbursement, as well as any judgments of any nursing homes that are involved. So the answer to your question, answer to the question is no. The nursing home will not take your home. They cannot take your home, nor can any creditor. If you have any questions, give me a call at (727) 847-2288.
- Published in Estate Planning, Medicaid Planning, Videos
I Am Ready To Retire, What Legal Documents Do I Need?
Video Summary
I am ready to retire, what legal documents do I need? Well, whether you’re retiring or not retiring, you should contact an attorney to do your estate planning documents. That would include a will and a discussion with the attorney as to whether you want a Will or whether you want to do a trust and how you want your assets to pass. Sometimes you can title your assets so that they automatically pass through the beneficiary to avoid probate, and that’s usually something that everyone’s concerned about: is to avoid probate as far as that’s concerned. In addition to a Will and the discussions on who you would like to receive your assets at the time of your death, it is important that you designate a healthcare surrogate. That is a person that can make medical decisions for you in the event that you go on the hospital and you’re not able to make those medical decisions. Also a HIPAA waiver, whereby you’re authorized in the release of your medical information. If you go into the hospital or any medical provider would be authorized to release this information to you, particularly if you’re hospitalized and they want to check to see how you’re doing. It’s usually a loved one that you would want to give this to, so they can find out how you’re doing and check with the doctors as far as the prognosis is concerned and the diagnosis and, when they can expect you to be able to return home. If you have any questions about this, give me a call at (727) 847-2288.
- Published in Estate Planning, Videos, Wills
Do I Have To Pay My Mother’s Bills When She Dies, If I Am On Her Bank Accounts?
Video Summary
Do I have to pay my mother’s bills when she dies if I am on her bank accounts? The answer is no, you do not. You’re entitled to the money and it’s a contract with your mother and the bank as to your ownership of the account or being a beneficiary. The bank will disperse the money to you under either scenario, and those are your monies to keep. The creditors are only entitled to file claims in a, in the heir estate if she has one. And her estate consists of only assets that were just in her name alone and does not cover assets that are jointly held. So, just because you’re a co-owner and she has outstanding bills, you do not have to use that money to pay her bills. If you have any questions, give me a call at (727) 847-2288.
- Published in Estate Planning, Videos, Wills
How Do I Protect My Healthcare Rights?
Video Summary
How do I protect my healthcare rights? Well, HIPPA does a pretty good job of protecting that and that your healthcare, uh, professionals are restricted to not release any of your healthcare information to anyone without your authorization. So, my advice and opinion to you is to designate a healthcare surrogate form where you designate what person or persons that you would like to be able to receive your healthcare information and also to be able to make medical decisions for you if you’re unable to do so. And this is called a healthcare surrogate form. In addition to that, you should execute a living will, which is a really, a dying declaration, which gives designates an authorized life support to be discontinued any one in any one of these three uh, circumstances. If you have a terminal condition, end stage condition, or permanent vegetative state, you can select all or any one or two of these circumstances where you would want life support to be discontinued. There’s one other form that you can execute when you sign your estate planning documents. It’s called a standby guardian file, so that if you would be adjudicated, incapacitated, that you can designate who you’d want to be your guardian in order to be able to make healthcare decisions for you. If you have any questions, give me a call at (727) 847-2288.
- Published in Estate Planning, Videos