Advance medical directives are written legal documents that allow you to specify the type of medical care that you want in the future, as well as appoint who you would want to make health care decisions on your behalf should you lose the capacity to make these decisions on your own. Advance medical directives are an aspect of estate planning that help direct your assets and decisions later in life, while other aspects of estate planning, such as wills and trusts, distribute or manage your assets after you pass.

Many do not realize that more than just a Living Will is needed as an advance medical directive. A Living Will provides direction in a very limited set of circumstances. Specifically, in Colorado, a Living Will provides your choices on the administration, withholding or withdrawal of specific life sustaining procedures if you are terminally ill and unconscious or incapacitated for at least seven consecutive days. It is used to document your decisions regarding CPR, medications, ventilators, hydration, nutrition, and more and when you would like these measures used, not used or withdrawn.

A Medical Power of Attorney, on the other hand, is broader in scope, as it is a document that appoints a health care ‘agent’ or ‘proxy’ to make medical decisions on your behalf when you cannot do so yourself. Unlike a Living Will, the authority of this document does not only apply to terminal illness or a vegetative state, but in other situations, such as incapacitation due to senility or loss of consciousness after an accident. The scope of a Medical Power of Attorney can be as broad or as limited as you wish it to be. It can provide very specific instructions to your health care proxy or general guidance on your wishes.

Advance medical directives are an essential part of estate planning. Should you not have these important documents in place, your loved ones may be forced into a situation where a court is involved and possibly a guardianship to give someone the authority to make medical decisions for you. A set of advance medical directives, including a Living Will and Medical Power of Attorney, allow you to maintain not only dignity, but a measure of control over your future health care issues.

The Hammond Law Group is a member of the American Academy of Estate Planning Attorneys.

A Power of Attorney is a valuable tool in your estate planning arsenal. This legal document allows you to grant authority to someone of your choosing to take action on your behalf.

You can use a Power of Attorney to give someone the ability to pay your bills while you’re on vacation for example, or to act on your behalf during a financial or real estate negotiation.

But unless the Power of Attorney is “durable,” it expires if you become incapacitated. This is an important point to remember because many people use Powers of Attorney specifically for the purpose of protecting against disability.

There are two basic types of durable Powers of Attorney: one that works for financial matters as outlined above and the other for health care decisions. In order for these documents to protect you if you are incapacitated, they must both be durable.

Then, should you become unable to handle your own affairs, the Durable Power of Attorney for finances would allow your appointed agent to handle your financial affairs for you. They can pay your bills, access your checking and savings and even continue to negotiate financial and real estate transactions on your behalf, if you so choose.

The Durable Healthcare Power of Attorney enables someone to speak on your behalf with regard to medical decisions, such as treatments or medications you may or may not want.

In order for a Power of Attorney to be useful when you need it, you also need to know why some institutions will not accept them. A Power of Attorney must be extremely comprehensive in order to adequately give authority to handle exactly the things your agent may need to take care of. Some institutions require that a Power of Attorney be on their own form. In addition, Powers of Attorney should be re-signed regularly as many institutions won’t accept them after a certain period of time (some insist that the Power of Attorney be no older than 6 months!). To learn more about Powers of Attorney and how to protect yourself in the event of incapacity, give us a call today.

The Hammond Law Group is a member of the American Academy of Estate Planning Attorneys.

It’s never easy to have a loved one enter a nursing home, and to ensure they are receiving proper care, it’s important to stay involved. Researching the facility before admission is the first step to finding the right nursing home for your loved one. After admission, visitors should be vigilant in looking for any signs of nursing home abuse or neglect. Indications that patients are receiving substandard care or being neglected include:

• Significant weight loss and/or dehydration;
• Bedsores;
• Poor personal hygiene;
• Injuries or bruises from a fall due to lack of supervision or assistance; and
• Wandering or elopement – a patient repetitively moving throughout the home or being able to leave the home unattended.

Most nursing home neglect is the result of insufficient or poorly trained staff. Often there is no malicious intent behind nursing home neglect, but victims can suffer significantly, and may not be able to communicate problems to their loved ones.

Recognizing neglect before issues become severe or even life-threatening is critical. Residents with frequent and regular visitors have a better chance of being identified as a victim of neglect before the situation becomes critical.

Residents of nursing homes should enjoy the same comfort and constitutional and civil rights as they would at home. Because of their vulnerability, residents are protected by a specific nursing home law, which states that all residents in a nursing home are entitled to receive quality care and live in an environment that improves or maintains the quality of their physical and mental health. Colorado has enacted a series of laws protecting the elderly, including:

• Suspected cases of elder neglect or abuse occurring in a nursing home must be reported within 24 hours to the appropriate law enforcement agency or county department;
• Suspected cases of financial exploitation must be thoroughly and promptly reported and investigated; and
• Specific abuses of the elderly are criminalized and given priority on the court’s docket.

Contact a Colorado nursing home attorney should you suspect your loved one’s rights have been violated.

The Hammond Law Group is a member of the American Academy of Estate Planning Attorneys.

Medicaid is a state-run program funded with both Federal and State funds to provide health care benefits to those who meet the need-based eligibility requirements. For senior citizens, Colorado Medicaid benefits are normally used within the state’s Long Term Care Medicaid Program, which includes monthly benefits not only to help pay for nursing homes, but home and community-based services so medical providers can come to a patient’s home and assist them. This helps keep a disabled person in their residence longer rather than putting them immediately into a nursing home or hospital.

In 1992, Colorado established an Estate Recovery Program mandated by Federal Law that requires states to recover some of the costs of the benefits paid to Medicaid recipients. After the death of individual who has received Medicaid benefits, the law requires that their assets be used to repay the Colorado Department of Health Care Policy and Financing to offset the cost of the benefits used.

To recover the costs of benefits from an estate, Colorado uses a third party contractor. The contractor will either place a lien on the deceased’s property or file a claim against the Estate of the deceased. There are several instances in which the State of Colorado will NOT pursue a claim against an estate, for example:

• If there is a surviving spouse;
• If there is a blind or disabled dependent of the deceased; or
• If there is a child under the age of 21.

In addition, the Estate Recovery Program allows exceptions when a person moved to the deceased’s residence prior to their admittance to a nursing home to help care for the individual. This exception covers siblings and children who have continuously lived in the home for at least two years, and in the case of children, helped provide care that allowed the individual to live in the home longer rather than enter a nursing facility. In these cases, the state may seek recovery from assets from the estate, but the home itself will not be subject to the recovery program.

As you can see, Medicaid law can be complex and confusing. For assistance, it’s best to work with a Colorado Medicaid attorney who has experience and expertise in this complex area of law.

The Hammond Law Group is a member of the American Academy of Estate Planning Attorneys.

No one wants to think about a time when they might have to face a disability but the truth is, it could happen to any one of us, at any time. Experts estimate that about 60% of Americans will need some type of long-term care during their lifetime due to disability or incapacity.

And if that disability or incapacity prevents you from speaking on your own behalf, you would be powerless to make important decisions that affect your estate and your well-being.

Fortunately, there are things you can do now to prepare for disability.

Disability insurance, for example, can help cover your expenses when you’re unable to work. This type of insurance is frequently provided at little to no cost by your employer however, you can purchase disability insurance directly from insurance companies. Short term disability can help cover your expenses while you’re recovering from an injury or are in the early stages of disability. The time period can range from two weeks to as long as two years.

Long term disability on the other hand, is designed to cover more serious conditions and can replace anywhere from 50-70% of your salary.

In addition to disability insurance, you should have your estate planning attorney help you draft a set of Advanced Directives that include a Living Will, a Healthcare Power of Attorney and a Durable Financial Power of Attorney. The Living Will tells your healthcare providers how you would like to be treated in certain situations. It also allows you to specify what medical treatments you do or don’t want.

A Healthcare Power of Attorney grants authority to someone of your choosing to make medical decisions on your behalf in the event that your specific condition is not covered in your Living Will.

The Durable Financial Power of Attorney grants similar authority but only with respect to your financial affairs. This document allows someone to pay your bills, access your financial accounts and take care of your day-to-day finances.

For more information on incapacity planning, contact our office today.

The Hammond Law Group is a member of the American Academy of Estate Planning Attorneys.

Just because you haven’t reached retirement age doesn’t mean it’s too early to begin planning your estate. Your estate plan will help resolve your debts and distribute your assets upon your death. And though we all hope to live a long and happy life, we also know that the future is not guaranteed. Planning your estate now ensures that your estate and your loved ones are protected after you’re gone.

Last Will and Testament

The best tool to begin planning your estate is a Last Will and Testament. This is a basic estate planning document that allows you to name heirs for all of your belongings and stipulate an executor to settle your estate and pay your final debts.

Guardianship

If you have minor children, it is vital to name a guardian in case both you and your spouse should pass away. You can include your guardian plan in your Last Will and Testament or in a Living Trust. A guardian plan ensures your children are looked after by a skilled and willing caregiver without enduring a lengthy court custody battle. Creating a guardian plan will give you the peace of mind to know your children are being cared for. And here’s an extra tip: Don’t forget to name a back-up guardian in case anything should happen to your first choice.

Disability Plan

If you saw the news reports on Terry Schiavo, then you can understand how important it is to create a mental disability plan. Such a plan allows you to name someone to speak for you in the event that you are no longer able to make your own medical or financial decisions. With a disability plan you can name someone to handle your financial affairs, made medical decisions on your behalf and even let your healthcare providers know how you want to be treated in certain end-of-life situations.

Life Insurance

If you pass away, who will help your spouse pay the bills? How will your children go to college? Life insurance is a financial safety net for family members who depend upon you as a source of income. It is best to purchase a life insurance policy in your twenty’s when your premiums will be much lower, and you will have a better chance of being approved.

To learn more about building your own estate plan, contact our office today.

The Hammond Law Group is a member of the American Academy of Estate Planning Attorneys.

A Revocable Living Trust is one of the most efficient ways of avoiding Conservatorship. If you are in a debilitating accident, suffer a stroke, develop Alzheimer’s or other dementia otherwise become incapacited, a Successor Trustee of your choosing would manage the assets instead of a Court-appointed conservator. As many of you know, when my mother developed early-onset Alzheimer’s I had to hire an attorney, go to court, ask to have her publicly declared incompetent, and then follow the court’s investment instructions and file annual accountings and reports with the court. This court oversight continues for the rest of your life. The Revocable Living Trust avoids all of the legal hassle, and allows someone of your choosing to continue to manage your affairs according to your instructions, rather than the court’s.

How to Set Up a Revocable Living Trust

A Trust requires three parties – Grantor (also known as settlor or trustor), Trustees and Beneficiaries. Initially, all three parties are the same person – you.

When you set up the Trust, you continue to handle all your assets in the same manner as you normally would – they are just in the name of the Trust instead of you as an individual.

In the event that you become incapacitated, your Successor Trustee would step in and manage the assets for you. Since all the assets are funded into the Trust, there is nothing in your name as an individual and nothing for the court to address.

You will still of course, need to include Advanced Medical Directives in your estate plan to ensure that all your wishes regarding medical care and treatment are honored.

The Hammond Law Group is a member of the American Academy of Estate Planning Attorneys.