De Pere News (Wisconsin, United States)

Many elder law practitioners that utilize Medicaid Compliant Annuities in their planning are familiar with J.G. Wentworth proclaiming their ability to purchase any annuity - regardless of the provisions.

Today, an irrevocable trust is an excellent planning tool for those clients wanting to qualify for Medicaid benefits in the future.

Medicaid planning with IRAs typically involves a considerable amount of caution due to the heavy tax consequences and penalties that can result from careless errors.

According to recent statistics, the majority of long-term care provided in the family home is provided by the children of the homeowner.

The use of promissory notes in crisis Medicaid planning is becoming increasingly unpopular throughout the nation. In Arkansas, they are treated as trust-like devices, thus determined to be countable resources.

For those that are not familiar with the term, a partial cure exists when a giftee returns a portion of a gift to a Medicaid applicant, thereby reducing any previously applied divestment penalty period accordingly.

In most states retirement accounts and retirement annuities are treated differently for Medicaid purposes. A retirement account will traditionally be considered under the retirement asset rules, and applied to eligibility accordingly.

The legislation regarding annuities contained within the Deficit Reduction Act of 20051 ("DRA") seems to apply only to the "annuitant who has applied for medical assistance."

Section 402(c)(11) of the Internal Revenue Code ("IRC") permits a non-spousal beneficiary to inherit a retirement asset and to receive required minimum distributions ("RMDs") based on the Internal Revenue Services' single life table.

The Facts. Marshall, a Korean War veteran, is 88 years of age and lives in Georgia. After years of struggling with Parkinson's disease and losing his wife in late 2008 Marshall realizes he can no longer live independently.

When a client takes money out of an IRA before reaching age 59 and a half he or she is liable not only for income taxes on the distribution, but also for a 10% penalty - which is based on the withdrawn amount.

Generally speaking, after the Deficit Reduction Act of 2005, if a community spouse uses a Medicaid Compliant Annuity, or promissory note, to eliminate the spend-down amount an institutionalized spouse is immediately eligible for Medicaid benefits.

The entire cost of maintenance in a nursing home or home for the aged, including meals and lodging, is a medical expense if an individual is there because of a physical condition and the availability of care is a principal reason...

An Asset Protection Trust ("APT") is an Intentionally Defective Grantor Trust. An Intentionally Defective Grantor Trust is a trust that treats the assets in the trust differently for income tax purposes than for estate tax and gift tax purposes.

Stellar Blue Web Design LLC launched a brand new custom designed and developed website for K&M Worldwide Crating custom. This website is the first in the company’s nearly five year history.

A recent court case, Hutcherson v. Arizona Health Care Cost Containment System Administration ("AHCCCS"), brought a ruling down regarding the State's recovery rights as a beneficiary of a Medicaid Compliant Annuity. Within the decision:

Trusts come in many different forms and are used for many different purposes. Generally, trusts are either revocable or irrevocable, grantor or non-grantor, inter vivos or testamentary, and simple or complex.

Many elder law practitioners that utilize Medicaid Compliant Annuities in their planning are familiar with J.G. Wentworth proclaiming their ability to purchase any annuity - regardless of the provisions.

As previously mentioned in a prior blog post I made, the first cost-of-living adjustment since 2008 has recently been made. This adjustment brought a 3.7% increase to many of the planning figures used in an elder law practice every day.

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The Mighty Mr. Billy announces the release of his 15th CD just in time for the holiday

"If a single person buys a Medicaid Compliant Annuity to provide income during a disqualification period, and the state Medicaid agency is designated as the primary beneficiary, what if the individual predeceases the annuity?"

Primarily in Florida, Personal Services Contracts ("PSK"), which are also referred to as Caregiver Agreements, are widely used as a spend-down tool for Medicaid and Veterans benefits planning.

The first cost-of-living adjustment since 2008 has recently been made, bringing a 3.6% increase in benefits. The cost-of-living adjustments are based on increases in the Consumer Price Index for Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers ("CPI-W").

An Intentionally Defective Grantor Trust ("IDGT") is an irrevocable trust created so that the assets of the trust are attributable to the grantor for federal income tax purposes, but not for gift, estate, or generation skipping transfer tax.

Internal Revenue Code ("IRC") § 121 provides that a taxpayer may exclude from taxable income up to $250,000 of the gain realized on the sale or exchange of a principal residence.

Today, an irrevocable trust is an excellent planning tool for those clients wanting to qualify for Medicaid benefits in the future.

Medicaid planning with IRAs typically involves a considerable amount of caution due to the heavy tax consequences and penalties that can result from careless errors.

If your client has a tax-deferred annuity that is causing problems with Medicaid or VA eligibility, it can be easily cashed out.

When developing a Veterans Aid & Attendance plan involving a single premium immediate annuity, various factors need to be taken into consideration above and beyond the financial figures.

The American Equity Investment Life Insurance Company, based in Des Moines, Iowa, recently made an announcement regarding its acceptance of annuity new business in relation to Veterans Administration Benefits planning.

The advantage of purchasing a partnership Long-Term Care Insurance policy is that if the insured exhausts all of his or her available coverage.

The annuity planning that Krause Financial Services provides in VA scenarios is not to be confused with the planning provided by many self-dubbed "VA Planning Specialists" that have recently created quite the reputation.

Veteran secures an Aid & Attendance benefit as a result of having long-term care costs, the monthly A&A benefit is dictated by a simple formula - the extent that the claimant's monthly income exceeds the claimant's unreimbursed monthly expenses.

The majority of elder law attorneys are very familiar with the Deficit Reduction Act of 2005; however, I have found that much confusion still surrounds the requirements.

When a client qualifies for VA and/or Medicaid benefits, an annuity typically becomes part of the planning strategy. So what is an annuity?

Balloon-style immediate annuities are becoming more and more popular in VA planning.

In many states, an IRA owned by the community spouse is a countable resource for Medicaid purposes.

The Internal Revenue Code ("IRC") mandates that an IRA owner must begin taking required minimum distributions ("RMD") at age 70½..

For any annuity contract issued after April 22, 1987, it must terminate upon the death of any owner and benefits will then be paid to the designated beneficiary.

According to recent statistics, the majority of long-term care provided in the family home is provided by the children of the homeowner.

In March of 2010 the National Association of State Medicaid Directors ("NASMD") wrote a letter to the Center for Medicaid and State Operations ("CMS") regarding the inappropriate use of short-term Medicaid Compliant Annuities

An irrevocable trust is an excellent tool when preplanning for Medicaid benefits. Anything that is put into the irrevocable trust is protected from a Medicaid spend-down if five years pass from the date of the transfer.

Under the grantor trust rules, a person who transfers property to a trust and retains certain powers or interests is treated as the owner of trust property for income tax purposes.

Subsurface Instruments, Inc., recently unveiled an innovative ML-3 magnetic locator, a significant innovation in the magnetic location industry.

Join Back to Basics Income Tax Seminars on either June 29 or June 30, 2011, for this all new live tax webinar focusing on Casualty & Theft Loss Issues & Reporting. This is a 2-CPE credit webinar featuring real world examples & relevant forms.

This infrastructure is one of the largest logistics service centres in Europe and is located at Matulji and services the Port of Rijeka.

When the busy tax filing season is over, it will be time to sharpen the saw. Back to Basics Income Tax Seminars® announces the content of our third live webinar for 2011 - IRA Planning & Reporting Issues - April 26 & 28, 2011.

The key to increasing the efficiency of facilities and programs is “visioning beyond bricks and mortar,” writes President David Robillard, Performa Justice Group, and retired Warden Bob Hood.

The ROM Group, a strategic sales and marketing firm, recently promoted Katie Henrich to group manager for program design and analytics.

BTB Income Tax Seminars announces the 2nd of its Tax Season Webinar Series. This new 1-hour online webinar will be held on 2 dates: March 29 & March 31, and focus on Foreclosures and Debt Cancellation, something all tax practitioners handle daily.

The ROM Group, a strategic sales and marketing firm, has promoted Eric Pedersen to group leader of operations.

The ROM Group, a strategic sales and marketing firm, recently promoted Corenne Gutierrez to senior content specialist.

Bart Raboin has been promoted to digital manager at The ROM Group, a strategic sales and marketing firm. He previously was Web designer.