Finding an Advocate

A recent letter to us from a Connecticut resident asked how to find a caring, responsible advocate to provide for her well-being in the later stages of life. A significant part of the answer is to retain a law firm that is part of the national Life Care Planning Law Firms Association. That is comprised of law firms dedicated to a holistic elder law practice “that offer legal resources to help elderly clients and their families respond to the challenges of aging, long term illness and disability. That kind of law firm has elder care coordinators (usually social workers) and lawyers and paralegals who know the Medicaid rules and Veteran Administration rules for homecare in Connecticut. The goal of the Life Care Planning Law Firm is first and foremost to do the planning and documents necessary to keep the elder person in the best living situation in the community, and not in a nursing home.

Only such a team of people has the knowledge and practical expertise of what care is needed, where it can be obtained, who can give it and how to pay for it. It’s a holistic approach taking into consideration all aspects of aging. That includes safety, socialization, a comfortable place to live and overall well being. There is no one size fits all, because everyone’s family and friends live in different places and closeness to them is important for socialization. When my mother decided her home was too much to keep up, she moved to an apartment building in the same town where she knew many people and had easy access to friends without leaving the building.

When her physical and cognitive abilities declined, we found two wonderful ladies who gave a few hours of care each day. As her abilities declined, the number of hours were increased over the months and years. There are many home care businesses that also have experienced and caring staff. That can be important because if the usual caretaker is unavailable, a backup is automatically assigned.

Another solution can be an assisted living facility that provides more or less care to residents, depending upon need. As needs increase, the care increases. And socialization is easy because there are social events, a large number of people who want to socialize, and breakfast, lunch and dinner with other people. We kept my mother-in-law out of a nursing home until the day she died, three months short of 100. And in her case we were able to get Veterans Benefits to help pay for it. In Connecticut, it is possible to have the state pay up for $3685 per month toward homecare and to get Medicaid to pay up to $7370 per month toward home care in your own home.

Setting the stage with the critical documents such as power of attorney, living will and HIPAA forms are a must, so that someone trusted can handle your decision making if you become incapable. There are companies that advertise revocable living trusts and give the impression that they will protect assets. The word “revocable” means what it says. If something is revocable, it can be revoked and therefor the assets inside it are not protected from the Veterans Administration and Medicaid rules. In some cases, an irrevocable trust, done at least five years before care is needed, may save assets for your loved ones and not disqualify you from Veterans benefits, Connecticut Home Care Program for Elders, or Medicaid. This goes back to the fact that there is no “one size fits all” and every person’s situation must be evaluated for the amount of care, kind of care and assets and income to set the stage to stay living in their long time at home, or in an apartment, or an assisted living facility.

Having the knowledge and experience of an attorney and elder care coordinators who understand what is available for care, and who has the staff to advise and guide the elder person on how to stay in the best living situation possible, is the advocate needed.