[WSBAPT] Trusts and Friend-Educated Clients

[Jane Bitz]

Yes. When you apply for a policy through the exchange there is a household income question and then you have to back it up with tax returns or other income proof.
Jane.

Jane G. Bitz
Of Counsel
Wolff, Hislop & Crockett, PLLC
12209 E. Mission Ave, Suite 5
Spokane Valley, WA 99206-4824
(509) 927-9700 x126
FAX: (509) 777-1800


THE CONTENTS OF THIS ELECTRONIC MAIL ARE CONFIDENTIAL AND PROTECTED BY THE ATTORNEY-CLIENT PRIVILEGE OR OTHER APPLICABLE PROTECTION.  Any review, use, distribution or disclosure by others is strictly prohibited.  If you have received this electronic mail in error, PLEASE NOTIFY ME BY E-MAIL, FAX OR TELEPHONE and PROMPTLY DELETE this electronic mail.  This mail cannot be modified without express written consent of Wolff, Hislop & Crockett, PLLC.  Thank You.

From: wsbapt-bounces at lists.wsbarppt.com <wsbapt-bounces at lists.wsbarppt.com> On Behalf Of Diane J. Kiepe
Sent: Thursday, July 27, 2023 3:09 PM
To: WSBA Probate & Trust Listserv <wsbapt at lists.wsbarppt.com>
Subject: Re: [WSBAPT] Trusts and Friend-Educated Clients

Jane nailed it much better than I!  Thanks Jane, I was going off the cuff and couldn't remember the ins and outs.  Also, and new to learn, I did not realize pulling from a base asset (in your case the 200K) doesn't count for health insurance coverage - just an income test - did I read that correctly?


Diane J. Kiepe
Douglas Eden, P.S.
717 W. Sprague Ave., Suite 1500
Spokane, WA  99201
djkiepe at depdslaw.com<mailto:djkiepe at depdslaw.com>
509-455-5300

KINDLY ALLOW 2-4 WORKING DAYS TO RECEIVE A RESPONSE TO NON-URGENT EMAILS.  FEEL FREE TO SEND YOUR EMAIL (OR RESEND YOUR EMAIL AS THE CASE MAY BE) MARKED URGENT IN THE SUBJECT LINE.


DISCLAIMER: the preceding message and any attachments may contain confidential information protected by law, the attorney-client privilege or other privilege.  This communication is intended to be private and may not be recorded or copied without the consent of the author.  If you believe this message has been sent in error, REPLY to sender and then DELETE this message.  Thank you.



From: wsbapt-bounces at lists.wsbarppt.com<mailto:wsbapt-bounces at lists.wsbarppt.com> <wsbapt-bounces at lists.wsbarppt.com<mailto:wsbapt-bounces at lists.wsbarppt.com>> On Behalf Of Jane Bitz
Sent: Thursday, July 27, 2023 2:22 PM
To: WSBA Probate & Trust Listserv <wsbapt at lists.wsbarppt.com<mailto:wsbapt at lists.wsbarppt.com>>
Subject: Re: [WSBAPT] Trusts and Friend-Educated Clients

In law school on the first day of Income Tax class, my professor (who was Kit Querna, a wonderful attorney in Spokane who has since passed away) wrote the "first rule of tax" on the board in capital letters: PIGS GET SLAUGHTERED

Elder Law attorney answer:
No "trust for all assets" is needed IF they are talking about health insurance coverage only and not "institutional Medicaid" for long term care.


IF they are talking about medical insurance. They can apply for Obama Care (Medicaid medical benefits) and their assets are not counted toward eligibility, just income.

Example: I have a client who was always low income, but inherited a nice amount (about $200K) from her mom's estate. The money was invested and she applied for and receives medical insurance through the Washington "exchange". Her provider is Molina and she pays no premiums because she is "low income" - only the interest, dividends and capital gain on her investments are counted for eligibility for "Obama Care" insurance coverage. She takes a monthly draw from her inheritance fund as her income.

Your clients probably have so much in passive income that they will end up with paying a premium for their coverage.

As Diane said: some people believe or are told that they can transfer assets into an irrevocable MAPT (Medicaid Asset Protection Trust) and then later qualify for Medicaid assistance in paying for long term care (assisted living, memory care, nursing home, etc.). The problem is that there is a 5 year look back on gifting. If they need care before 5 years have passed, there is a gifting "penalty" that is applied forward, from the date of the application.

In addition, many facilities are requiring 24 to 36 months of private pay before Medicaid can become a payment source because Medicaid reimbursement rates have not kept up with costs at those facilities. The facilities also limit the number of "Medicaid beds" because of this issue.

Jane.
Jane G. Bitz
Of Counsel
Wolff, Hislop & Crockett, PLLC
12209 E. Mission Ave, Suite 5
Spokane Valley, WA 99206-4824
(509) 927-9700 x126
FAX: (509) 777-1800


THE CONTENTS OF THIS ELECTRONIC MAIL ARE CONFIDENTIAL AND PROTECTED BY THE ATTORNEY-CLIENT PRIVILEGE OR OTHER APPLICABLE PROTECTION.  Any review, use, distribution or disclosure by others is strictly prohibited.  If you have received this electronic mail in error, PLEASE NOTIFY ME BY E-MAIL, FAX OR TELEPHONE and PROMPTLY DELETE this electronic mail.  This mail cannot be modified without express written consent of Wolff, Hislop & Crockett, PLLC.  Thank You.

From: wsbapt-bounces at lists.wsbarppt.com<mailto:wsbapt-bounces at lists.wsbarppt.com> <wsbapt-bounces at lists.wsbarppt.com<mailto:wsbapt-bounces at lists.wsbarppt.com>> On Behalf Of Paul Neumiller
Sent: Thursday, July 27, 2023 1:53 PM
To: WSBA Probate & Trust Listserv <wsbapt at lists.wsbarppt.com<mailto:wsbapt at lists.wsbarppt.com>>
Subject: Re: [WSBAPT] Trusts and Friend-Educated Clients

By the way, the couple is healthy, happy, and in their mid-50s.  Estate size of around $5 million.


[cid:image001.jpg at 01D9C0A0.7440E290]

IMPORTANT NOTICE:  This e-mail message is intended to be received only by persons entitled to receive the confidential information it may contain. E-mail messages to clients of Paul A. Neumiller presumptively contain information that is confidential and legally privileged; e-mail messages to non-clients are normally confidential and may also be legally privileged. Please do not read, copy, forward or store this message unless you are the intended recipient of it. If you have received this message in error, please forward it back to the sender and delete it completely from your computer system.

E-mail communication on the Internet may NOT be secure. There is a risk that this confidential communication may be intercepted illegally. There may also be a risk of waiving attorney-client and/or work-product privileges that may attach to this communication. DO NOT forward this message to a third party. If you have any questions regarding this notice, please contact the sender.


From: Paul Neumiller
Sent: Thursday, July 27, 2023 12:55 PM
To: WSBA Probate & Trust Listserv <wsbapt at lists.wsbarppt.com<mailto:wsbapt at lists.wsbarppt.com>>
Subject: Trusts and Friend-Educated Clients

This was a new one for me so I thought I'd bounce it off the hive-mind.  New estate planning clients have insisted they need a WA trust because the trust would make their Obama Care expenses free.  They say that their "good and very knowledgeable" friends told them that they set up a WA trust and now they qualify to get all medical expenses for free.  Any ideas?


[cid:image002.jpg at 01D9C0A0.7440E290]


-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: <http://mailman.fsr.com/pipermail/wsbapt/attachments/20230727/15b0441b/attachment.html>
-------------- next part --------------
A non-text attachment was scrubbed...
Name: image001.jpg
Type: image/jpeg
Size: 8028 bytes
Desc: image001.jpg
URL: <http://mailman.fsr.com/pipermail/wsbapt/attachments/20230727/15b0441b/image001.jpg>
-------------- next part --------------
A non-text attachment was scrubbed...
Name: image002.jpg
Type: image/jpeg
Size: 8025 bytes
Desc: image002.jpg
URL: <http://mailman.fsr.com/pipermail/wsbapt/attachments/20230727/15b0441b/image002.jpg>