BarbriSFCourseDetails
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Course Details

Course Information
  • smart_display Format

    On-Demand

  • signal_cellular_alt Difficulty Level

  • work Practice Area

    Family Law

Date & Time
  • event Date

    Thursday, October 6, 2022

  • schedule Time

    1:00 p.m. ET./10:00 a.m. PT

  • timer Program Length

    90 minutes

Credit Information

  • This 90-minute webinar is eligible in most states for 1.5 CLE credits.

$197.00
CLE
ALL

This CLE webinar will guide elder law attorneys on the challenges Medicaid recipients face upon the passing of the community spouse. The panel will discuss community spouse protections and applicable rules, counting of assets, and available planning techniques to maintain Medicaid eligibility as a preventative measure upon the community spouse's death.

Faculty

Dale M. Krause
President and CEO
Krause Financial Services, LLC

Mr. Krause, J.D., LL.M. is the President and CEO of Krause Financial Services – a Wisconsin-based firm that specializes in crisis Medicaid planning through the use of Medicaid Compliant Annuities and other insurance products. With over 30 years of industry experience, he’s a national expert on using annuities to accelerate eligibility for Medicaid. Mr. Krause earned his B.S. degrees in Sociology and Political Science from the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point in 1981, his J.D. from Thomas Cooley Law School in 1985, and his LL.M. in Taxation from DePaul College of Law in 1990. He is a member of the Wisconsin State Bar and an emeritus member of the Michigan State Bar. For more information regarding Mr. Krause, his accomplishments, and his company, visit www.medicaidannuity.com.

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Melissa Negrin-Wiener
Senior Partner
Cona Elder Law, PLLC

Ms. Negrin-Wiener manages the Government Benefits Department, concentrating her practice in the areas of asset protection, Medicaid eligibility planning, estate planning, special needs planning, mediation, guardianships and Veteran benefits. She supervises the preparation of Medicaid Applications for nursing home care, home health care and community benefits, resolves complex Medicaid issues and represents families facing a reduction in Medicaid home care hours and services.

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Kelly R. Gusmano
Attorney
Woods Oviatt Gilman, LLP

Ms. Gusmano is an Associate at the firm in the Family Wealth and Estate Planning Department. She concentrates her practice in the area of Elder Law, Long Term Care Planning, and Medicaid.

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Description

Elder clients rarely plan for Medicaid asset preservation, not anticipating the illness or injury that requires immediate nursing home placement and an imminent need for Medicaid eligibility. But, what happens when the community spouse passes away before their Medicaid recipient spouse? Elder law attorneys must be equipped to handle these circumstances and implement effective planning techniques to maintain Medicaid eligibility.

Typically, counsel can protect the Medicaid recipient by using qualified annuities and making countable assets unavailable through DRA-qualified promissory notes. In addition, special protections are provided to spouses of Medicaid applicants to ensure the spouses have the minimum support as needed, along with the ability to leverage the Community Spouse Resource Allowance. However, this process can be substantially derailed if the community spouse dies first.

The panel will outline best practices for meeting the stringent requirements for Medicaid eligibility and maintaining eligibility in the event of the passing of the community spouse.

Listen as our distinguished panel of attorneys experienced in Medicaid asset preservation reviews the eligibility requirements and available planning techniques to maintain Medicaid eligibility as a preventative measure and upon the death of the community spouse.

Outline

  1. Overview of community spouse protections
  2. Community spouse resource allowance
  3. Preemptive measures and revising the estate plan
  4. Maintaining Medicaid eligibility in case the community spouse dies first

Benefits

The panel will discuss these and other key issues:

  • Best practices to convert a client's Medicaid-countable assets to exempt assets

  • Use of the Community Spouse Resource Allowance, Medicaid qualified annuities, and DRA qualified promissory notes for the client and spouses' benefit

  • Protections available to the community spouse under Medicaid

  • Tools available to maintain Medicaid eligibility for a recipient upon their community spouse's death