What is Elder Law and How Does It Relate to Estate Planning?
Elder law and estate planning are two separate areas of the law, yet they are closely related to one another. Both elder law and estate planning involve making plans about later in life and after death, including plans concerning a person’s medical care and long-term care when they need it. Often, estate planning lawyers are also elder law attorneys who assist clients with estate planning and elder law needs given the close connection between the areas of law.
Generally speaking, elder law is a broad area of the law that involves making plans about finances and asset protection around long-term care needs in older age, planning for future medical needs and care, and addressing benefit eligibility. These issues often coincide with estate planning. Our Gwinnett County elder law and estate planning lawyers can explain in more detail.
Planning for Long-Term Care and Future Health Needs
Planning ahead for long-term care and medical needs is a common component of elder law. When you are thinking about your own future health needs, or an elderly parent’s future health needs, you will need to consider long-term care possibilities as well as the matter of who will be able to make medical decisions on your behalf in the event of your incapacity. This is a key area in which elder law and estate planning intersect.
While financial planning for medical care (and long-term care in particular) in older age is a crucial part of elder law, making actual health care decisions is typically considered to be part of estate planning. Yet the two are very closely related. With help from your attorney, you can complete a Georgia Advance Directive for Health Care through which you can name a Health Care Agent (a person who can make health care decisions on your behalf), and you can clarify what type of treatments you want to receive or to decline.
Considering Asset Protection and Medicaid Planning in Conjunction with Your Estate Plan
It is more likely than not that both you and your elderly parents will eventually need some form of long-term care in older age. The US Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) estimates that more than half of adults aged 65 and older will require long-term care services at some point, and 24 percent of those adults who do need long-term care require it for two years or longer. This information might not seem too concerning until you realize the cost of long-term care.
Medicaid and long-term care planning are typically part of elder law, but this type of planning also involves your estate. In order to ensure that you will be able to pay for long-term care — which usually means becoming eligible for Medicaid coverage — you will need to consider ways of spending down your assets or preventing them from being counted for Medicaid purposes. Often, older adults want to ensure that their assets ultimately are left to their children while they can still qualify for Medicaid, and it may be possible to make such plans with certain types of trusts in Georgia.
Contact a Norcross Estate Planning Attorney
Do you need assistance with the overlapping components of elder law and estate planning in Georgia? An experienced Norcross estate planning lawyer at Bowman Law Firm can speak with you today about your circumstances, and we can begin discussing options with you for long-term care planning and your estate.
Sources:
aging.georgia.gov/get-advance-directives
