Our Blog
Welcome to the blog of R. F. Meyer & Associates, where we share company news and informative articles related to our Elder Law, Probate and Estate Planning legal practice.
Happy Holidays!
Wishing you a safe and happy holiday season!
Retirement: How to Keep Up With Medicare
Trying to make sense of it all can deter even the most systematic of souls. A year ago Barry Wood, a retiree in Plymouth, Mich., was approaching his 65th birthday, making him eligible for Medicare. The former pharmaceuticals manager began compiling a chart, listing and comparing coverage options. But before long, he gave up, he told me recently. Given the dozens of possible insurance plans and the dozens of features within each plan, “it was the most confusing thing I’ve seen in my entire life,” Wood said.
New Changes to Reversed Mortgages
The Federal Housing Administration has formally approved a new reverse mortgage product that sharply cuts upfront payments by home owners but also significantly reduces the percentage of a home's equity that can be paid to owners under the program. Reverse mortgages...
Planning for Your Elder Years
If we were to ask an older person what his or her most important concerns for aging are, we would probably get a variety of different answers. According to surveys frequently conducted among the elderly, the most likely answers we would receive would include the...
3 Lessons on Durable Powers of Attorney
Durable Powers of attorney are an essential ingredient in a complete estate plan, which allow for continued financial management in the event of incapacity. Under a durable power of attorney, an attorney in fact makes financial decisions on behalf of the principal....
Some Seniors Getting Sticker Shock When Moving From Hospital to Nursing Home
A growing number of Medicare beneficiaries are spending days in the hospital before being transferred to a nursing home, only to find that Medicare won't pay for the first 20 days of their nursing home stay, as it typically would. The reason, the beneficiaries later...
Older & Wiser – Basic Legal Knowledge
By Sara R. Diamond A Cautionary Tale I recently had a daughter call about bringing her mother to me to draw up a trust. I questioned why the mother wasn't calling me herself which should have happened since the mother, not the daughter, would be my client. I asked the...
CMS Issues Rule for Improved Public Information on Medicaid and CHIP Waivers
On September 17, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services published a proposed rule to implement a provision in the health care reform law that require improved transparency for Medicaid and the Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP) waivers. The proposed...
Who benefits from Good Estate Planning?
By : Julia McBride Inheritance and estate planning is a touchy subject for many people, but with the proper knowledge and education on the subject it does not need to be. For many, the problem lies in the tension that can come from the distribution of an estate which...