Source: http://marshallelder.blogspot.com/2012/09/
Timestamp: 2019-09-20 05:31:55
Document Index: 395693328

Matched Legal Cases: ['ART 483', '§ 483', '§ 483', '§ 489', '§ 447', '§ 483']

Marshall Elder and Estate Planning Blog: September 2012
Posted by Jeff Marshall at 8:23 AM 7 comments:
People find lots of excuses to avoid getting a Will and other helpful estate planning documents. Some people worry that seeing a lawyer will be expensive; others think that their assets are not substantial enough to warrant the preparation of a will; and some of us just want to avoid the unpleasant thought of our deaths.
It is our experience at Marshall, Parker & Associates that the estate planning process is a lot less painful than many folks have led themselves to believe. All of us like the ability to make choices and preparing your estate plan is exercising your right to choose! The law gives you lots of options. Why waste them.
One of the cornerstones of estate planning is the Will, which is a blueprint of how you want your assets distributed and your family protected after you are gone. Your Will also allows you to select someone you trust (your Executor) to carry our your wishes.
Some important reasons to prepare or update your Will include:
You can make sure that the right people will get the right things at the right time.
You can decide who will be in charge of your estate.
You can choose a guardian of your choosing for minors.
You can create a trust to protect your loved ones.
You can minimize family issues and disagreements.
You can reduce taxes and estate administration expenses.
You can ensure that your plan is updated to take maximum advantage of current laws.
Pennsylvania residents can have an initial appointment with one of the estate planning lawyers at Marshall, Parker & Associates at no charge. So, worry about expense should be no reason to delay. And even if your estate is not large, that is actually all the more reason you need to protect it, both for you during your lifetime and for your loved ones after your death. That's what estate planning is all about.
It is true that estate planning does require you to recognize that the world will continue even after you have departed it. But estate planning is nothing to fear. Appointments are often filled with laughter and relief. Clients frequently say things like "I feel so relieved to know that I have a plan in place, I shouldn't have waited so long!"
Don't procrastinate. Take advantage of a free initial appointment at Marshall, Parker & Associates to get your estate planning started. Just call 1-800-401-4552.
Posted by Jeff Marshall at 5:25 PM No comments:
It’s a tough time financially for Pennsylvania nursing homes. They recently suffered a reduction in payments from Medicare and then barely survived a cut back in Medicaid payments that Governor Corbett included in his budget proposal.
If elected, the Romney/Ryan team proposes to change Medicaid funding to a block grant, which would likely further restrict funding for nursing home care. The head of Pennsylvania’s Department of Public Welfare, Gary Alexander, has announced his support for moving Medicaid to a block grant.
So, it looks like the next few years will be tough on nursing homes, and probably even tougher on their residents. Further reductions in funding will almost surely impact staffing levels and quality of care.
Many nursing home residents are unable to act effectively to protect themselves from poor care and abuse and to assert their basic human rights. Funding cut-backs make it increasingly important that nursing home residents, their families, and advocates understand the laws that exist to protect the rights of those who have become dependent on nursing home care.
Federal Law has long imposed the obligation to protect patient rights on any long term care facility that participates in Medicare or Medicaid. The law (The Nursing Home Reform Law of 1987) is set out in Title 42, Section 483.10 of the Code of Federal Regulations. These protections apply to any resident of a Medicare or Medicaid certified facility regardless of their payment source.
Title 42 - Public Health. CHAPTER IV - CENTERS FOR MEDICARE & MEDICAID SERVICES, DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES (CONTINUED). SUBCHAPTER G - STANDARDS AND CERTIFICATION. PART 483 - REQUIREMENTS FOR STATES AND LONG TERM CARE FACILITIES. Subpart B - Requirements for Long Term Care Facilities.
(11) Notification of changes. (i) A facility must immediately inform the resident; consult with the resident's physician; and if known, notify the resident's legal respresentative or an interested family member when there is—
(12) Admission to a composite distinct part. A facility that is a composite distinct part (as defined in § 483.5(c) of this subpart) must disclose in its admission agreement its physical configuration, including the various locations that comprise the composite distinct part, and must specify the policies that apply to room changes between its different locations under § 483.12(a)(8).
(2) Management of personal funds. Upon written authorization of a resident, the facility must hold, safeguard, manage, and account for the personal funds of the resident deposited with the facility, as specified in paragraphs (c)(3)-(8) of this section.
(3) Deposit of funds. (i) Funds in excess of $50. The facility must deposit any residents' personal funds in excess of $50 in an interest bearing account (or accounts) that is separate from any of the facility's operating accounts, and that credits all interest earned on resident's funds to that account. (In pooled accounts, there must be a separate accounting for each resident's share.)
(ii) Funds less than $50. The facility must maintain a resident's personal funds that do not exceed $50 in a non-interest bearing account, interest-bearing account, or petty cash fund.
(4) Accounting and records. The facility must establish and maintain a system that assures a full and complete and separate accounting, according to generally accepted accounting principles, of each resident's personal funds entrusted to the facility on the resident's behalf.
(5) Notice of certain balances. The facility must notify each resident that receives Medicaid benefits—
(6) Conveyance upon death. Upon the death of a resident with a personal fund deposited with the facility, the facility must convey within 30 days the resident's funds, and a final accounting of those funds, to the individual or probate jurisdiction administering the resident's estate.
(8) Limitation on charges to personal funds. The facility may not impose a charge against the personal funds of a resident for any item or service for which payment is made under Medicaid or Medicare (except for applicable deductible and coinsurance amounts). The facility may charge the resident for requested services that are more expensive than or in excess of covered services in accordance with § 489.32 of this chapter. (This does not affect the prohibition on facility charges for items and services for which Medicaid has paid. See § 447.15, which limits participation in the Medicaid program to providers who accept, as payment in full, Medicaid payment plus any deductible, coinsurance, or copayment required by the plan to be paid by the individual.)
(i) Services included in Medicare or Medicaid payment. During the course of a covered Medicare or Medicaid stay, facilities may not charge a resident for the following categories of items and services:
(ii) Items and services that may be charged to residents' funds. Listed below are general categories and examples of items and services that the facility may charge to residents' funds if they are requested by a resident, if the facility informs the resident that there will be a charge, and if payment is not made by Medicare or Medicaid:
(iii) Requests for items and services. (A) The facility must not charge a resident (or his or her representative) for any item or service not requested by the resident.
(i) Mail. The resident has the right to privacy in written communications, including the right to—
(k) Telephone. The resident has the right to have reasonable access to the use of a telephone where calls can be made without being overheard.
(n) Self-Administration of Drugs. An individual resident may self-administer drugs if the interdisciplinary team, as defined by § 483.20(d)(2)(ii), has determined that this practice is safe.
For further information and clarification of the above rules see Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, State Operations Manual Appendix PP - Guidance to Surveyors for Long Term Care Facilities
Pennsylvania has its own separate regulations governing the rights of residents of long-term care nursing facilities which provide either skilled nursing care or intermediate nursing care, or both. The Pennsylvania regulations can be found at 28 Pa Code Section 201.29.
Pennsylvania also has a regulatory list of patient’s rights that applies to hospital patients. See Patient’s Bill of Rights at 28 Pa Code Section 103.22.
Marshall Elder and Estate Planning Blog: Making Sense of Medicaid Block Grant Proposals
Posted by Jeff Marshall at 9:59 AM 5 comments: