Q: Like more and more divorced women, I moved back in with my parents, thinking that I would get my bearings and then start a new life. Well, that was nearly five years ago. Unwittingly, I have become not only a caregiver, but also knowledgeable in what is now known as "elder law."
With my parents going downhill mentally and physically, I found a lawyer who helped us develop a plan. After my mother died last month, my father and I went back to the lawyer to make sure there was nothing else that needed to be done. He told us that my father's plan was in limbo because Congress is trying to reduce the budget at the expense of the elderly. I have seen cuts in Medicare benefits dig deeply into my parents' minimal income and assets. Now even my father's plan is in jeopardy. Why is it that the rules keep changing and everyone seems to be picking on the helpless elderly?
A: In addition to the cutting Medicare benefits to reduce program costs, Congress continues to try to restrict Medicaid eligibility rules and curtail the planning techniques used by lawyers to help their elderly clients.
Bottom Line: The government can't manage its programs. For example, although Medicare fraud is running rampant, Congress has reduced the number of investigators and auditors in this area, therefore stifling the ability to recover fraudulent payments made to health care providers. Yet, at the same time, Congress continues to raise Medicare premiums, reduce benefits, and increase co-insurance payments. Because of government's fiscal irresponsibility, you will continue to see reduced benefits and higher premiums which will mean financial devastation to many elderly Americans. Today, mature adults pay more than 17 percent of their after-tax income for health care, and this will surely increase.
Because of the complexities in the law and regulations, you were wise to seek out an elder law attorney. Because the future is so uncertain, it is wise to keep in touch with your lawyer and not make any further planning decisions until your lawyer suggests them. As to "Why Congress keeps picking on the elderly," only your representative and senators can answer that question.
Jan Collins Stucker is an award-winning writer and editor. Jan Warner is a matrimonial, elder, and tax attorney. Both are based in Columbia, South Carolina. Flying Solo is distributed nationally by Knight Ridder Tribune News Service and can be found on the Internet at http://www.flyingsolo.com.
Please send your questions to P.O.Box 11704, Columbia, S.C. 29211 or send your questions by email to janwarner@flyingsolo.com. To receive the publication "Long-Term Care: Issues and Answers," send $5.95 payable to "LTC" to P. O. Box 11704, Columbia, South Carolina 29211.
