When one spouse enters a nursing home, the spouse at home (known as the “community spouse”) is allowed to keep certain assets, including the principal residence, one car, and an amount of the other assets known as the “community spouse resource allowance” (sometimes knows as the “spousal resource allowance).  The community spouse resource allowance is indexed to the U.S. Consumer Price Index, and has increased to $115,920 for the calendar year 2013. 

With careful planning, the community spouse can keep much more than the community spouse resource would seem to allow.   For more information on this topic, see my detailed post at my Massachusetts Estate Planning, Probate and Elder Law blog, entitled  Protecting Assets and Maximum Income for the Community Spouse When Applying for MassHealth in 2013 to Help Pay for the Unhealthy Spouse’s Nursing Home Bills in Massachusetts

Social Security stopped mailing out annual Statements starting in 2011.  You can no  longer request a copy by mail or by telephone and they even disabled the on-line request for a copy to be mailed.   Although it is a legally mandated function of this department, they used an “emergency” ruling that allows them to stop fulfilling this obligation if it could potentially bankrupt the organization.

You can obtain this information online and get immediate access to your Statement, including earning history, estimated benefits amounts and eligibility information and it is easy.   To sign up, go to the Social Security web site; http://www.socialsecurity.gov/  and on the left hand menu go to Get Your Social Security Statement.   In order to register you will be required to enter your personal information, full name, Social Security number, and date of birth, mailing address and phone number and a working email address.  Social Security uses Experian to verify your personal data so be prepared to answer some questions to verify your identity.

This is the same type of account that people use who are already receiving benefits and you will need this to account you’ve set up to later set up your own Medicare, Retirement or Disability benefits.   Make sure you keep the login information in a safe and secure location.

The most recent tax law passed by Congress and signed by President Barach Obama on December 17, 2010 temporarily changed the federal estate  tax laws.  Decedents who die during 2011 and 2012 now have a federal estate tax exemption of $5,000,000, but that figure drops back down to $1,000,000 in 2013, so we can expect more political arguments over the federal estate tax in the near future.

Estates of decedents who died during 2010 will automatically be subject to the 2011 tax laws unless they file an election to be taxed under 2010 laws.  For most estates under $5,000,000, 2011 law will be beneficial because assets includible in the estate will automatically receive a step-up in basis for capital gains tax purposes.  An election can be filed to have the 2010 law apply to the estate, but the Internal Revenue Service still has not finalized the form, instructions, or due date.

New guardianship and conservatorship laws took effect on July 1, 2009.  Even previous guardianships and conservatorships were affected by the new law.  Strict financial planning deadlines must be followed, and a court order is now needed before making a nursing home placement.

Due to the recent Doherty case in the Massachusetts Appeals Court, all irrevocable trusts done for Medicaid planning purposes should be reviewed to determine whether the person who established it could be seen as having too much control over the trust.

For more detailed information, see http://elderlawblog.info/2010/09/25/doherty-case-should-cause-some-concern-about-irrevocable-medicaid-trusts-in-massachusetts/.

Durable power of attorney laws changed on July 1, 2009.  The prior law was repealed, and durable powers of attorney executed under prior law appear to no longer be in effect.  New documents should be executed.

For more detailed information, see http://elderlawblog.info/2010/09/03/is-your-massachusetts-durable-power-of-attorney-still-valid/.