Providing for a Disabled Individual
Experienced Special Needs Planning Attorney
Leaving a lump sum inheritance to a disabled loved one could disqualify him or her for Medicaid and Supplemental Security Income (SSI). A special needs trust enables you to put assets aside to provide for your family member without sacrificing benefit eligibility, or to shield assets of the disabled person from creditors.
Susan M. Charles is an experienced estate planning lawyer in Largo, Florida. She can assist clients throughout the Tampa Bay area in establishing a third-party or self-settled special needs trust. Call 866.607.6531 for a free consultation.
AV Preeminent* rated, Master of Laws in Elder Law, member of the National Academy of Elder Law Attorneys (NAELA), member of the Academy of Florida Elder Law Attorneys (AFELA)
The Special Needs Trust
If properly set up and administered, a special needs trust is sanctioned by the Social Security Administration and Medicaid. The beneficiary must be in financial need and developmentally disabled or have a physical or mental impairment that makes him or her eligible for government-funded care. There are two types of special needs trusts:
Third party — A parent or other party funds the trust. An appointed trustee can spend the proceeds on luxury items (vacations, personal care products) or supplemental services or medical needs not covered by Medicaid. The disabled person cannot have access to the money. Upon death, the beneficiary's children, parents, siblings, or other named beneficiaries inherit any remaining assets.
Self-settled — The trust is funded by the beneficiary's own assets, such as proceeds from a personal injury settlement. A trustee of a self-settled special needs trust holds those assets while the person is under subsidized care. As with a third-party trust, the money can supplement (but not duplicate or replace) government services. Upon the beneficiary's death, the trust must reimburse Medicaid for the costs of care, and any remaining assets pass to the named beneficiaries.
It is very difficult to regain Medicaid eligibility once it has been compromised. Contact Susan Charles to make sure that a special needs trust is constructed and managed properly from the beginning.
Offices in Clearwater - Largo - St. Petersburg
*AV Preeminent and BV Distinguished are certification marks of Reed Elsevier Properties Inc., used in accordance with the Martindale-Hubbell certification procedures, standards and policies. Martindale-Hubbell is the facilitator of a peer review rating process. Ratings reflect the confidential opinions of members of the bar and the judiciary. Martindale-Hubbell ratings fall into two categories: legal ability and general ethical standards.
