Dementia Planning

Receiving a dementia diagnosis for a loved one is a life-altering event that brings about a range of emotional, practical, and legal challenges. In addition to providing the necessary care and support, it's crucial to address the legal aspects to ensure your loved one's well-being and protect their interests.

Our team at The Marrone Law Firm have helped countless families through this transition, and as a result, we’ve created a bundle of services called the “Season’s Transition Plan” that act as a roadmap plan to ensure that your loved one’s needs are being met, but also provide peace of mind that your family is thinking about and doing all the right things at the right times.

The Season’s Transition Plan includes:

Review, Update, or Creation of Estate Planning Documents:
Estate planning plays a crucial role in ensuring that your loved one's assets and wishes are handled according to their intentions. If they already have estate planning documents, such as a Will or Trust, it's important to review and update them to ensure that the documents accurately reflect your loved one's current wishes.

As dementia progresses, your loved one may gradually lose the ability to make sound decisions regarding their finances and personal affairs. Establishing a Power of Attorney will allow your loved one to choose a person they trust to act on their behalf, but it is important to establish this as early as possible to ensure that they are able to actively participate in selecting the right person.

Financial Account and Asset Ownership Review
Our team will perform a comprehensive review of your loved one’s financial accounts and assets to confirm ownership. Reviewing and having the opportunity to strategically adjust the titling of assets like checking and savings accounts, investment accounts, and real property will help ease the burden of applying for assistance through Medicaid if and when the need arises.

As a part of this process, our team of Medicaid and Probate professionals will recommend options that minimize tax implications and maximize asset protection no matter what the future may hold.

Financial Record Review
The progression of dementia often leads to the need for highly specialized care, most commonly in a nursing home setting. The financial burden of this type of long-term care can be crippling for families, and they often turn to Medicaid for assistance with this cost.

In order to meet the eligibility requirements for Medicaid assistance, a sixty month financial review must be completed. As a part of the Season’s Transition Plan, our team will gather the information needed for this review, and analyze each transaction to determine if it will have an impact on Medicaid eligibility. As an ongoing process, we’ll keep these sixty months of records updated so that the full analysis will be available and accurate if the time comes when your loved one is in need of Medicaid.

Facility Placement Assistance
If the time comes when your loved one’s care needs exceed your abilities at home, our team will provide guidance, advice, and assistance with the admission process to a nursing home or assisted living facility. We’ll review all admission and legal paperwork in connection with the admissions and placements process to ensure that the process goes smoothly.

Referrals and Trusted Advisors
Over the years our team has developed a comprehensive list of trusted partners, professionals, and advisors that each specialize in a need that your family may require as a part of this transition. We’re always happy to connect you to people and businesses that we’ve worked with previously so that you can get the services you need as painlessly as possible.

Our team at The Marrone Law Firm developed the Season’s Transition Plan in an effort to ease the burden that this extremely stressful and challenging transition can cause for families. We’re a passionate, client-first law firm that prides ourselves on making challenging legal topics easy to understand. If one of your loved ones has been diagnosed with dementia, call us today, we’d love to help you.