Part of sensible estate planning is having an advance health care directive that contains living will language, and a durable power of attorney for financial decisions, all targeted at making your wishes known for how you want your medical care and other affairs to be handled.
If you have been asked to serve as someone’s attorney-in-fact, before accepting the responsibility to act, you should be aware of your responsibilities and duties to that individual.
Generally, an attorney-in-fact is a relative or trusted associate with whom the principal, or person who appoints such individual, is relying on to make sound and responsible decisions in the principal’s best interests. In essence, you are acting as the principal’s agent and have a fiduciary obligation to represent the principal with utmost regard to his or her financial affairs.
“Elder orphans” may be a new term that has entered the American lexicon. It refers to those persons who are 65 years of age or older who have no adult children or spouse, or even other close relatives, and are now facing new and unexpected challenges in their lives. When the time comes that they need assistance with their daily or long term needs, these persons may have no one to turn to.
Medicaid is called “MassHealth” in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. While it is a federal program, each state administers it and passes its own administrative rules and regulations to assist in the administration of the federal benefit program. Massachusetts sponsors this medical assistance benefit program for state residents that can be utilized by those aged 65 and older needing long term nursing care. because the cost of nursing care is astronomical. Some estimates put the figure at $90,000 to $120,000 per year, an amount that few of us can afford independently.
Estate planning is for everyone, no matter what assets you own, or the size of your family. Basic estate plans include a will, payable-on-death accounts (POD), IRAs, and other retirement plans that include beneficiaries. Some people may also include a trust, depending on whether it is beneficial or financially expedient to their individual circumstances. Life insurance is another tool for estate planning and can be a valuable addition to your estate planning strategy.
Life insurance is usually purchased by persons with families and is easily affordable if you get it at a relatively young age, especially if it is term life. You can purchase term life for as little as $10,000.00 to well over $1,000,000.00 with fixed premiums for a set period of time. The most common amount for policies are for $100,000.00 and are designed to replace the income lost by the premature death of the primary wage earner in a family.