Crisis Planning with a Springfield Power of Attorney Lawyer

Sometimes, the inevitability of long-term care sneaks up on a family, and their loved one is close to needing a nursing home, or the loved one is already in the nursing home. In this “crisis situation,” families often panic, wondering what will happen to their loved one and how long it will be before money runs out. In this context, there are several elder law tools and strategies available to provide significant protection of assets. When one no longer has the luxury of planning ahead and making it through the 5-year waiting period before needing nursing home care, this focused and timely planning strategy safeguards as much of your (or your loved one’s) assets as possible. Consulting with experienced legal counsel, particularly a Lifegen Law attorney who manages power of attorney issues, can make all the difference.

The most important thing to remember is you and your loved ones DO have options available, rather than just spending down and ultimately losing all the assets (for which you or your loved one has spent a lifetime saving) in a short period of time.

“Crisis Planning,” in the elder law context, involves tailoring a plan to work for you or your loved one’s specific situation to ensure maximum protection of assets. No two crisis plans are alike. Each person’s marital status, income, cost of care, types of assets, value of assets, among other factors, determines the best way to execute the crisis plan. Our team of experienced Missouri crisis planning attorneys work with families to design the best plan to fit their immediate needs and long-term goals. The protected assets can be used, first and foremost, to supplement the care of the individual in the nursing home or provide for the spouse who is not living in the nursing home. Once that person in the nursing home passes away, the protected assets can then go to the person’s beneficiaries, ensuring they receive the inheritance intended for them.

Experienced Power of Attorney Lawyer in Springfield, MO 

Our Springfield power of attorney lawyers have extensive experience drafting all types of powers of attorneys for a broad range of clients with diverse needs. Some of the issues we help our clients with include: 

• Choosing attorneys-in-fact/agents (i.e., the person with power of attorney) 
• Determining the scope of the attorney-in-fact’s authority 
• Revoking prior powers of attorney 
• Defining “incapacity” for purposes of the power of attorney 
• Ensuring that the power of attorney remains effective during the principal’s incapacity
• Appointing successor attorneys-in-fact if an attorney-in-fact is unable to serve 
• Communicating the provisions of the power of attorney to the attorney-in-fact  
• Incorporating the power of attorney into the client’s overall estate plan

Granting power of attorney to someone can be a nerve-wracking experience.  Our Springfield power of attorney lawyers will be there to guide you every step of the way. 

What Is a “Physician’s Directive” or a “Living Will?” 

It’s easy to confuse “physician’s directives,” “advance directives,” and “living wills.” Simply put, these are all different names for a particular type of document (we’ll call it a “living will”) that specifies what type of medical care you wish to receive if you are terminally ill or incapacitated. The living will spells out various medical treatments you would or would not like to have administered to keep you alive such as mechanical ventilation and tube feeding, among others.  Your healthcare power of attorney agent would be in control of carrying out your wishes to administer or withhold the various medical interventions.

Durable (Financial) Power of Attorney

An important point in the context of “Crisis Planning” is to make sure you or your loved one’s Durable (Financial) Power of Attorney contains the appropriate language empowering the agent to plan on behalf of the disabled individual. If no Financial Power of Attorney is in place, guardianship and/or a conservatorship is often needed. This process is lengthy and expensive, and it requires the involvement of the probate court. People can most often avoid this court process by executing a thorough, Durable Power of Attorney document before reaching a point of incapacity with the help of a knowledgeable lawyer.

Consulting with a Missouri Power of Attorney who practices in this area of elder law is crucial prior to making any “gifts” or doing any type of planning. Oftentimes, families believe they are protecting assets by “gifting” them away, but in reality, they are doing more harm than good. This “gifting” could cause a person who otherwise qualifies for assistance to be penalized for assets given away. This penalty period (amount of time one does not receive assistance) could be any length of time, a few months to a few years, depending on the amount given away. The family then has to find a way to self-pay the nursing home until the penalty period has run, causing great financial strain for all involved.

FAQs  

What is a “durable power of attorney for health care?” 

Durable powers of attorney for health care allow your designated agent to make healthcare decisions on your behalf if you are unable or incapacitated.  These decisions are not always limited to end-of-life decisions.

What three decisions cannot be made by a legal power of attorney? 

Attorneys in fact often have broad authority to act, but that authority is not unlimited. Missouri law prohibits attorneys in fact from doing the following three things (even if the power of attorney grants them such authority): 

1. Making, publishing, declaring, amending, or revoking a Last Will and Testament on behalf of the principal
2. Making, executing, modifying, or revoking a living will declaration for the principal
3. Requiring the principal, against his or her will, to take any action or refrain from taking any action

Do you need a lawyer to get a power of attorney in Missouri? 

There is no legal requirement to hire a lawyer to create a power of attorney in Missouri. However, we strongly advise you to hire an attorney, given the gravity of the situations in which your attorney-in-fact will exercise his or her power. Speak to one of our Springfield power of attorney lawyers to draft and execute a power of attorney that works for you.

Set up a Free Consultation with a Dedicated Springfield Power of Attorney Lawyer today!

At LifeGen Law Group, we never charge for the initial consultation with an elder law attorney. We want you to contact us to find out what options are available to you. We can also assess your existing Financial Power of Attorney or help create a Financial Power of Attorney to allow for this type of planning if it is needed.

Please contact our Springfield power of attorney lawyers for a FREE, no-obligation consultation to see what type of planning is right for you. As a law firm devoted to protecting clients in the area of elder law, we look forward to helping you and your family.