Minnesota Conservatorship Archives - Flanders Law Firm LLC

Paying for Parents Nursing Home Costs

It’s not always easy to tell whether or not you’ll end up covering the debt that your parent incurred during their time at a nursing home.

To be concerned about this topic is understandable, and there are laws which can mean that individuals may be charged for their parents’ nursing home bills. To ease your fears, however, not every state has these laws. And even if you’ve been granted financial power of attorney by your parents, you may still not have to pay for those nursing home expenses. This isn’t the same as dealing with debt during probate. Just as a taste, there might be five factors which all need to become active before you’ll even need to consider paying.

One in Twenty-Nine

On top of Puerto Rico, there are at least twenty-nine states out there which may cause you to pay for your parent’s unpaid nursing home bills. That means that if your parent were to randomly chose to live in any given state in the US, they would have a greater than fifty percent chance to live in a state that may hold you accountable for mom and dad’s nursing home bills. The concern is where they live rather than where you live. Filial support laws are what may cause you to pay up, but thankfully, cases in which these laws are actually enforced are rather rare.

You want to be aware that these laws usually impact families in which the parents can’t pay their bill. If they’re refusing to pay their bill, that might be an entirely different matter. Filial support laws are, moreover, not without mercy. They’re intended to also to factor in the offspring’s ability to pay for their parents as well. If this does become a serious topic of discussion, both parties should discuss how their income and money may change the situation. This isn’t the time to be shy about money matters.

POA May Change Nothing

For people who have been granted financial power of attorney, your duty is, more or less, to deal with the principal’s assets.

You’re not dealing with your own assets. So, if you have financial POA and your parents don’t reside in a state with filial laws, you might not be held accountable for your parents’ unpaid nursing home bills. It might be nice of you to think of using some of your money to help them out or selling some property to pay for their care, but that might not be needed. That said, having or not having POA will probably not impact the matter overall.

At least, it may not impact the matter if you can’t do anything with the principal’s assets.

You’ve got to come to terms with what can be done and what can’t be done with what they’ve got. There’s almost always the possibility that what you do with the other party’s assets will cause you harm if not done properly. No matter what, you’ve got to make the right decisions. Nonetheless, you still need to be aware of the fact that if you agreed to be responsible for your principal’s expenses, you may still need to pay regardless of where they live. Then, you might have to pay up.

Five Main Factors | Paying for Parent’s Nursing Home Costs

Getting back to general situations involving filial support laws, there tends to be at least five factors which must come into place. That’s to say, you may not have to worry about paying a dime unless all five of these circumstances arise.

Please note that things might be different if you have agreed to pay for your parent’s expenses when you were granted financial POA. The first factor should be rather obvious in that your parent will need to be living in a state that actually has filial laws. You probably don’t need to worry about whether or not you live in one as much as you need to be aware of your parent’s place of residence.

The next three factors can be summed up into your parent not having the resources to pay while you do. The first factor is that your parent can’t be able to pay. Then, they have to not be able to receive Medicaid assistance. After that, if you so happen to have the money to pay the bill, which is the fourth factor, the fifth factor can come into place. The people who were taking care of your parent will have to sue you to try to get their money. It’s when that fifth factor becomes a reality that you should be concerned about how much you have to pay.

Medicaid Trouble

As a word of warning, you must also be careful about your parent relying on Medicaid. Some people truthfully need it, and that’s perfectly fine. It’s that you’ve got to be mindful that Medicaid might want part of your folk’s estate. You heard correctly. The Medicaid recovery process may take away your family’s assets in order to help recover from whatever costs your parents incurred. This may not just impact the family home, but it can also take away money from a trust and other things that your folks owned, too.

There are many different kinds of debt that can impact elder law. Once you go through the probate process you might just realize how many assets need to be sold in order to pay off unpaid debt. So, it’s no surprise that Medicaid wants to have your parent pay off the debt they created. You have to view every object as being a dollar sign to them. You may have some very deep sentiment towards family heirlooms, but the money might need to be paid someway.

Planning for the Future | Minnesota Guardianship and Conservatorship Lawyers

Elder law matters can range from will writing to getting ready for a loved one’s passing. Dealing with each of those matters takes patience and wisdom. Rather than relying on your own strength, you can always get help with these matters with Minnesota guardianship lawyers. Assistance is a phone call away at 612-424-0398.

You might be surprised how many different topics surround elder law as most of these subjects intertwine with one another. Making a trust to help pay for living expenses is only one of many options out there. Plan for the future by starting today. You can help a loved one by being there for the things that they need you the most.

Guardianship in Minnesota

In certain situations, a court may appoint a person to make personal decisions for a person incapable of making their own personal decisions. These people are known as guardians and their position is naturally, referred to as a Minnesota guardianship. They provide a valuable service. This article intends to define a guardian, their duties, what they can do on behalf of a person, and what the limitations are.

Guardians Roles in Minnesota

There are different types of guardian roles within Minnesota, depending on what service the guardian is providing. The definition of guardian in Minnesota is “a person who has qualified as a guardian of a minor or incapacitated person pursuant to appointment by a parent or spouse, or by the court . . . .”Minn. Stat. § 524.5-102 subd. 5. A guardian makes personal decision on behalf a ward – generally thought to be the incapacitated person. Minn. Stat. § 524.102 subd. 17. Another type of guardian is a conservator. A conservator relates more to estate planning. Minnesota statutes defines conservator as a person who manages a protected person’s estate. Minn. Stat. § 524.5-102 subd. 3.

The court imposes certain procedural requirements upon a guardian. For example, the guardian must submit what is known as a Personal Well Being Report to the Court on the ward’s health, mood, recovery, or other matters. Minn. Stat. § 524.5-316 (a). Similarly, although the guardian may generally make decisions regarding the ward’s assets, he or she must provide at least ten days notice to the ward before doing so. Min Stat. § 524.5.313(c)(3).

Law on Guardians in Minnesota

In re Guardianship of Jeffrey DeYoung, 801 N.W.2d 211 (Minn. Ct. App. 2011) provides an overview of the guardian’s duties. The mother appealed the district court’s refusal to remove the guardian in charge of her adult son, who was severely disabled. Id. at 212. The ward’s father and the guardian opposed the proposed removal. Id. at 213. In addition, the mother sought to assume the guardian role upon removal of the ward’s current guardian. Id.

Evidence indicated the guardian restricted the mother’s visitation time after observing possible abuse of the ward. Id. The mother’s primary contention was that the guardian, in placing the ward in a supervised home designed for disabled people, improperly delegated her duty as a guardian third parties. Id. at 217–18.

The Court of Appeals agreed. First, the Court of Appeals noted Minnesota prevents “any individual of agency which provides residence, custodial care . . .or other care or service for which they receive a fee.” Id. at 217 (citing Minn. Stat. § 524.5-309 (2010)). Because a guardian enjoys duties and power given it to it by the judicial branch, a guardian cannot delegate powers to a third person. Id. Although the guardian may adopt recommendations from health care professionals or other experts, the guardian cannot completely delegate their authority. Id. at 218.

In re DeYoung provides a nice distinction on the guardian’s duties to a disabled in healthcare, financial, or other matters. They may obtain information from third parties regarding appropriate courses of action, but they may not wholly delegate the duties of a guardianship to another person.

Minnesota Conservatorship

MN Guardianship | Paying for Parents Nursing Home Costs