Sheri R. Abrams's Blog, page 14

Should I Use a Professional Trustee for my Child’s Special Needs Trust in Virginia?

In most cases, parents or family members of a person with special needs serve as trustees of the child’s Special Needs Trust in Virginia. However, in some cases, the parents may choose not to serve as trustee and will ask other family members or close friends to serve instead. However, it’s not unusual for the trustee to become overwhelmed with the responsibility. Not only are there bills to be paid and tax returns needed, but there are also requirements for financial statements that need to...

Virginia Special Needs Planning Lawyer: Options for Funding a Special Needs Trust

As a Virginia special needs planning lawyer, I’ve spoken to hundreds of parents who have children with special needs and one common concern that they share is making sure their child has access to the money they need to remain comfortable and secure for the rest of their life. The good news is that it isn’t necessary to be rich to accomplish this. You can set up a special needs trust using funds you may not have considered.

But, before jumping into the source of funds that you may use, you ne...

Follow These 4 Tips in Order to Have a Better Chance of Winning Your Social Security Disability Case

If you are reading this, you’ve most likely tried it all. You’ve tried doing a different job. You’ve tried working fewer hours. You may have even tried going back to school to learn another trade. Even so, you are still not able to work. The thought of applying for Social Security disability benefits probably seems daunting – the forms, the red tape, and all of the waiting! But never fear, you can improve your chances of winning your Social Security disability case.

Tip 1: Don’t wait until yo...

Why You Shouldn’t Procrastinate In Creating a Special Needs Trust in Virginia

People assume that they have an unlimited amount of time to decide whether or not to establish a Special Needs Trust in Virginia for their disabled loved one – so they procrastinate. However, there are some limitations. Let me explain:

Special Needs Trusts are a great way to save money for a disabled person that does not risk his or her eligibility for government funded programs such as Medicaid and Supplemental Security Income (SSI).

There are three types of Special Needs Trusts:

 First Part...

Virginia Special Needs Planning Lawyer: What Can a Special Needs Trust Pay for?

Special Needs Trusts are a very specialized estate planning tool and should only be created by attorneys experienced in this area of law.  But, as a Virginia special needs planning lawyer, I know that even if the Special Needs Trust was set up properly, there can still be confusion about what it can be used to pay for.

A Special Needs Trust is created to protect eligibility for Supplemental Security Income (SSI), Medicaid and other public benefits programs.  If you have questions or concerns...

Updated Rates for Attorney Requests for Medical Records in Virginia

Effective July 1, 2017, Virginia law has changed so that if an attorney requests a paper copy of a client’s medical records, a medical provider may charge 50¢ per page for the first 50 pages, and 25¢ per page for each additional page, plus a $20 search and handling fee and all postage and shipping costs.

These costs do not apply to photocopies of x-rays, which cost a “reasonable fee” that may include a search and handling fee of $10 plus the actual cost of reproduction and all postage and shi...

Interesting Statistics on the Social Security Disability Program

The Annual Statistical Report on the Social Security Disability Insurance Program, 2016 was just released (October 2017).  The report found that:

In 2016, disability benefits were paid to almost 10.2 million people.

New awards to disabled workers (706,448) accounted for 88% of awards to all disabled beneficiaries (799,330) including children and spouses.

In December of 2016, payments to disabled beneficiaries totaled more than $11.3 billion.

Benefits were terminated for 820,372 disabled worke...

Parents of Children with Special Needs Should Always Have Immediate Access to These Important Documents

All parents worry about their children, but there’s a special anxiety that comes along when you have a child with special needs. The fear of where their life will lead and the fear that you cannot be in control of their lives forever is real.  You know that their needs will last throughout their life, but you also know there is a good chance that you won’t be there for all of it.
This makes estate planning critical for these families. You need to have the resources and money in place to make...

Conditions Added to Compassionate Allowance List

SSA announced the addition of three conditions to its Compassionate Allowance (CAL) list on September 5. There are now 228 conditions that qualify for expedited processing through the CAL program.

The three new Compassionate Allowance conditions are:

Infantile and childhood onset forms of Childhood Ataxia with Central Nervous System Hypomyelination (CACH), also known as Vanishing White Matter Disease: a congenital, inherited disorder that creates a variety of neurological symptoms.

Congenital...

Safeguard Your Child’s Financial Future Without Jeopardizing Benefits Using a Special Needs Trust

For many families that have a loved one with disabilities, access to federal and/or state benefits is critical and essential.  Even if the family has the financial means to pay for care, access to Medicaid may still be necessary.

Unfortunately, this situation poses a dilemma, as there are often income and asset requirements that must be met in order to receive benefits.  This problem is so serious that parents have gone through great lengths to completely disinherit their children with disabi...