By Harry S. Margolis In a controversial decision, the Food and Drug Administration approved the first drug for Alzheimer's Disease, Aduhelm developed by Biogen, doing so after its advisory committee of experts had advised against such approval, three of whom resigned after the approval. The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid (CMS), however, in a preliminary decision decided to only cover the $28,000 annual cost of treatment for continued study of the drug's efficacy. (Biogen had initially priced the drug at twice this amount.) CMS is still deciding whether to make this decision final. High Cos ..read more

By Harry S. Margolis The case of In the Matter of the Colecchia Family Irrevocable Trust (Mass. App. Ct. 20-P-224, November 29, 2021) involves the claim of Michael Colecchia that he should be compensated for the years of work he performed maintaining his parents' home in Revere which he says he would not have done had he known the house had been placed in an irrevocable trust of which he was only a 10% beneficiary. The question ultimately is what notice was Michael entitled to as beneficiary of the trust. (The case also involves a number of procedural and notice issues which will be usef ..read more

By Harry S. Margolis When they were running for president, Senators Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren advocated providing universal health care coverage by expanding Medicare to cover all Americans. Such a single-payer system would be a great improvement over our current over-complicated system, but it would do little to expand long-term care coverage for our seniors and others with disabilities. That's because Medicare provides very limited long-term care services. Medicaid (MassHealth in Massachusetts), on the other hand, covers nursing homes, a significant amount of home care, and some a ..read more

By Harry S. Margolis If you're a Baby Boomer or related to one, you need to be concerned about the state of elder care in the United States. Our disparate system already is inadequate to meet the needs of today's seniors. It's complicated and expensive and relies heavily on underpaid direct-care workers, many of whom have braved the pandemic, but many of whom are also leaving the elder care workforce for safer, better paid and less demanding work. The oldest Baby Boomers are now 75 years old. In a decade, they'll begin turning 85, the age at which people become much more likely to need care ..read more

By Harry S. Margolis As of January 1st, the federal estate tax threshold will increase from $11.7 million to $12.06 million. (We'll call it $12 million since when you get to estates this size, the extra $60,000 is something of a rounding error.) In all likelihood, this of little concern to you since fewer than 1.0% of households in the United States have assets totaling more than $10 million and married couples can double these thresholds. So even fewer American families have a net worth exceeding $24 million. However, this threshold is set to sunset in 2026 to half of its then current level ..read more

By Harry S. Margolis Homestead declarations primarily come into play in the event of of bankruptcy. In such cases, they will protect the first $500,000 of equity in the home from claims of creditors. In order to qualify for the exemption, however, the homeowners must establish that the property serves as their residence. That's what was in question in the bankruptcy case of In re: Andrea A. Angera, Jr. (Civil Action Nos. 1:21-CV-10547-RWZ and 1:21-CV-10560-RWZ) (Nov. 4, 2021). a First Circuit Court of Appeals decision on an appeal of the bankruptcy court decision. In the bankruptcy proceeding ..read more

By Harry S. Margolis Everyone should have a durable power of attorney in place, at least as long as they have anyone to trust to step in for them to handle financial and legal matters if they become incapacitated. We all are at risk of incapacity, whether from illness or injury, whether temporary or permanent. Of course, this risk rises as we get older. Without someone in place to handle legal and financial matters, bills can go unpaid, contracts can't be signed, homes can't be refinanced, leases can't be terminated, investments go unmonitored and unadjusted, and families often fight over who ..read more

By Harry S. Margolis A team of a gerontologist, a senior advocate attorney and an actuary have developed an extremely accessible tool to assist seniors in planning for their financial security. Unfortunately, as seniors age they often lose their financial acumen and can become the victims of financial fraud and abuse. Gerontologist Marti DeLiema of the University of Minnesota School of Social Work, attorney Naomi Karp, formerly of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), and actuary Steve Vernon recommend that every senior choose a financial advocate to manage their daily finances, dea ..read more

By Harry S. Margolis There are a lot of good reasons to name your trust as beneficiary or your retirement plan, whether a 401(k), 403(b), or IRA. Trusts provide for management of the IRA beneficiaries who are young, disabled, or for other reasons shouldn't be managing the asset themselves. People in a second marriage or relationship may want their spouse or partner to benefit from the funds, but not be able to deplete them entirely. And trusts provide creditor and protection. However, the trust may not protect your retirement funds from your own creditors. Creditor Protection for Retirement Pl ..read more

By Harry S. Margolis We've reported on both the importance of family caregivers and the underfunding of paid caregivers, both because they're underpaid and because it means we don't have enough of them. Now comes a study from the Center for Retirement Research at Boston College that concludes that we don't have enough family to go around either. Part of a series about the need for long-term care, the Center finds that about a fifth of seniors will need no assistance during their lives, 38% a moderate level of care, and about a quarter a high level of care for three or more years.  Of this ..read more