» Estate Planning

New Nursing Home Quality Measurements

The federal government has announced six new measurements for its system of comparing the quality of care patients receive at nursing homes. Anyone interested in information about the quality of a nursing home can go to Medicare's website and us… Read More
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Japan Debating Living Wills

The right to refuse life-extending medical care is well-established in the U.S. Millions of Americans have living wills instructing doctors not to give them certain kinds of treatment. In Japan the idea is a novel one and being hotly debated. In the… Read More
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Gaddafi's Estate in Limbo

Muammar Gaddafi's son might have stolen money from the Libyan government and stashed it in a foreign bank. The new Libyan government would like it back, but questions over the legitimacy of the new government make that difficult. Muammar Gaddafi… Read More
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Nursing Homes Abandoning Residents

Under federal law if a nursing home patient goes to a hospital and the nursing home subsequently refuses to readmit the resident, the resident is entitled to an administrative hearing conducted by state government. However, even when residents win th… Read More
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Should Dave Ramsey Be Regulated?

The Department of Labor's pending regulation concerning financial planners who handle retirement accounts has caused some concern that popular media figures like Dave Ramsey might be censored. Elder law advocates have long been concerned that pe… Read More
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When You Must Withdraw From an Inherited IRA

Many people are under a false impression that they do not need to make withdrawals from an IRA they have inherited until they would have to take withdrawals from an IRA they initiated. To avoid penalties it is important to understand the rules. If yo… Read More
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The Percentage of Income You Might Get From Social Security

Social Security is designed to be a pension system that replaces income when people retire. However, it is not designed to be a full pension that replaces your entire income. It is therefore important to know what percentage of your current monthly i… Read More
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Should You Take Social Security at 67?

One of the most important decisions that seniors make is when to start taking Social Security benefits. The full retirement age for most people is 67, but that does not necessarily mean that everyone should wait to start benefits until then. American… Read More
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Be Wary of Living Trust Scams

Many seniors in the U.S. fall victim to living trust scammers who scare and intimidate their victims into purchasing worthless, unnecessary trusts. Seniors need to know what to look out for to avoid being victims. Going through probate can be burdens… Read More
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President Obama's Proposed Tax Changes for Estates

The last proposed budget of Barack Obama's presidency contains several changes to the tax codes important to estate planning. President Obama has submitted his last budget proposal to Congress. It contains many of the same changes to the tax cod… Read More
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