Adamsky Law Offices Blog

The link below (and in the headline) is to a blog about a large HIPAA violation penalty. It is interesting to note that since HIPAA started in 2003 and until today, there have been little or no enforcement actions against doctors offices, hospitals, or other medical places for improper release of protected health information. Everyone has been (perhaps overly) careful to avoid inadvertent disclosure of information. That's great. This big ($4.3 Million!) fine was against an insurance company that failed to properly communicate with its own customers. Patients (insured) wanted access to their own information and records (to which they are entitled) but the company did not properly respond or provide systems for customers to get the information. After attempts to work with them, and a complete lack of cooperation, the government fined the company - most of it for their failure to even respond to the complaints. So, the moral here appears to be that small doctors offices and other...

As we get older, we generally have more health concerns. For a long and healthy life we must handle our health issues properly. Seniors often make mistakes when dealing with their health. Here are seven of the biggest health care mistakes made by the elderly: 1. Failing to Hear or Understand your Doctor – If you did not hear what your doctor said, ask again. If you do not understand the directions, ask for them to be written down. If you are not sure what the doctor was talking about, ask for a simpler explanation. Don’t leave the doctor’s office until you understand what is wrong with you, and what you must do about it. 2. Failing to Discuss Problems with your Doctor – Some problems are embarrassing or personal, some seem minor or trivial. Discuss all issues with your doctor. Sexual or bathroom issues may be symptoms of serious diseases. Other problems show up as simple pains and upsets. Tell your doctor about all of your problems. Maybe your doctor can help, or catch a big problem ...

Many clients ask what they should do about their estate planning after a divorce. In general, a Divorce extinguishes any rights that the ex-spouse had in the estate of the other. A Will clause that leaves assets to “my wife, Jane Smith” will be voided by a divorce, the gift will fail, and it become part of the “residue” of the estate. If the ex-spouse is named as the beneficiary of the residue, then that gift will fail as well, and the Court will use the intestate distribution rules to give the residue to the children or other heirs-at-law. However, it is wise to change all estate planning documents to avoid any questions or ambiguity. It is especially important to review and update beneficiary designations for life insurance and other assets such as Individual Retirement Accounts. The New Hampshire Supreme Court ruled on the issue of an IRA and an ex-wife as the named beneficiary. In The Estate of Robert Tremaine v. Lorraine Tremaine , the Court ruled that the ex-wife of the decedent ...

I have been warning clients and others lately about a new online issue. In Holmes v. Petrovich Development Company, LLC, a California court ruled that emails sent by an employee to her attorney from a computer in her workplace were not protected by attorney-client privilege. This employee used a company email account (rather than a personal account) to send the emails. The company policy made it clear that emails could be monitored and were not private. This makes it pretty clear that there is some risk (in California clearly, and everywhere else, probably) when using corporate email. Since your company probably has a policy that allows emails to be copied, read and monitored, you have little or no privacy in those emails. If you send something to your attorney that you expect to be private, it will lose that privacy and could become public (and used against you) if you use your company email system. This may not apply to use of a web-based email system with your own "private...

The New Hampshire State Committee on Aging (SCOA) advocates on behalf of older residents of New Hampshire. They have issued the following "fact sheet" on Long Term Care (LTC) Long Term Care is a variety of medical and non-medical services to help you live with chronic illness or disability, by providing help with health or personal needs. Services can provide light housework, meal preparation, laundry, paying bills and transportation. LTC is available in your home, senior center, retirement or assisted living facility or nursing home. Plan and think about long term care before you need care and before a crisis occurs. Planning ahead allows you the time to talk with your doctor about your health needs. It is important to talk with your family about LTC services you might need, their costs, and how to pay for them. [You should also see your Elder Law Attorney - Ed.] Medicare DOES NOT pay for long term care support services that are typically needed. It pays only for skilled nur...

Here is a guest article - edited and reposted from http://www.zeiglerseniornews.com/ Washington DC. Happy fifth birthday, DRA. Only Medicaid workers, nursing home personnel and Elder Law Attorneys would be likely to notice the anniversary of the Deficit Reduction Act. It was signed into law by President George W. Bush five years ago, on February 8, 2006. Now universally called "the DRA", the act generated controversy from its first week and is still generating controversy. The DRA made dozens of changes, but none were more important, controversial and confusing than changes in Medicaid rules for long-term care eligibility. Seniors seeking Medicaid coverage for nursing home costs or for the small but growing "Medicaid waiver" home care still run into problems qualifying under the DRA. And these problems will continue. Elder law attorneys who mostly opposed the DRA have since been retained by thousands of seniors seeking to tread the difficult path of protecting asset...

Buy enough life insurance . You can’t be replaced, but someone will have to fill in if you aren’t there. Your family will probably have to pay for some services that you used to provide. You can provide the money necessary, even if you don’t have much now, with life insurance. Set up a trust . Any assets left for a child with special needs, including life insurance proceeds, should be held in trust. Leaving money directly to someone with a special need jeopardizes public benefits. Some families disinherit children with special needs, relying on siblings to care for them. This approach is fraught with potential problems. The best approach is a trust fund set aside for the child with special needs. Write down the care plan . You must write down what a future caregiver will need to know about your special needs child. You may know everything but you need to write it down so it can be passed on. The memo or letter can be kept in the attorney's files or with the parent's estate plan...

An Elder Law Attorney has developed a checklist of possible indications of elderly financial exploitation and it is now available online. It is the feature news article in the newsroom of www.ZeiglerSeniorNews.com The checklist was developed by attorney Pam Wright of West Tennessee Legal Services. It will be a work-in-progress as other indications of possible elder financial abuse are added to the checklist. ZEIGLERSENIORNEWS.NET