Adamsky Law Offices Blog

Good News! Medicare's monthly premium will be lower than expected next year. The basic premium for Medicare Part B will be $99.90 a month, only a $3.50 increase over the $96.40 a month that most beneficiaries have been paying since 2008. Here are the new Medicare figures for 2012: • Basic Part B premium: $99.90/month • Part B deductible: $140 (was $162) • Part A deductible: $1,156 (was $1,132) • Co-payment for hospital stay days 61-90: $289/day (was $283) • Co-payment for hospital stay days 91 and beyond: $578/day (was $566) • Skilled nursing facility co-payment, days 21-100: $144.50/day (was $141.50) Higher-income beneficiaries will pay higher Part B premiums. • Individuals with annual incomes between $85,000 and $107,000 and married couples with annual incomes between $170,000 and $214,000 will pay a monthly premium of $139.90 (was $161.50). • Individuals with annual incomes between $107,000 and $160,000 and married couples with annual incomes between $214,000 and $...

I discuss funeral planning with most of my clients, but not in great detail. I just suggest that they make their wishes known to their family so they can be followed. Dying can be a time for solemn ceremony or whimsical farce. Many notable celebrities and eccentrics have odd funeral wishes. They were collected in the linked BBC article, but here are a couple: Frank Sinatra had a Catholic funeral. But placed in his coffin were a bottle of whiskey, a Zippo lighter, and 10 dimes - to be used, it's reported, for any emergency phone calls. Beverly Hills socialite Sandra West, widow of an oil baron, demanded that she be buried in a lacy nightgown, while sitting in the front seat of her blue Ferrari. After a court fight, her wishes were followed. http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-15068696

The IRS announced that, for tax year 2012, personal exemptions and standard deductions will rise and tax brackets will widen due to inflation. The Service provided the following details: The value of each personal and dependent exemption, available to most taxpayers, is $3,800, up $100 from 2011. The new standard deduction is $11,900 for married couples filing a joint return, up $300, $5,950 for singles and married individuals filing separately, up $150, and $8,700 for heads of household, up $200. Nearly two out of three taxpayers take the standard deduction, rather than itemizing deductions, such as mortgage interest, charitable contributions and state and local taxes.  Tax-bracket thresholds increase for each filing status. For a married couple filing a joint return, for example, the taxable-income threshold separating the 15-percent bracket from the 25-percent bracket is $70,700, up from $69,000 in 2011. For an estate of any decedent dying during calendar year 201...

The Federal Government announced that Social Security recipients will get a 3.6% increase in benefits next year, the first increase since 2009. The increase applies to checks for 2012. Since 1975, benefits have been tied to inflation and almost always went up, but the recession of the last few years has left the inflation index lower or unchanged, so Social Security benefits were unchanged in 2010 and 2011, as well (they can't go down).  But, this doesn't mean what you get will actually go up, there will be increases in Medicare costs as well. Speaking of which, the open enrollment period for Medicare plans is going on right now (it started and ends earlier this year than in previous years) so it's time to review your plan and either stay with it, or pick a new one for next year.

As you get older, you may (someday) need help with your everyday activities. For some, that means going to a nursing home. But most people want to stay home, so you might think about hiring an at-home caregiver. You need to consider some important employment issues before you do. There are two major options when getting an at-home caregiver. You can either go through a home health agency, or you can hire a person directly. Going through an agency means you are paying the agency for them to provide caregivers. Doing it on your own means you have to find the caregiver and hire that person directly. When you go through a home health agency, the agency is the employer, so you won't have to worry about employer issues such as tax and liability. The agency will take care of screening the employees, doing background checks, and providing insurance. The agency will schedule your caregivers, and should send a replacement if a regular caregiver is not available. Make sure you check on ...

Your Durable Power of Attorney is your most important planning tool. It is the legal document that allows your chosen Agent (family member, friend, or trusted advisor) to continue your personal business if you cannot do so yourself. This includes paying your bills, accepting and depositing your income, filling out legal forms, contracts and tax returns and everything else you do every day. If you die, your Executor will handle the winding up of your affairs, but if you are alive and not able to handle your affairs, someone has to do it for you. The first thing that you have to decide (after you realize you really need a Power of Attorney) is who should be your Agent. This is easy for some people and difficult for others. Whoever you choose, that person needs to be trustworthy. Your Agent will be handling all of your money and property. The duty of an Agent is to handle everything carefully and for your benefit, but your Agent has the ability to do things improperly and incorrectly. Y...