The Difference Between Pre-Planning and Crisis Planning

In life, the unexpected could be waiting around any corner, which makes pre-planning and crisis planning crucial for everyone, regardless of age or health.

At Elder Advisors Law, we help our clients create plans that account for all possible scenarios. We can also help people who didn’t make themselves a roadmap in advance to make a plan for how they will move forward when a crisis strikes.

Pre-Planning

Pre-planning involves making decisions and arrangements before a crisis occurs, such as creating a will, setting up a living will or healthcare proxy, and making financial arrangements like setting up a trust or designating power of attorney. This allows individuals to make decisions calmly and thoughtfully without the pressure of a crisis.

A significant part of any seniors plan involves deciding if they may need Medicaid and getting things to qualify with minimal financial penalization. Medicaid applicants are subject to a 60-month lookback rule, which means that any transfers or gifts of assets made in the 5 years (i.e., 60 months) before application can be subject to penalties. Since your assets need to be below a certain threshold to qualify for Medicaid (thus the need for “spenddown”), it is useful to plan in advance for your long term care.

Your pre-planning can involve a number of things:

A Last Will and Testament (“will”): This document will dictate what should happen to your assets if you pass away.

Trusts: These can hold assets on behalf of you or someone else. There are many types of trusts including special needs trusts, funeral trusts, asset protection trusts, income trusts, and more.

Long term care insurance: This can pay for costs associated with long term care that are generally not covered by health insurance.

Crisis Planning

Crisis planning involves making decisions and arrangements during an emergency. This could include making healthcare decisions in an emergency, managing finances during a sudden illness or incapacity, and ensuring that one’s wishes are respected when time is of the essence.

When you’re planning during a crisis, you have less time to prepare and make arrangements, which of course limits your options. You will certainly have less choices when it comes to how you can protect your assets, but with the guidance of an elder law attorney from Elder Advisors Law, it is still possible to make a plan of action that will ease many of your worries. You will use many of the same tools as you would if you were pre-planning but implement them in different ways that suit your situation.

Whether you’re ready to start preplanning or facing a crisis and trying to figure out what to do next, the Elder Advisors Law team is here to help. To get started today or to learn more about what we do, please call (844) 211-1392.