The Elder was the victim of cruelty, not by strangers but by her own family.
The Elder had granted a life estate on her home to her daughter, to whom she wished to leave the house. But she retained the right to live in it for the rest of her days.
Her son-in-law had other plans, for the couple moved the older woman into a basement room, where she became a virtual prisoner, except at meal time.
The Elder hadn't known that she needn't have given the home to her daughter to protect it from Medicaid. She could have gone to court to revoke the grant, though the cost would have been prohibitive. But how would an elderly woman alone find help she could trust or afford?
Elder financial abuse costs older Americans more than $2.6 billion per year and is most often perpetrated by family members and caregivers says Steven Peck, an elder law attorney with Premier Legal (www.californiaeldercarelaw.com) located in Los Angeles, California
The recession has increased the vulnerability of older people, many of whom fail to report the abuse. Family members and caregivers are the culprits in 55 percent of the cases. The typical victim, is between 70 and 89, white, female, frail and cognitively impaired. Most elders are very trusting of others and may be lonely or isolated. Family members and caregivers tend to financially exploit their elderly relatives more often than strangers.
Family members feel a sense of entitlement and believe they have a right to the money . . . their parents or older relatives have accumulated. They also may believe the old folks don't need it, anyway. it's very dangerous to transfer a home to a son or daughter, for, if they declare bankruptcy, the house could be lost.
And it was not necessary to deed a house to a son or daughter to protect it from Medicaid. The house is safe from Medicaid, unless it's abandoned.
You can find a qualified elder law attorney in your area through Steven Peck's Premier Legal at www.premierlegal.org or call 866-999-9085. An attorney can help you execute certain documents long before you need them, such as an advance health care directive, a living trust, and a power of attorney, which, says elder law attorney Steven Peck "can be as broad or as limited as the individual feels comfortable with." Be careful though to specify what powers you wish to bestow.
