Experienced Palm Beach Estate Planning Attorneys Offer Sound Guidance Regarding Medicaid Pooled Trusts

Medicaid pooled trusts: a viable special needs planning option

Certain individuals or families may have the ability to set up first party or third party special needs trusts. But there is another, often more cost-effective special needs trust option: Medicaid pooled special needs trusts. The point of establishing a trust for a person already receiving Medicaid benefits is to supplement their existing Medicaid benefits. This requires many qualifications to be met before a special needs person can become part of a Medicaid pooled trust. The Palm Beach estate planning attorneys at Kitroser Lewis & Mighdoll understand how to carefully navigate the legal requirements of qualifying for Medicaid pooled trusts. Our goal is to maximize the benefits going to the special needs individual. Our highly skilled, innovative attorneys have decades of experience successfully accomplishing this goal for clients in an appropriate and effective manner.

The advantages of a Medicaid pooled trust

The purpose of establishing a special needs trust is to provide a special needs individual with as much financial support possible. In that sense, you must maintain a delicate balance between providing funding and not jeopardizing government benefits. This requires setting up a trust and having the trust properly administered. Administration costs and other factors and decisions can significantly impact the value a special needs trust produces. A Medicaid pooled special needs trust addresses many of these issues in a variety of ways, including:

• Professional administration at a lower cost. Under federal law, non-profit organizations must administer pooled Medicaid trusts. This means trained professionals administer the trust, and do so at a lower rate to the trust beneficiary because multiple beneficiary assets are pooled together for management.
• Better return on investment. Not only are administration costs lower, but financial planning professionals generally manage the trusts to a more productive return on investment.
• Built-in compliance with benefits. Because the requirements and guidelines for a Medicaid pooled trust are so stringent and built into the process, there is very little chance that a beneficiary will lose Medicaid benefits. Professionals who administer these trusts have a strong understanding of how to maintain Medicaid benefits for beneficiaries while providing supplemental support.

It is worth pointing out that the remainder of Medicaid pooled trust assets are distributed to the state providing the benefits upon the death of the beneficiary. But similar to other third party special needs trusts, there can be remainder beneficiaries after the state is paid back. There are many advantages to a Medicaid pooled trust for special needs individuals. But, in order to qualify, you need a skilled trust attorney who can appropriately structure your assets and provide reliable counsel. Our Palm Beach trust attorneys offer knowledgeable guidance you can rely on to qualify for Medicaid pooled special needs trust.

Leading Palm Beach trust and estate planning lawyers your best chance at securing a Medicaid pooled special needs trust. Contact us today for a free consultation

At Kitroser Lewis & Mighdoll, our Palm Beach estate planning lawyers successfully navigate the complexities of Medicaid pooled special needs trusts. Contact us at 561-721-0600 or online for a free consultation.