an adult child caregiver's perspective

I stumbled across a blog today that I suspect many in the aging services world would find interesting. "Life With Father" is a journal about one man's view of taking care of his 89-yr old father. It's not candy-coated, something I think we can all appreciate. He talks about the minutiae of daily living as well as some of the more philosophical thoughts he has about how much of this is a preview for his own aging future. I find it refreshingly real. http://midlifemidcape.wordpress.com/

WVAG wins judgment against BlueHippo

The West Virginia Attorney General's Consumer Protection division has won another case against a company who scammed numerous West Virginians. A Kanawha County Circuit Court judge ordered that BlueHippo is enjoined from doing business in WV, voided all existing contracts with WV residents, and cancelled all consumer debts under all those contracts.

You may remember the TV commercial campaign from BlueHippo several years ago offering a new state-of-the-art brand-name computer plus monitor and other free accessories on a payment plan to anyone who had a checking account. The commercials didn't disclose the many onerous hidden terms of the contract that buyers would be required to sign, including their no-refund policy. Many consumers never even got the computers they were charged for.

Any WV resident who owed an outstanding debt under one of these contracts can now breathe easier, those debts are all cancelled and uncollectible. Anyone who receives an attempt to collect on these debts should contact the WV Attorney General's office at 1-800-368-8808.

Surviving Credit Card Debt free workshop in Charleston

The State Law Library will hold a free informational workshop on "Surviving Credit Card Debt" at 10 a.m. Saturday, June 25.

Education Librarian Sara Thompson will explain how to order, review, and understand a credit report, correct misinformation contained in the report, deal with debt collection calls, and write effective letters to creditors. The first 10 people to register will receive a free 88-page workbook with CD-ROM published by the National Consumer Law Center.

The State Law Library is located in the East Wing of the Capitol, Room E-404. Metered parking is available on California Avenue and is free on Saturdays.

The session is free and open to the public, but seating is limited and registration is required. Call the State Law Library at 304-558-2607.

Today is World Elderabuse Awareness Day

There will be a public rally on the north side of state capitol today from 1p to 3p. US Attorney for the Southern District of WV Booth Goodwin will be the keynote speaker.

There will be events held all over the country and all over the world today recognizing that no senior deserves to be abused, neglected, or exploited.

SSA Announces Policy Change on Probation/Parole Warrants

Following decisions in a Second Circuit appeal and to certify a class in a New York district court suit the Social Security Administration (SSA) has issued instructions stating effective immediately it will no longer stop or deny SS/SSI benefits based solely on probation or parole violation warrants.

SSA issued this Emergency Message EM-11032 on 5/9/2011 to field offices and ALJ's explaining the new policy https://secure.ssa.gov/apps10/public/reference.nsf/links/05092011035242PM

According to Gerald McIntyre at the National Senior Citizens Law Center (NSCLC) "all cases at any stage of the administrative appeals process must be decided based on these new instructions." The court has not yet determined what relief it will order for the class members in Clark v. Astrue.

Aged and Disabled Medicaid Waiver manual public comment period ends June 30, 2011

The Aged and Disabled Waiver (ADW) draft policy manual is now available for public comment. The manual may be found at http://www.dhhr.wv.gov/bms/news/Documents/110518Chapter_501_ADW_30.pdf . (It's 42 pages, scroll down through the first page to get to the Table of Contents.) All comments are to be sent to DHHR.BMS.Comments@wv.gov. Comments must be submitted by midnight June 30, 2011.

Elder Court in California

In Contra Costa County California cases involving harm to a senior get heard in a specialized Elder Court. The project brings together a wide variety of partners to help seniors get access to justice in ways that respond directly to their unique needs. The partners include senior peer counselors (who provide help and reassurance before and after court), legal self-help support, geriatricians from the local university, pro bono project, senior legal services, elder mediation, and follow up.

Elder Court handles a variety of casetypes, too. Criminal cases, conservatorships, financial abuse, physical abuse, civil cases, restraining orders, small claims, and more. Some types of cases are automatically docketed in Elder Court, others are referred by other judges or other lawyers.

The Court is in session every Tuesday. "The judges are specially trained, too, in cognitive functioning, aging, and elder abuse. It sharpens their insight."

Read an interview with an Elder Court judge at http://cclawyer.cccba.org/2011/03/the-elder-court-interview-with-judge-joyce-cram/.

New bank rules protect 2 months of benefits from garnishment

The US Treasury Department has issued new rules that went into effect May 1, 2011 designed to protect federal benefits from being garnished by collection agencies. Federal law already protected those benefits from most creditors. But as a practical matter aggressive debt collectors have been freezing people's bank accounts that contained only Social Security or Veterans or other federal cash benefits, causing a cascade of checks bouncing, shutoffs, and financial nightmares. It wasn't the bank's responsibility to determine whether the law protected those funds or not, it was up to the account holder to exercise her rights of protection. Many low-income seniors and other vulnerable adults didn't even know they had those rights or how to exercise them.

The new rules require banks receiving garnishment orders from commercial collectors to determine if the account electronically receives any federal benefits, and if so, to protect 2 months worth of the benefits for the account holder before turning over any remainder to the collector.

Government debts, like back taxes and federal student loans, can still be garnished and the new rules offer no protection from those collections.

New book "Delivering Legal Services to Low-income People"

Wayne Moore, pioneer of senior legal hotlines and 30 year veteran of aging and law, has written a book offering a comprehensive vision of an effective, efficient legal services system.

"Delivering Legal Services to Low-income People" is available from Amazon for $89.99.

Access to justice guru and blogger Richard Zorza interviewed Wayne about the book, see Part 1 of the 2 part interview here.

Medicare coverage for earlier Alzheimer's diagnostics?

Though medical research has not definitively established which biomarkers accurately predict Alzheimer's disease, the National Institute on Aging and the Alzheimer's Association are issuing new guidelines today that include an early stage where no dementia symptoms are present but brain changes have begun. The new guidelines reflect the desire for early diagnosis and prevention.

Rep. Market of Massachusetts has introduced a bill in Congress to establish specific billing codes for steps in Alzheimer's diagnosis to encourage early diagnosis and treatment.

For more information see this article in today's New York Times www.nytimes.com/2011/04/19/health/19alzheimer.html?_r=1&hp

Timeline for implementing healthcare reform

The Kaiser Family Foundation has created an interactive online timeline to show how different provisions of healthcare reform law will be implemented. Users can click along the timeline to expand each provision for more information. You can also customize what appears on the timeline by checking or unchecking boxes for different topics, such as Medicare, prescription drugs, affordability, fraud, and long-term care.

The interactive timeline is part of a larger website dedicated to providing understandable information about healthcare reform. Other pages on the site include flowcharts, videos, and summaries about various aspects of healthcare law including how the individual mandate to acquire insurance will work, how the law affects Medicaid, and a subsidy calculator.

The Kaiser Family Foundation is a non-partisan non-profit private foundation that produces research and policy analysis on healthcare in the US, provides a clearinghouse for public health information, and operates public health campaigns about HIV/AIDS.

Long-term Care Facilities and LGBT Adults

One of the first examinations of the LGBT experience with long-term care has resulted in a report called LGBT Older Adults in Long-Term Care Facilities: Stories from the Field. The report looks at an online survey conducted from October 2009 through June 2010 of 769 individuals, 284 of whom identified themselves as LGBT. Other respondents included friends and family of LGBT, service providers, and legal service providers.

The survey did not include a statistically representative sample. Rather it gathered hundreds of personal comments and stories about fears, expectations, incidents, mistreatment, and issues faced by LGBT older adults in long-term care facilities.

The survey and report were produced by a collaborative including the National Senior Citizens Law Center (NSCLC), Lambda Legal, the National Center for Lesbian Rights (NCLR), the National Center for Transgender Equality, the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force, and Services and Advocacy for GBLT Elders (SAGE).

The report includes recommendations for policymakers and best practice suggestions for long-term care providers. Many of the stories in the report illustrate how being open about sexual orientation and sexual identity can be very frightening for LGBT adults in long-term care. Fears of discrimination, harassment, denial of care, or abuse or neglect highlighted by the respondents also point to a need for training our long-term workforce in LGBT cultural competence.

The entire report, as well as video stories, key findings and recommendations, are available at www.lgbtlongtermcare.org.

The results are in, we made the Top 25!!

Thank you to everyone who voted for us, we made the LexisNexis Top 25 Estate Probate and Elderlaw Blogs of 2011!!!

Please consider checking out the LexisNexis Estate Planning & Elder Law Community to participate in an online community of elderlaw professionals.

MIT AgeLab

Exploration and development in science and technology for healthier aging is happening at MIT's AgeLab. The lab uses unique tools and methods to study the impacts of aging and how we can use technology to accommodate the needs of people as they age. The driving simulator Miss Daisy and the aging simulator suit AGNES help MIT's researchers collect data about the experiences of older people doing the things they do in everyday living.

Older Americans Month, May 2011

May 2011 is Older Americans Month and the theme this year is Older Americans: Connecting the Community.

The federal Administration on Aging explains: "The theme pays homage to the many ways in which older adults bring inspiration and continuity to the fabric of our communities. Their shared histories, diverse experiences, and wealth of knowledge have made our culture, economy, and local character what they are today. The theme also highlights the many ways technology is helping older Americans live longer, healthier and more engaged lives.

In fact, older Americans are more active in community life than ever before, thanks in part to advances in health care, education, technology, and financial stability over the last several decades that have greatly increased their vitality and standard of living. Older adults are out and about giving back and making a difference in their community.

Our seniors are mentoring the leaders of tomorrow, taking to heart the need for intergenerational learning to guide and inspire young minds. They offer a take on times gone by not discussed in any history class—a unique perspective that sheds new light on contemporary issues.

Older Americans step up to help one another as well. Across the country, seniors connect with other seniors by delivering meals, helping with home repair, assisting with shopping, and offering companionship, counseling, and care. Their efforts remind us that when older adults are active and engaged in their communities, everyone benefits."

This blog nominated for a Lexis Nexis Top 25 of 2011! Please help us win!

What a nice surprise, we've been nominated for the Top 25 Estate, Probate, and Elderlaw blogs!

If you want to help us win please comment on this LexisNexis community page (click graphic below), register for the community on the right-hand side (I know I'm asking a lot here!), and post a comment saying you vote for WV Aging and Law blog!



Each comment is counted as a vote toward the supported blog. To submit a comment, visitors need to log on to their free Communities account. If you haven’t previously registered, you can do so on the LexisNexis Estate Practice & Elder Law Community for free. The comment box is at the very bottom of the page. The comment period for nominations ends on March 31, 2011. On April 1, we will post the Top 25 Estate, Probate and Elder Law Blogs of 2011 based on votes received. Thereafter, our community will vote on the Top Blog through a Zoomerang survey. I anticipate the final announcement to be made on or before April 15.

Thank you in advance for even considering it.

FTC rule helps stop mortgage relief scams

Companies who offer to provide mortgage relief for homeowners who are having trouble keeping up with their mortgages and who seek loan modifications or other relief are not always the good guys. Some scammers have sprung up during the current mortgage crisis who will offer this kind of assistance, charge fees up front, then string the consumer along ultimately providing no relief, and usually leaving the consumer worse off.

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has issued a rule that became effective January 31, 2011 prohibiting companies offering mortgage assistance from charging fees up front. The rule also provides that if a company offers some kind of specific mortgage relief the consumer may reject the offer without obligation. A fee can only become due if the consumer accepts the mortgage relief offer.

Licensed attorneys who provide mortgage assistance relief services as part of the practice of law are exempt from the advance fee ban, but must comply with state laws governing attorney conduct, including rules about placing advance fees in client trust accounts, where required (such as in West Virginia).

Consumers can get more specific information about how to protect themselves from mortgage relief scams from the FTC website and this downloadable publication "Mortgage Assistance Relief Scams: Another potential Stress for Homeowners in Distress."

Celebrating Black History Month: J. R. Clifford

West Virginia's first African-American attorney, J. R. Clifford, was born in 1848 in Williamsport, Virginia (now Grant County, West Virginia). He was also a newspaper writer, editor, and publisher, civil war veteran, and a grandfather.

Clifford brought the case of Williams v. Board of Education, which established in 1898 that African-American school children had equal rights to public education in West Virginia, over 50 years before the landmark Brown v. Board of Education would establish that principle for the rest of the nation.

When Clifford was nearly 60 years old he and W. E. B. Du Bois founded the Niagara Movement for equal rights and the end of segregation. He helped plan the movement's first meeting in Harper's Ferry at his alma mater Storer College. The Niagara Movement, named for the mighty current of Niagara Falls, was a progressive counter-movement to the non-confrontational approach to civil rights promoted by Booker T. Washington and other black leaders of the time. Niagara's principles extended to equality for all people, including suffrage for women.

Clifford's life and work is celebrated throughout West Virginia in reenactments of the Williams trial, republication of many of his writings, and public and school programs produced through the J. R. Clifford Project.

Federal Poverty Guidelines for 2011

The US Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) annually issues the Federal Poverty Guidelines used to determine income eligibility for many means-tested benefits and programs. Here are the figures for 2011:

Family Size	Gross Yearly Income	Gross Monthly Income
1	$10,890	$908
2	$14,710	$1,226
3	$18,530	$1,544
4	$22,350	$1,863
5	$26,170	$2,181
6	$29,990	$2,499
7	$33,810	$2,818
8	$37,630	$3,136
add'l	+$3,820	+$318

Federal Register, Vol. 76, No. 13, January 20, 2011, pp. 3637-3638

Sargent Shriver, 1915-2011

One of the 20th century's great leaders in the movement for peace through justice died this week. Sargent Shriver, father of Maria Shriver and brother-in-law of President John F. Kennedy and Senators Robert Kennedy and Edward Kennedy, was the architect President Lyndon Johnson's "War on Poverty." His work led to the creation of the Peace Corps, Job Corps, VISTA, and Head Start programs. His approach to peacebuilding, what he called "practical idealism," focused on promoting human dignity and eliminating poverty.

Shriver was a lawyer as well as a civic leader and Navy veteran.