Warning to veterans and people who serve them

WARNING TO VETERANS - Forwarded by Kevin Secor, VSO Liaison, Office of the Secretary of the Department of Veterans Affairs.

An organization called Veterans Affairs Services (VAS) is providing benefit and general information on VA and gathering personal information on veterans. This organization is not affiliated with VA in any way.

VAS may be gaining access to military personnel through their close resemblance to the VA name and seal. Our Legal Counsel has requested that we coordinate with DoD to inform military installations, particularly mobilization sites, of this group and their lack of affiliation or endorsement by VA to provide any services.
In addition, GC requests that if you have any examples of VAS acts that violate chapter 59 of Title 38 United States Code, such as VAS employees assisting veterans in the preparation and presentation of claims for
benefits, please pass any additional information to Mr. Daugherty at the address below.

Michael G. Daugherty
Staff Attorney
Department of Veterans Affairs
Office of General Counsel (022G2)

Increase in Deduction for LTC Insurance premiums for 2010 tax year

There is a slight increase of about 3% for tax year 2010 in the amount of long-term care insurance premiums that can be deductible. To take advantage of the increase your premium payment needs to be made before 12/31/10. Here is what the IRS says about the long-term care tax deduction:

Qualified Long-Term Care Insurance Contracts

A qualified long-term care insurance contract is an insurance contract that provides only coverage of qualified long-term care services. The contract must:

Be guaranteed renewable,

Not provide for a cash surrender value or other money that can be paid, assigned, pledged, or borrowed,

Provide that refunds, other than refunds on the death of the insured or complete surrender or cancellation of the contract, and dividends under the contract must be used only to reduce future premiums or increase future benefits, and

Generally not pay or reimburse expenses incurred for services or items that would be reimbursed under Medicare, except where Medicare is a secondary payer, or the contract makes per diem or other periodic payments without regard to expenses.

The amount of qualified long-term care premiums you can include is limited. You can include the following as medical expenses on Schedule A (Form 1040).

Qualified long-term care premiums up to the amounts shown below.

Age 40 or under – $320.

Age 41 to 50 – $600.

Age 51 to 60 – $1,190.

Age 61 to 70 – $3,180.

Age 71 or over – $3,980.

Unreimbursed expenses for qualified long-term care services.

Note. The limit on premiums is for each person.

Also, if you are an eligible retired public safety officer, you cannot include premiums for long-term care insurance if you elected to pay these premiums with tax-free distributions from a qualified retirement plan made directly to the insurance provider and these distributions would otherwise have been included in your income.

This information is taken from IRS Publication 502, Medical and Dental Expenses which you can find at www.irs.gov/publications/p502/ar02.html

Kanawha County Prosecutor's office expanding elderabuse intervention

Rob Schulenburg, Assistance Prosecutor for Kanawha County, explains how elderabuse and financial exploitation of seniors is seriously underreported and takes substantial resources to investigate and prosecute in this article in today's Charleston Daily Mail. His boss, the elected Prosecutor Mark Plants is allowing 3 more assistant prosecutors to work on elderabuse cases in Kanawha County.

Medicare Premiums and Deductibles 2011

Part A generally pays inpatient hospital, skilled nursing facility, and some home health. Most beneficiaries do not pay a premium for Part A since they have at least 40 quarters of Medicare-covered employment.

Part B generally pays a portion of the cost of physician services, outpatient hospital services, certain home health services, durable medical equipment, and other items.

Here below are the premiums, deductibles, and copays for Medicare Parts A and B for 2011:

Part A
Hospital Deductible		$1132
Hospital Copay	days 61-90	$238/day
	days 90+	$566/day
Skilled Nursing Facility Copay	days 21-100	$141.50
Part B
Premium for individual by income	<$85k	$115.40
	$85k to $107k	$161.5
	$107k to $160k	$230.70
	$160k to $214k	$299.90
	>$214k	$369.10

Apply for WV LIEAP 12/6 to 12/10

Low Income Energy Assistance Program - (LIEAP)
LIEAP will officially open for general intake on Monday, December 6th, and close at the end of the day on Friday, December 10th. Applications may be obtained at local DHHR offices, Community Action agencies, and county senior centers. The online application will also be available on the DHHR website at www.wvinroads.org. In situations where a heating emergency exists, applicants must be seen by a DHHR Worker.
The Low Income Energy Assistance Program (LIEAP) assists eligible households with the cost of home heating through direct cash payments or payments to utility companies on their behalf. A crisis component is available for households without resources facing the loss of a heating source. Eligibility for both program components is based on a combination of factors, including income, type of heating payment, and total heating costs.
LIEAP is funded entirely by a federal block grant. The program's duration and the amount of the payment is dependent on the amount of the grant. A portion of the grant is transferred to the Office of Economic Opportunity for the Weatherization Program. Applicants for LIEAP may be referred to Weatherization for additional assistance.
The Division of Family Assistance (DFA) operates LIEAP in each of the DHHR field offices for a short time each winter, usually beginning with an automated payment or a mail-out to targeted households. In addition, DFA contracts with the Community Action network and with regional Agency on Aging offices to perform outreach and accept LIEAP applications at their local sites.
View the FY 2011 LIEAP Fact Sheet below for further information, including income guidelines. If you have questions, please contact your local County Office.
FY 2011 Fact Sheet
20% Discount Program
The Special Reduced Residential Service Rate Program (20% Utility Discount Program) was established by statute to assist certain eligible participants in receiving a 20% discount from their electric and/or gas company.
In order to be eligible for this rate reduction, one must be a recipient of either SSI, WV WORKS, or SNAP (former Food Stamp Program) AND be 60 years of age or older. One must be a recipient of one of these programs during November, December, January, February, and March to get the discount for that month.
The electric and/or gas company will be responsible for determining your eligibility for the Special Reduced Residential Service Rate.
Tel-Assistance/LIFELINE and Link-Up
Through Tel-Assistance/Lifeline, telephone companies offer reduced basic service to eligible low-income elderly and disabled customers. The Division of Family Assistance issues applications to eligible recipients and provides ongoing eligibility information to the telephone companies and informs them when customers are no longer eligible for Tel-Assistance. This is handled centrally by the Division of Family Assistance.
Through Link Up, telephone companies offer a discount on telephone installation to low-income households. Applications and certification of eligibility are handled centrally by the Division of Family Assistance.

Pro Bono Appreciation Week 2010

West Virginia Senior Legal Aid (WVSLA) and Legal Aid of West Virginia (LAWV) partnered to produce Free Days at the senior centers in Monongalia County and Randolph County this week in celebration of Pro Bono Appreciation Week. A Free Day brings local private attorneys to provide a free 30 minute consultation with any member of the community who wants one. We impose no eligibility requirements on clients for free days, they may be any age or any income.

Senior centers are wonderful places to hold these events, and both the Monongalia and Randolph County senior center staff kindly and generously provided us private meeting spaces, free parking, coffee, and hospitality. Many of the clients we served were seniors, but for some younger people in the community the event provided an opportunity to come see the local senior center for the first time.

WVSLA and LAWV send their special thanks to all the local attorneys who donated their time at our Free Days!

Medicare open enrollment 11/15, important changes this year

Healthcare reform made some changes to Medicare that make careful review of your options during open enrollment more important than ever this year. You have probably heard about cuts to Medicare, at least in the wide array of negative campaign advertising this election season, but actually Medicare coverage is expanded under the reforms, not cut. Medicare reimbursements to managed care plans is among what got cut, not benefits to seniors. Therefore, if you have been enrolled in managed care for your Part A and Part B coverages you may find in 2011 that traditional Medicare's expanded benefits may suit your needs better than they did in 2010 and before.

In particular, preventive care will have no copayments and not be subject to deductibles for Medicare starting January 1, 2011.

The Donut Hole is slowly closing under healthcare reform, as well. In 2011 Medicare beneficiaries in the donut hole will get a 50% discount on brand-name drugs and a 7% discount on generics, but the entire cost of the drug will count toward their out-of-pocket spending toward getting back out of the donut hole. The donut hole is eliminated entirely by 2020 under the current law.

So this year it may be particularly useful to review your Medicare enrollment options during the open enrollment period, because the changes in the law may make a new option more effective for you.

Learn about abuse in later life

Abuse in Later Life: A Focus on Parents Abused by Adult Children

This free training will provide an overview of the dynamics of abuse in later life when adult children abuse their parents. The training will utilize video clips of survivors to aid in discussion, analysis, and strategies for developing safety and accountability plans.

Intended Audience: DV, sexual assault & system based victim advocates, APS workers
and community providers working with people in later life.

Continuing Education: 3 Hours SW (Provider ##490098);
3 Hours DVAC (Cultural Competency)

November 8, 2010
Mine Academy, Beckley, WV

December 10, 2010
WVCADV office, Elkview, WV

January 11, 2011
Lewis County DHHR
Weston WV

February 17, 2011
YWCA, Wheeling, WV

May 16, 2011
Berkeley County DHHR
Martinsburg WV

Registration Deadline:
Two Days Before Training Date
Abuse in Later Life::
A Focus on Parents
Abused by Adult Children

Agenda:
1:00 Understanding Abuse in Later Life
1:30 “A Mother Never Gives Up Hope” Older Mothers & Abusive Adult Sons
2:30 Break
2:45 Strategizing: Safety, Accountability & Resources
4:00 Adjourn

For more information and to register please contact Joyce Yedlosky, 304‐965‐3552; joyce at wvcadv.org

Do you know blind or visually impaired SSA or SSI recipients?

from the National Senior Citizens Law Center:

STANDARD PRINT NOTICE NOT SUFFICIENT FOR BLIND & VISUALLY IMPAIRED
Some 3 million blind and visually impaired Social Security beneficiaries -- two thirds over age 80 -- are entitled to receive notices about their benefits in Braille or on a Microsoft CD thanks to a successful lawsuit. However, some 80% of those in the class affected by this decision have never been notified of this right. The Social Security Administration (SSA) is only able to identify a small percentage (about 20%) of the blind and visually impaired beneficiaries receiving benefits, leaving 80% of those entitled to relief without notice.

Full implementation is an ongoing challenge. The court ordered SSA to send notice of the newly mandated options and how to request them to everyone receiving benefits who the agency knew to be blind or visually impaired. And, the agency has already done so. However, there is a problem since most people who are blind or visually impaired receive benefits on the basis of age, the agency may not know who does or doesn't have vision issues.

The plaintiffs in the case were represented by the Disability Rights Education and Defense Fund (DREDF), Howrey, LLP and Heller, Ehrman, LLP and the National Senior Citizens Law Center.

THE CASE: American Council of the Blind v. Astrue
This national class action challenged the Social Security Administration's (SSA) policy of refusing to provide more than a standard print notice to most blind and visually impaired people receiving benefits or serving as a representative payee for someone receiving benefits. In late 2009, a federal court in San Francisco ruled in favor of plaintiffs after a trial and issued an order requiring SSA to begin offering blind and visually impaired beneficiaries and representative payees a choice of several different formats for receiving notices from the agency. The ruling applies to both the Social Security and Supplemental Security Income (SSI) programs and represents a major victory for a particularly vulnerable group of older Americans.

THE PEOPLE: DOROTHY JACKSON
Dorothy Jackson, who was age 80 at the start of the case in 2005, is typical of the many people in the class represented in the lawsuit. Many older adults suffer visual impairment and some have conditions that cause blindness. Blindness can be caused by macular degeneration, glaucoma, cataracts or advanced cases of diabetes. As a result of these and other diseases most blind and visually impaired people in America are of advanced age, with two-thirds being more than 80 years old. Ms. Jackson, who received a small Social Security Retirement benefit supplemented by a small SSI check, lived with her late husband in a small apartment in North Hollywood, California. She was completely blind in one eye and had limited vision in the other as a result of macular degeneration. Her husband had an advanced stage of Alzheimer's disease and she served as representative payee for him.

From time to time, Ms. Jackson received standard print notices on her continuing SSI eligibility or that of her husband. When she asked SSA to send these notices in large print format, she was told that it could not be done. Instead, agency staff suggested that she ask a neighbor to read the notices to her. In addition, she was required to fill out an annual representative payee accounting form, also in standard print format. While she took care of all the family finances (she received bank statements in large print) and knew all the information required on the form, she could not see the form well enough to know where to fill in the information. As a result, she had to seek help and had to divulge private family financial information to others.

THE RESULTS:
As a result of the litigation, blind and visually impaired beneficiaries and representative payees will now be entitled to receive notices about their benefits in their choice of 1) Braille or 2) a Microsoft Word CD. Most SSA notices are already available in both formats, with remaining notices expected to be available in them by September 30, 2010. In addition, SSA expects to make large print and audio CD notices available sometime in 2011. Until that time,individuals requesting large print or audio CD can receive notices in an interim alternate format, e.g., Microsoft Word CD or standard print followed by a telephone call.

Before the lawsuit, SSA's policy was to offer notices only in standard print format except in a small percentage of cases in which blindness was the basis for receiving benefits. Even then, they only offered two other options 1) the same standard print notice sent by certified mail or 2) a standard print notice sent by regular first class mail followed by a telephone call, although the promised phone call was usually not made.

In a strongly worded decision, Judge William Alsup castigated the agency for its "lame excuses for noncompliance" and ordered SSA to offer communications in both Braille and a navigable Microsoft Word CD, not just in a standard print format. He also ordered the agency to establish a procedure for someone who cannot read any of these formats to ask for another alternative. However, the individual making the request must demonstrate why one of the automatically offered formats is not adequate.

In the course of the litigation, SSA objected strenuously to any requirement to provide notices in large print or audio format. However, they did agree after the court issued its decision to provide these options automatically beginning in 2011 to anyone requesting them. Had the agency not agreed to do so they probably would have been overwhelmed with the need to adjudicate a large number of special requests for alternative formats as required by the court's order.

HOW DOES SOMEONE REQUEST
AN ALTERNATE FORMAT?
Individuals can request an alternative format on-line http://www.socialsecurity.gov/notices SSA has also established a dedicated automated phone line (877-708-1776) both in English and Spanish for requesting alternative formats.

WHAT IF NONE OF THE FORMATS WORK?
An individual can request another format, but must be able to specify which format they need and why one of the automatically available formats will not work for them. Such requests need to be made at a Social Security office or by calling the national SSA 800 number (800-772-1213). It is important that individuals keep a record of the request date and the names and locations of the SSA staff to whom the request is made. SSA must respond to such requests within 45 days and must send its decision in large print. The request can be denied only if SSA determines that one of the automatically available formats is effective for the individual or that providing the requested format would constitute an "undue burden" on the agency. However, denials can be appealed through SSA's administrative appeals process.

CONTACTS FOR ADVOCATES
The Disability Rights Education & Defense Fund (DREDF) is monitoring implementation and is available for assistance to individuals who encounter difficulty in their alternative format request. They can be reached at ssaclassaction@dredf.org or at 800-348-4232. The group is also conducting an on-line survey to receive feedback on the experience relating to people requesting alternative formats. The survey can be found at http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/68JKVW5.

WVSLA receives a Model Approaches grant from AoA

West Virginia Senior Legal Aid was awarded a Model Approaches to Statewide Legal Assistance Systems grant from the federal Administration on Aging. It is a 3 year demonstration grant designed to create a comprehensive, well-integrated, cost-effective, efficient and high quality legal services delivery system for needy senior West Virginians. The objectives of the project include:

1. Convene an Elderlaw Advisory Group
2. Do an assessment of the legal needs of seniors in our state and an assessment of the current delivery system in our state
3. Cost-effectively dispel legal mythology among seniors through a series of local workshops for seniors
4. Efficiently and cost-effectively provide relevant legal trainings to senior service providers online
5. Improve our state's system of response to financial exploitation of seniors by people in positions of trust
6. Reach out to and serve the special legal needs of the LGBT senior population in WV
7. Bring WVSLA and LAWV together to better coordinate our services to seniors
8. Enhance pro bono referral especially to our target populations

We will upload the project proposal onto our newly redesigned website www.seniorlegalaid.org next week.

Senator Robert Byrd dies at age 92

Longest serving Senator in US history, West Virginian of the 20th Century, and fiddle player Robert Byrd has died. There is hardly a mile of West Virginia that doesn't show a road or building or bridge dedicated to Byrd who proudly brought millions of federal dollars to the state.

TeleTown Hall Meeting today on healthcare reform and seniors

President Obama and Secretary Sebelius will be talking directly with America’s seniors about the Affordable Care Act.

Tele-town hall to talk to seniors about how the law will strengthen Medicare by improving benefits, lowering costs, and giving seniors and their doctors more control over their health care.

11:40 a.m., TODAY, Tuesday, June 8

WhiteHouse.gov/live, or live on C-SPAN