Including loved ones with disabilities in your will can have serious unforeseen consequences. If you aren’t careful with your estate planning, you may end up denying those you care about access to the Medicaid or SSI assistance that they need in order to survive. Luckily, that doesn’t mean that you have to leave any of your loved ones out of your estate plan. It just means that you need to proceed carefully and stay informed, as is required of anything else in estate planning. Read on as we show you how to include beneficiaries with special needs in your estate plan.
Why Not to Use a Will
Medicaid and SSI programs only provide assistance given that recipients earn less than a certain amount. By including people who need assistance from these programs in your will, you can cause them to no longer be eligible for help. This can do more than just throw their healthcare into a state of disarray. Your beneficiaries will also likely need to pay for healthcare out of the inheritance you leave them. That means they end up receiving less money by spending it on care that they would have otherwise gotten for free.
What to Do
The solution to this dilemma lies with a specific type of trust. With a supplemental needs trust, the people that you love can get their piece of your estate without sacrificing their healthcare. The trustees can use the trust to supplement the government assistance given to the beneficiary by Medicaid or SSI. Through this powerful tool, you can bestow help upon those most vulnerable without compromising their ability to get the healthcare services that they rely on.
Creating any trust is a challenge that you should only trust to an exceptional legal team. A supplemental needs trust though, merits a truly special attorney. At Morgan Legal Group we are known for being the best at dealing with even the most complicated trusts. Let us help you and ensure that your loved ones get what they deserve and stay protected.
