Elder law is an area of legal practice that specializes on issues that affect the aging population. The purpose of elder law planning is to prepare the elderly person for financial freedom and autonomy through proper financial planning and long-term care options.
Categories
The three major categories that make up elder law are:
#
Estate planning
Estate planning is the process of anticipating and arranging, during a person's life, for the management and disposal of that person's estate during the person's life, in the event the person becomes incapacitated and after death. The planning inc ...
and
administration
Administration may refer to:
Management of organizations
* Management, the act of directing people towards accomplishing a goal
** Administrative Assistant, traditionally known as a Secretary, or also known as an administrative officer, admini ...
, including tax questions
#
Medicaid
Medicaid in the United States is a federal and state program that helps with healthcare costs for some people with limited income and resources. Medicaid also offers benefits not normally covered by Medicare, including nursing home care and per ...
,
disability
Disability is the experience of any condition that makes it more difficult for a person to do certain activities or have equitable access within a given society. Disabilities may be cognitive, developmental, intellectual, mental, physical, ...
and other long-term care issues
#
Guardianship, conservatorship and commitment matters, including
fiduciary
A fiduciary is a person who holds a legal or ethical relationship of trust with one or more other parties (person or group of persons). Typically, a fiduciary prudently takes care of money or other assets for another person. One party, for examp ...
administration
Other issues found under the umbrella of elder law include such areas as:
History
Elder law developed as a specialty because as
lifespans increased there was an increased need for medical care, care giving, and financial management.
The
Older Americans Act
The Older Americans Act of 1965 (, ) was the first federal level initiative aimed at providing comprehensive services for older adults. It created the National Aging Network comprising the Administration on Aging on the federal level, State Units ...
(OAA), originally signed into law by
President
President most commonly refers to:
*President (corporate title)
* President (education), a leader of a college or university
* President (government title)
President may also refer to:
Automobiles
* Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ...
Lyndon B. Johnson
Lyndon Baines Johnson (; August 27, 1908January 22, 1973), often referred to by his initials LBJ, was an American politician who served as the 36th president of the United States from 1963 to 1969. He had previously served as the 37th vice ...
on July 14, 1965 (the same year Medicare was created), created the
Administration on Aging (AOA), a division within the
Department of Health and Human Services
The United States Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) is a cabinet-level executive branch department of the U.S. federal government created to protect the health of all Americans and providing essential human services. Its motto is ...
. The OAA also authorized grants to States for community planning and services programs, funding for research, and demonstration and training projects in the field of aging.
In 1972 Amendments to the OAA added the national nutrition program for the elderly. The OAA of 2000 was amended on November 13, 2000, to include the National Family Caregiver Support Program, which was intended to help hundreds of thousands of family members who are struggling to care for their older loved ones who are ill or who have disabilities. This program provides grant funding for combined services between state and local agencies for such things as counseling, support groups,
respite and other community-based services. These services are focused on the care of the frail and aging members of society. The program also provides services geared towards the family units of grandparents and other older relatives now in the stages of care-taking for related children eighteen years of age and under.
Elder law is an expansion of the traditional trust and estates practice.
Careers in or associated with elder law
Careers that are developing around the area of Elder Law include:
Essentially any career field can create a benefit to the aging of modern society.
See also
*
Elder rights
Elder rights are the rights of older adults (usually those in the seventh decade of life or older, although this definition is disputed), who in various countries are not recognized as a constitutionally protected class, yet face discrimination ...
*
Gerontology
*
Nursing home residents' rights
Nursing home residents' rights are the legal and moral rights of the residents of a nursing home. Legislation exists in various jurisdictions to protect such rights. An early example of a statute protecting such rights is Florida statute 400.022, ...
References
*Kenney F. Hegland & Robert B. Fleming, Alive and Kicking: Legal Advice . . . for Boomers (Carolina Academic Press 2007) {{ISBN, 978-1-59460-322-8
External links
National Academy of Elder Law Attorneys National Elder Law FoundationAdministration on Aging
*http://www.agingcarefl.org/aging/legal
*https://web.archive.org/web/20051119010913/http://www.neln.org/sitemap.html
*http://www.abanet.org/aging/
Medicare and Medicaid (United States)