ARTICLES / Children / Planning for the Future...Part 1
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By Harry S. Margolis and Eric Prichard
As if the job of being a caregiver for a special
needs child is not difficult enough on its own, Baby
Boomers often find themselves becoming dual
caregivers for both their children and their own
aging parents. They may have to provide constant
care and attention to their children even after they
reach adulthood; while their parents are probably
facing their own set of challenges as they grow
older. At a certain point, the caregiver will likely
have to assist their parent with the same set of
issues that they have to face with their child with
special needs, namely how to pay for essential
services while securing medical care and affordable
housing, and simply providing the love and attention
they need. This dual caregiver relationship is never
easy, but for parents of children with special
needs, planning for their own long-term elder care
is essential because very often the special needs
child will be unable to provide the necessary
assistance.
Planning for your own long-term care when you
have a child with special needs requires a delicate
balancing act between establishing your own
financial position to ensure a comfortable
retirement and making sure that your child’s needs
are protected, both while you are alive and after
you are gone. Most parents of children with special
needs will immediately think of what they should do
to protect their children’s future before
concentrating on their own needs. However, there are
ways for parents to accomplish both goals at once,
through careful estate and special needs planning.
By working with a well-qualified attorney and
financial planner who specialize in helping families
with special needs, a caregiver can establish a
child’s security for life, while making sure that
she will be well cared for when the parent needs his
own cane to lean on further down the road.
In this first part of this series, we explore the
tools available to parents of special needs children
to provide for the long-term medical care, housing,
and financial assistance the children will require
In the two parts to follow, we will explore the
tools available to parents looking to secure their
own long-term needs into and beyond retirement, and
finally take a look at how to balance these
long-term needs of parent and child throughout their
lives.
Over the course of her lifetime, the person with
special needs requires a host of services, including
medical care, housing, job training, and financial
assistance. Various government programs can provide
a broad spectrum of services designed to aid an
individual with special needs. These programs range
from very comprehensive (like Medicaid and Medicare)
to very specific (like computer training and
specialized housing), but most have one thing in
common — the beneficiary must fall below some
predetermined income or asset level, or both.
Fortunately, planners have developed a very
important instrument that can hold funds for a
child’s future needs while allowing them to qualify
for many types of public benefits. These tools are
called “supplemental” or “special” needs trusts
because they are designed to “supplement” any
benefits a person with special needs may receive
from the government.
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2 |
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