“James, my dad’s health has been failing for the last few years but has been able to live on his own up until now. I am wondering what I should consider if he needs my help or other help continuing to live in his home?” Daisy

Answer: Daisy, when a family member is in failing health and needs more help doing the daily activities of living there are more than a few options.

The first thing that we want to make sure of is that dad has the proper estate planning documents in place. The most important of these is a set of comprehensive power of attorney documents so that you or some other person appointed by your father has the authority to help with financial and health care decisions.

If those documents are in place, then we can move forward to what kind of care is available for dad.

For in the home there are several area companies that will work with the family to see that dad has a caregiver. Medicaid can also help pay for these services if dad qualifies. That service is provided by the Arkansas Waiver program where they use Medicaid nursing home dollars to pay for caregivers to come to the home.

Another option maybe for assisted living or nursing facilities of which Medicaid has the ability to help pay.

However, what I see many times in these situations is a child moving in with dad or having dad move in with them to provide care. While it is an obvious choice since he is your family, moving in with dad comes with some sacrifices that may or may not be easy to bear. Many times, the care giver child gives up some portion of employment or a job entirely in these situations. With those big changes many times families make mistakes in handling dad’s affairs and cause big problems when and if they need help from Medicaid.

Call today to set up a no-charge strategy session to find out how we can help with issue like this. To learn more, check out our website, ElrodFirm.com.