Welcome to the March Issue of 

the Texas Elder Law E-Letter

 
Our next free “Estate Planning Essentials” workshops will be on Thursday, March 26, 2020 from 1:00 p.m. to 3:00 p.m. and on Saturday, April 18, 2020 from 10:00 a.m. until noon. Seating will be extremely limited to follow CDC and Dallas County Health suggested guidelines (which can change between now and that date). There will be social distancing. Future workshops (and possibly the one on March 26) will be available online. Call (214) 720-0102 to register or sign up online at www.dallaselderlawyer.com. 
 
 

Michael B. Cohen spoke at the North Texas Probate Bench Bar Conference on March 6th regarding “Seven Different Types of Trusts Used in Public Benefits Planning”.

Please note that Michael B. Cohen’s radio show on estate planning and elder law can be heard on KAAM (770 AM) on Mondays and Tuesdays at 1:00 p.m. and Saturday at 2:30 p.m. Prior shows (topics are categorized) can be heard as podcasts on SoundCloud and as indicated on our website www.dallaselderlawyer.com. Our podcasts can also be heard on Spotify and Apple Podcasts. Subscribe to be notified of future releases.


Note:

Due to the coronavirus, our office will no longer (until further notice) schedule back-to back meetings as we are now (as of March 16) sanitizing for 30 minutes between meetings. Furthermore, beginning with our workshop on March 26, we are limiting the amount of attendees to comply with CDC guidelines. There will also be social distancing at each workshop and meetings in person. In addition, future workshops will be available online, and we will make it easy for people to have meetings by phone or online for the convenience and safety of all. In certain situations, we will also offer signings at your location (in addition to ours). Although planning is crucial now more than ever, our goal is to keep you safe and make it easy for you to achieve planning needs.

 
 
CORONAVIRUS LEGISLATION INCLUDES MEDICARE EXPANSION OF TELEMEDICINE
 
President Trump signed Coronavirus (COVID-19) legislation on March 6 permitting expansion of Medicare coverage for telemedicine in outbreak areas to help contain and treat COVID-19.

 
 


FED PROPOSAL: NEITHER CATS NOR PIGS CAN FLY - ONLY SERVICE DOGS
 
The U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) is proposing new restrictions whereby only trained service dogs (and no emotional support animals) would be allowed to fly on airlines with people who have disabilities.


 
 

IRA DISTRIBUTIONS TO BE AVERAGED TO DETERMINE INCOME FOR LONG-TERM CARE MEDICAID

 
Although nothing has been officially announced, a reliable source from the Texas Health and Human Services has indicated the state will look at the annual distributions from an IRA and divide that amount by 12 to determine the monthly income for long-term care Medicaid eligibility.

 
 
SURVIVING SPOUSE HOMESTEAD RIGHTS - I NEVER WANT TO FALL IN LOVE AGAIN
 
Maya owns a homestead as her sole and separate property that she had purchased with her late husband. After a second marriage, Maya wants to revise her Will to make sure that if she dies first, her home would immediately pass to her children. Here's what questions she has - 

 

 
 

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