Patti's Blog - Advocate for Elders, People with Disabilities and Their Families

Elderly woman found living with dead sister

Patti's Comments:  This is such a sad, sad story. If there are elderly folks in your neighborhood, check on them every now and then.

From Freep.com:  (click for entire article)

Detroit authorities made a gruesome discovery Wednesday north of Hamtramck. The partially mummified body of a woman was found lying on the kitchen floor about 9:30 p.m. in the 18000 block of Buffalo Street, Detroit Police said.  The woman's sister was in the home, and police believe she has been living in the house with the body for one to three years, the approximate time it takes for a body to decompose to that extent.

Care Can Be Best at Home

Patti's Comments:  This is the same direction Michigan is moving...it appears we are not alone!

From Courant.com:  (click for entire article)

The recent widespread concern about the quality of care in state nursing facilities is certainly important and the response by the governor and General Assembly has been appropriate.

But another important aspect of long-term care isn't receiving the attention it deserves, raising serious quality of life, consumer choice and cost concerns. Referred to as "in-home support" or "rebalancing the system," it is both cost-effective and humane.

Currently, only one-third of Connecticut's $2.3 billion Medicaid expenditures are spent on providing home- and community-based care. The vast majority of funds support institutional care, such as nursing facilities. Our system is out of balance.

Services in Short Supply

Patti's Comments:  Well, this article sounds all too familiar to our experiences in Michigan.  When will we ever learn?

From The Seattle Times:  (click for entire article)

It's a phrase often heard in the world of developmental disabilities: There are the "haves" and the "have nots." Two people might have the same disorder and the same symptoms but receive vastly different services, experts say.

In Washington and throughout the country, thousands of people are on waiting lists to receive even the most basic services, such as wheelchair modifications to a home or help in paying for therapy. Thousands more are waiting for more extensive services, such as round-the-clock care. And there are untold numbers of people with developmental disabilities that state and federal agencies don't even know about.

Many programs for people with developmental disabilities, it turns out, are not entitlements but serve only the number of people that the state budget allows.

Important Advocacy Issues

Patti's Comments:  Please be aware of these important advocacy issues being debated in Lansing.

Advocacy Alert - 2009 Budget:  Download AdvocacyAlert-2009Budget.pdf

Advocacy Alert - BCGSM II:  Download AdvocacyAlert-BCGSMII.pdf

New problems with funeral plans

An interesting post from Michigan Elder Law Updates blog:

"It is being reported that in some Michigan counties the Michigan Department of Human Services is causing unnecessary problems for certain types of funeral plans. First, DHS is contending that you may own only one burial space item for an individual. This means you could own a casket, but not a burial plot. This violates common sense and federal law. Second, DHS is contending that you cannot prepay funeral service expenses for a spouse. Again, this is against all applicable law and makes no sense.

This is just another example of the heavy-handedness displayed by the Michigan bureaucracy. DHS is making the illegal changes in policy in the hopes that our clients will not have the funds or resolve to fight these injustices."

Local Attorney Attends Special Needs Meeting in New Orleans

ASNP Press Release (4-24-08):

Patricia E. Kefalas Dudek was among the 140 attendees of the 2nd Annual Meeting of the Academy of Special Needs Planners, which took place March 28-29 in New Orleans.

Special needs planning and Elder Law is one of the fastest-growing areas of estate planning.  Attorneys in the field focus on helping individuals with disabilities of all ages and their families plan for a more secure future. The attorneys must combine passion with skilled estate planning and a knowledge of the public benefit programs on which many individuals with special needs must rely.

The Academy of Special Needs Planners (ASNP), of which Patricia E. Kefalas Dudek is a member of the Advisory Board, which was established in 2006 to provide attorneys in this growing field of law access to a collegial community and practice tools to assist them in fulfilling their clients' planning needs. 

ASNP's 2nd Annual Meeting featured presentations by nationally recognized leaders in special needs planning and related disciplines who shared insights on the latest developments and legal strategies in the field.  Session topics included "Special Needs Trusts for High Net-Worth Families," "The Attorney Acting As a Trustee: Ethical Pitfalls," "SSI Rules for Trust Administration," and "The Interaction Between Section 8 And Special Needs Trusts."  Patricia E. Kefalas Dudek presented on Dealing With Difficult Beneficiaries. 

The ASNP meeting was preceded by a voluntary social service project in which many meeting attendees helped repair the headquarters of Families Helping Families of Southeast Louisiana, an organization that provides services and support to empower families of individuals with disabilities. 

To learn more about ASNP, visit www.specialneedsplanners.com and its companion consumer site, SpecialNeedsAnswers, at www.specialneedsanswers.com

To learn more about Families Helping Families of Southeast Louisiana, visit www.fhfsela.org/

To learn more about Patricia E. Kefalas Dudek, visit the legal website, www.pekdadvocacy.com and blog, http://pattidudek.typepad.com.

Michigan's Medicaid Funding at Risk

Patti's Comments:  The Arc Michigan and other disability advocates have signed on to this campaign. Please: contact your legislator, and spread the word about the need for a Long Term Care safety net for people with disabilities of all ages!!!!

Action Request: (click to see and send message to your state officials)

I am writing to encourage you to support and ask your colleagues in Congress to support and co-sponsor H.R. 5613, Protecting the Medicaid Safety Net Act of 2008, or S. 2819, Economic Recovery in Health Act of 2008. These bipartisan bills place a temporary moratorium on implementation of harmful Medicaid regulations being imposed by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid (CMS). Protecting Michigan's Medicaid funding and services to our state's most vulnerable citizens is vital. 

These regulations were developed by CMS without congressional direction, oversight, review or advice over the past year.  These regulations include eliminating Medicaid services to children and adults with disabilities through new restrictions on physical and occupational therapies.  Special needs school transportation costs for Medicaid-eligible children will be eliminated along with funding for our state's teaching hospitals to train new doctors.  In December 2007, Congress temporarily stopped these regulations, but the moratoriums are set to expire beginning May 2008.

These regulations, if implemented, will have a devastating impact on federal funding available to Michigan's Medicaid program. It is estimated that Michigan will lose more than $700 million federal dollars in this fiscal year alone and more than $3.9 billion over a five year period.  This is a catastrophic sum for both the beneficiaries of the Medicaid program and the state's economy.  The revenue loss from these regulations could come on the heels of the May Revenue Estimating Conference and could easily overshadow, in magnitude, reductions in state revenues for the current fiscal year. It's important that we have a strong safety net in Michigan because so many people have a hard time finding a good-paying job with benefits.

Thank you for your attention on this vital issue.  I encourage you to urge congressional action to stop implementation of these harmful regulations and preserve Michigan's Medicaid program.  Protecting our state's economy and most vulnerable from these devastating losses must be a priority.

Mentally ill inmates cost $400M year

Patti's Comments:  Jail diversion services are covered Medicaid services for people with severe and persistent mental illness in Michigan. This article talks about how to access those services - hopefully folks will get the services they need to stay out of trouble!

From Detroit News: (click for entire article)

Corrections officials say more than 12,500 of Michigan's 50,000-plus prison inmates -- 1 in 4 -- have a history of mental illness.

Advocates call that shameful. Policymakers trying to get the $2 billion state corrections budget under control call it expensive.

It costs an average of $31,325 a year to house a state prisoner, so mentally ill inmates represent a $400 million annual expense.

That's why Gov. Jennifer Granholm wants $3.4 million in the coming fiscal year to establish five mental health courts -- pilot projects designed to keep more mentally ill residents from flooding jails and prisons.

IRS Launches Campaign to Help New Small Businesses

Patti's Comments:  Below is info on a great resource for providers and folks with disabilities running small businesses.

From IRS: (click for entire article)

The Internal Revenue Service today launched a campaign to help educate new self-employed small business owners about federal tax responsibilities.

The campaign kick-off coincides with the Small Business Administration’s annual Small Business Week, April 21-25, which recognizes outstanding small business owners for their contributions to the nation's economy and their personal achievements.

“One of the biggest challenges faced by people starting out in business is understanding and meeting their tax filing requirements,” said Kathy Petronchak, commissioner of the IRS’s Small Business/Self-Employed operating division. “It’s a new, different and potentially overwhelming experience for them. We want new small business owners to know that the IRS has resources to help them learn about their federal tax responsibilities and avoid common pitfalls.”

‘ConKerr Cancer’ one pillowcase at a time

Patti's Comments:  This article is about Macomb County Attorney Michelle Fuller's daughter.  It is so nice to know that the next generation CARES!!!  Congratulations to all the pillow makers out there, and may all of those to get a new pillow have sweet and healthy dreams!

From C&G Newspapers: (click for entire article)

When one mother hears another’s story of losing a child, sympathy and pity are unavoidable. Some might offer condolences, while others might run to their own children with open arms and teary eyes, thanking their lucky stars.

But when Sue Ellen Kosmas, a Macomb Township mother of three, heard of a Philadelphia mother’s quest to brighten the lives of sick children around the world while her son lay in a hospital bed dying from a rare form of bone cancer, she got on the phone to find out how to get involved.

That was last fall. More than 1,000 pillowcases later, Kosmas has successfully established Michigan’s first chapter of ConKerr Cancer, “a case for smiles.”