In order to receive public benefits such as Medicaid and Supplemental Security Income (SSI), your child can only have very limited resources (usually less than $2,000) to maintain eligibility. That means that any inheritance received by your child could result in their disqualification for the important benefits on which they rely.

 

A Special Needs Trust helps to avoid this outcome by putting the inheritance into an entity that is not technically "owned" by your child. Once the trust is set up, it is then managed by someone of your choosing, called a trustee, who would control the money and make purchases for the benefit of your child. If the Special Needs Trust is created and administered properly, the funds in the trust will not jeopardize your child's ability to collect Medicaid or SSI benefits.

 

However, it is important to note that a Special Needs Trust only works if the assets you wish to leave your child go into the Special Needs Trust. For most of your assets, this can be accomplished with your will or by simply amending the titles that dictate how your assets are owned.

However, some assets may pass outside of your will by law. Life insurance and certain accounts are set up with a designated beneficiary listed. Likewise, accounts with payable on death beneficiary designations are examples of assets that can be passed directly to someone outside of a will.

 

Therefore, it is important that you make the Special Needs Trust, not your child, the designated beneficiary of any accounts that pass outside of your Will.

 

If you do not, the child will receive these assets outright which will affect eligibility for public benefits. This is an unfortunate outcome that can simply be avoided by making sure your child's Special Needs Trust is properly named on all accounts that have a named beneficiary.

 

If you currently have your child directly listed as beneficiary on any account, I strongly encourage you to change these as soon as possible. But, the first step is to establish a Special Needs Trust. To do so, please call my office to schedule an appointment.

 

In Virginia if an attorney requests a paper copy of a patient's records, a medical provider may charge 50¢ per page up to 50 pages and 25¢ per page for each additional page, plus a $20 search and handling fee and all postage and shipping costs. These costs do not apply to photocopies of x-rays, which cost a "reasonable fee" that may include a search and handling fee of $10 plus the actual cost of reproduction and all postage and shipping costs, or copies from microfilm or other micrographic process, which cost $1 per page.

 

For electronic copies, a medical provider in Virginia may charge 37¢ per page up to 50 pages and 18¢ per page for each additional page, plus a $20 search and handling fee and all postage and shipping costs, not to exceed a total of $150 for requests made on or after July 1, 2017 but before July 1, 2021, or $160 for requests made on or after July 1, 2021. These costs do not apply to electronic copies of x-rays, which cost a "reasonable fee" of $25 per x-ray, plus a search and handling fee of $10 and all postage and shipping costs.

 

Attorneys must provide medical providers with a written confirmation signed by the patient confirming the attorney's authority to make the request (a photocopy, facsimile or other copy of the original signed by the patient is acceptable). The medical provider must furnish the records within 30 days of receipt of the request.  Code of Virginia § 8.01-413(B)