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Understanding the Concept of 'Spousal Refusal' in Nursing Home Planning

Attorney Tom Olsen is host of the Olsen on Law Radio Show on in Orlando. Tom has been answering legal questions on his radio show for over 35 years and has been practicing law in Orlando for 40 years. The Olsen on Law Radio Show is America’s longest running legal radio show. Produced by Professional Media Ideas. Call or text Chrissy Merrill at 321-207-8384 or by email at chris@olsenlawgroup.com Spousal Refusal, which has been dubbed, “just say no,” is when a non-applicant spouse of a long-term care Medicaid applicant refuses to help pay the cost of long-term care for their spouse. While spouses are legally obligated to financially support one another, Medicaid cannot legally deny care if a non-applicant spouse refuses to contribute towards the cost of care of their spouse. Furthermore, Spousal Refusal law asserts that non-applicant spouses are entitled to retain their assets by refusing to make them available to their applicant spouse. This Medicaid planning strategy can

The Homestead: Preserving the Surviving Spouse's Elective Share Rights

What are the surviving spouse's elective share rights to homestead? Attorney Tom Olsen: Usually a married couple own their home together. Sometimes just the husband or wife will be on the title to the home. What happens to the home when a spouse dies without a will? In that case, the surviving spouse has two choices regarding the homestead: The surviving spouse can take a life estate in the home and will get to live there for the rest or his or her life, or the surviving spouse can take a one-half ownership interest in the home as tenants in common with the deceased spouse’s children. Chrissy: It does. And I think that this is something that people don't realize. Having the title to the home in just the husband’s name or just the wife’s name is more common than you think. Having the title to the home in just one spouse’s name often happens when there has been a second marriage or one of the spouses inherited the home property. Attorney Tom Olsen: People often as

Should you make your revocable living trust the beneficiary of your IRA, 401k or retirement account?

Attorney Tom Olsen is host of the Olsen on Law Radio Show on in Orlando. Tom has been answering legal questions on his radio show for over 35 years and has been practicing law in Orlando for 40 years. The Olsen on Law Radio Show is America’s longest running legal radio show. Produced by Professional Media Ideas. Call or text Chrissy Merrill at 321-207-8384 or by email at chris@olsenlawgroup.com Transcript: Tom: Let's go to Linda in Orlando. Linda, you're on WDBO. Go ahead. Linda: Yes. Hi. Good morning. I have a revocable living trust and I had put my IRA beneficiaries as the revocable living trust, but I want to change that. Tom: All right. Linda: If I do it on the Fidelity website, do I have at the same time go back to the actual document and do that too? Tom: Linda, when you pass away, what happens to your 401k is not going to be governed by your will or trust, it's going to be governed by how you fill out the beneficiary designation form. If you go to Fidelit