His art has been exhibited throughout the U.S., in Kiev, Galapagos, Curacao and the Cayman Islands. He can compose music on a computer, without the benefit of sound. He's won medals for ballroom dancing. Yet a skills evaluation, conducted, when Seth Chwast - who has profound autism - was 18, indicated that he could look [...]
By H. Amos Goodall, Jr., CELA Caring for a loved one with special needs can run into millions of dollars over the course of their lifetime, so the last thing families need is to pay unnecessary taxes. I'd estimate that before beginning to work with a special needs attorney, 30 percent of my clients had [...]
By Robert B. Fleming, CELA, Tucson, AZ For family members wishing to participate in the care of a loved one with special needs, the role of trustee isn't always a good match. Family members may not be particularly familiar with investing, accounting and tax returns. They may not have time to handle ongoing disbursements, or [...]
By Reginald H. Turnbull, CELA March is Developmental Disabilities Awareness Month, a time to reflect on the truly dramatic advances made by the special needs community, as well as the challenges remaining before us. Families that have advocated on behalf of loved ones with disabilities are remarkable. They have consistently eschewed labels, fighting to eradicate [...]
A Largely Unaddressed Epidemic By Laurie Hanson, Esq. October is Mental Illness Awareness Month, almost an oxymoron. Do you realize that more people in the U.S. have mental illness than any other disability? That a quarter of all adults experience mental illness each year? And that over 50 percent of them will go without the [...]
By Bradley J. Frigon, CELA As tax-paying season approaches, there are a number of tax obligations and deduction opportunities that families with special needs should bear in mind. It's important to realize that the investment income generated by funds deposited in a special needs trust (SNT) are taxable, yet the details differ, depending upon the [...]
Protecting Public Benefits By John F. Kearns III, CELA, West Hartford, Connecticut When settling a personal injury case, the value that public benefits will bring to the plaintiff's quality of life should be carefully assessed. Means-tested programs such as Medicaid and SSI will often play a central role in providing healthcare and maintaining financial security. [...]
By Jefferey Yussman, Esq. Unemployment for people with disabilities hit 16.8 percent last summer. The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission reports that in fiscal 2011, it received more complaints of disability-related employment discrimination than during the previous year. Much misunderstanding persists concerning the individual capabilities of people with special needs. Researchers at Cornell University, for instance, [...]
Advances and Setbacks By Robert B. Fleming, CELA In 1987 President Ronald Reagan proclaimed March “Developmental Disabilities Awareness Month.” The deinstitutionalization movement of the seventies and early eighties had laid the foundation for significant social change, and the presidential proclamation called upon Americans to provide the "encouragement and opportunities" necessary for people with developmental disabilities [...]
By Ann McGee Green, Esq. This past summer, one of my client families was successful in having – for the first time in Virginia – a microboard-named guardian for their foster daughter with special needs. A microboard is a formalized "circle of support," a non-profit corporation consisting of a small group of individuals who assist [...]
By Brian Rubin, Esq. Deciding whether or not an adult child with disabilities should move from the family home into a supported, community-based residence can be wrenching experience. Aside from a desire for their loved one to live as fulfilling and independent a life as possible, mom and dad must plan for the time when [...]
By Martha C. Brown, CELA Today, the expectations of individuals with special needs are radically different from those of previous generations. They plan to participate in community life to the fullest extent possible, based upon their individual capabilities. And this attitude is mirrored by many family members. A growing self-advocacy movement stresses the intention of [...]
By Ruth Courtney, Richard A. Courtney, CELA, & Morris Klein, CELA In the U.S., 70 percent of those diagnosed with Alzheimer's are cared for at home, creating a stressful balancing act for family members. Care needs differ dramatically, shaped by the course of the loved one's disease, as Alzheimer's affects people differently. The caregiver's personal [...]
By Hyman Darling, Esq., Massachusetts With special ed spending down 11 percent since 2010, parents may find meetings with the local Committee on Special Education (CSE) increasingly tense. When negotiating with educational experts, families often feel intimidated and outgunned, so it's important to arrive prepared. Prior to your first meeting with the CSE, talk to [...]
By Ram Meyyappan, Social Security Disability Help Parents of children with special needs are well aware of how costly it can be to provide the best care for their loved one. Fortunately, disability benefits are available to provide financial assistance. Conditions that May Qualify Children can medically qualify for disability benefits from the Social Security [...]
By Michael Morris, Executive Director, National Disability Institute The Commission on Long-Term Care was charged by Congress with developing recommendations for the design and financing of a comprehensive, coordinated and high quality system of services and supports for individuals below and above the age of 65 to live full and healthy lives. Although on October [...]
By Amy Goodman, Co-Director, Autism Now The topic of hiring an employee with special needs is important because employers need to know how to be more open- minded and sensitive to the needs of those who may be different. It is important for employers to be considerate of employees' needs in that they do not [...]
By James A. Caffry, Esq., Waterbury, Vermont Government transparency - or the lack of it - is much in the news, and it's a concept to bear in mind as you advocate on behalf of a loved one with special needs. All of us have been frustrated at one time or another by bureaucracies that [...]
By Pamela Merkle, Executive Director, Association on Aging with Developmental Disabilities Thanks to medical advances, people with developmental disabilities are living longer and that longevity is bringing some very difficult and unexpected challenges. Their parents, who have often been their primary caregivers, are passing away and, unlike other seniors, they generally have no adult children [...]
By Robert B. Fleming, CELA, Tucson, Arizona Medicare set-aside agreements (MSAs) constitute an evolving area of law that should be considered by anyone settling a third party liability claim. The issue dates from passage of the Medicare Secondary Payor Act of 1986, which mandated that settlements in workers' compensation cases evaluate Medicare's potential role in [...]