Practice Areas

The Need for Planning One of the greatest fears of older Americans is that they may end up in a nursing home. This not only means a great loss of personal autonomy, but also a tremendous financial price. In the California Bay Area, nursing homes cost approach $90,000 a year, and are rising. Most people…

A Medi-Cal crisis situation is one in which an individual has either been admitted to a nursing home, or is about to be placed in a nursing home, and has been told that he or she has too much money or too many assets to qualify for Medi-Cal assistance. In this situation, the family is…

Why Plan Your Estate? The knowledge that we will eventually die is one of the things that seems to distinguish humans from other living beings. At the same time, no one likes to dwell on the prospect of his or her own death. But if you postpone planning for your demise until it is too…

Losing a loved one is difficult enough; the last thing your family needs is the added stress of making important financial and legal decisions while in mourning. At the Law Offices of Osofsky & Osofsky, we have the experience and compassion necessary to make the estate and trust administration process as efficient and stress-free as…

To put it simply, Probate is the court-supervised administration of a decedent’s estate. Unfortunately, there is nothing simple about Probate in California. It is an expensive, time-consuming, highly public and often frustrating process, made all the more difficult by the grief that accompanies losing a love one. Fees are set by statute in the California…

MEDICAL CARE The Veterans Administration (VA) provides health care benefits to veterans. The plan covers a number of health care services, including preventative services, diagnostic and treatment services, and hospitalization. It may also cover nursing home and other long-term care options. Who is Eligible? To receive care, most veterans must be enrolled in the VA…

You’ve probably heard of hospice, but you may be unfamiliar with the details concerning this philosophy of medical care. Rather than a place to receive medical care, hospice is an approach to medical care for patients nearing the end of life. Its goal is to enhance the quality of life for patients with terminal illness.…

Supplemental Security Income (SSI) SSI is the basic federal safety net program for the elderly, blind and disabled, providing them with a minimum guaranteed income. Effective January 1, 2009, the maximum federal SSI benefit is $674 a month for an individual and $1,011 a month for a couple (the amounts go up every January 1).…

Disability and other special needs often limit a child’s capacity to become independent and financially secure as an adult, which is why planning for your child’s special needs future is so important. This is particularly true today, with declining government entitlements and rising costs of care. At the Osofsky Law Firm, we can help ease…

Enhancing The Quality of Life for the Disabled Spouse or Child in Divorce: A New Use For the Special Needs Trust John and Mary are going through a divorce in California. They have no children. Mary has not worked outside the home during their entire marriage of 10 years. She now suffers from Parkinson’s Disease…

Introduction For nursing home care in the San Francisco Bay Area the average cost is approaching $7,500 a month for a semi-private room and as much as $10,320 per month for a private room.  In some cases, such as where the resident is on a ventilator, the cost can approach $25,000 per month or more. …

Americans are living longer than ever before. And while you may not want to think about it now, the reality is that many elderly people will eventually require long-term or nursing home care. Unfortunately, such care is expensive. When someone in your family needs the services of a nursing facility, the cost now approaches $7,500…

The Advanced HealthCare Directive and the “POLST” Advance Care Planning generally refers to the decision-making regarding healthcare issues as we age. It involves making important decisions about your wishes for medical intervention and end-of-life, including the decision to nominate a health care agent to implement your wishes if you are unable to do so. The…

Choosing and Evaluating a Nursing Home Can there be a more difficult job than finding a nursing home for a parent or spouse? No one wants to live in a nursing home. They serve as institutions of last resort when it’s impossible to provide the necessary care in any other setting. And, typically, the search…