ElderLaw Answers Blog

The federal estate tax is scheduled to disappear for one year for those who die between January 1 and December 31, 2010, and then to ratchet back to apply to all estates over $1 million beginning in 2011. Four out of five of the respondents to our survey (at www.elderlawanswers.com) expect Congress to act before this happens, but the number of days left in the year is dwindling.

This strange estate tax situation results from a compromise between President Bush and Congress. President Bush and his supporters wanted to repeal the estate tax, which they called the “death” tax entirely, but a majority of Congress did not. So, they phased out the threshold at which the tax would apply from $1 million, to $2 million, to $3.5 million for those dying this year, to one tax free year in 2011.

During this time, according to the IRS, the number of estates filing returns dropped from 108,000 in 2001 when the threshold was $675,000 to 38,000 last year when the threshold was $2 million. But the number of those who would have had to file returns under the current $3.5 million limit rose from 9,500 to more than 14,000 during the same time period. Both are small numbers given the number of people in the United States.

Just about all commentators have expected Congress to act to change the law before now, and certainly before 2011 when the threshold drops back to $1 million. Most commentators now expect Congress to fix the limit at $3.5 million. I have long predicted a $2 million limit. What do you think Congress will do? What should it do?

 It’s only a little over a month until we leave the 2000s and enter the 2010s.  We never came up with a good name for this first decade of the millennium, but it’s certainly been eventful, starting with millennial fears about computer meltdowns, continuing through 9/11, two wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, and a global financial meltdown.

Many of us who got into elder law when it was young are now part of a mature specialty with more competition than ever.   And we’re more mature as well.  I see many more gray hairs and wrinkles at NAELA meetings, but also many fresh faces as newer attorneys join the field. 

What’s the French saying?  Plus ça change, plus c’est la même chose — the more it changes, the more it stays the same.  Not sure if that’s true in elder law or the world at large, but it’s better than the supposed Chinese curse, “may you live in interesting times,” which definitely applies to this past decade.

What will happen in the next decade?  Have Americans become savers?  Will we adopt a more European-style health system?  Will we withdraw from Afghanistan and stay closer at home in the future? 

We’ll only know in retrospect whether the end of the year simply means we add a numeral 1 to the calendar or, switching back to French, it’s the fin de siecle — the end of an era — and we’ll see big changes in the coming years.  One marker will be whether the CLASS Act remains part of the health reform bill.  This would be the first step by Congress to truly address the long-term care needs of Americans and would be a fitting legacy for Senator Kennedy, who was one of its strongest proponents.

Hospitals are overwhelming, scary places typically run for their own convenience, not necessarily that of patients.  Information is often difficult to come by.  Given the different shifts nurses and doctors have and the schedules of family members visiting ill relatives, it is often difficult or impossible to get a complete and accurate picture of a patient’s condition and treatment.

Forunately, Dr. Gail Gazelle, has written a short and usable pamphlet that patients and family members can use to achieve the best outcome from a hospital stay.  Titled Don’t Leave the Hospital SICKER Than You Went In!: A Doctor’s 106 Tips for a Healthy & Safe Hospital Experience, it is available at Dr. Gazelle’s Web site, www.MDCanHelp.com, for $6.97.

Dr. Gazelle, who counsels everyone facing a hospitalization to enlist an advocate, works as a patient advocate in the Boston area.

Many individuals, companies and institutions make their most significant gifts to charities towards the end of the calendar year when they know how much money they have to spare.  Last year was particularly tight for a lot of givers.  Hopefully, more of us can be more generous this year.

Choosing among the many charities that can make effective use of one’s generosity can be difficult.  Should you give a little bit of money to many charities, or more to a few?  If you are in business, should you choose charities that are aligned with the work you do and who may send more business?  How can you tell how well a charity uses its money?  Is it well managed?  Does it have excessive administrative or fundraising costs?

Here are a few pointers that might help:  Give more to a few charities, rather than a little to many, so that what you give can make a difference.  Also, if you are only giving larger donations, this will provide a way to tell which charities you care most about, since it won’t feel right to give such a large amount to some of the charities you may be considering.

Do give to charities related to your business.  There’s nothing wrong with getting some benefit back from what you give and you are more likely to be familiar with these organizations and know which can make best use of your donation.

Finally, check out the charities you are considering at the Charity Navigator.  It gives ratings to the thousands of charities are around the world.  But take these ratings as a starting point only.  Because it covers the whole world, it must base its ratings on easily available information which may or may not be accurate or may only tell part of the story.  For instance, a charity may be poorly rated because it mischaractarized program expenses as administrative expenses.

Finally, however you choose, be as generous as possible.  Studies find that people who are more generous are also happier.