If you currently provide care for a child or loved one with special needs (such as mental or physical disabilities), you must have contemplated, with concern, what may happen to them when you are no longer able to provide and care for them.
Fortunately, the government has established rules allowing assets to be held in trust for a person with special needs without sacrificing eligibility for government benefits such as Medicaid, Supplemental Security Income (SSI) and Social Security Disability (SSD). These trusts are called "Special Needs" or "Supplemental Needs Trusts".
These government benefit programs provide only limited benefits and will not provide the resources that would allow your loved one to enjoy a richer quality of life. The use of a Special Needs or Supplemental Needs Trust allows you to provide for your loved one without jeopardizing those benefits.
Our law firm can help you set up a SNT so that government benefit eligibility is preserved while at the same time providing assets that will meet the supplemental needs of the person with a disability. Those additional needs can be funded from the SNT. In fact, the SNT must be designed specifically to supplement, not replace public benefits. Trustees should be aware that funds from the trust cannot be distributed directly to the disabled beneficiary. Instead, it must be disbursed to third parties who provide goods and services for use and enjoyment by the disabled beneficiary.
The SNT can be used for a variety of life-enhancing expenditures without compromising your loved ones’ eligibility such as:
- Annual check-ups at an independent medical facility
- Attendance of religious services
- Supplemental education and tutoring
- Out-of-pocket medical and dental expenses
- Transportation (including purchase of a vehicle)
- Maintenance of vehicles
- Purchase of materials for a hobby or recreation activity
- Funds for trips or vacations
- Funds for entertainment such as movies, shows or ballgames.
- Purchase of goods and services that add pleasure and quality to life; such as computers, videos, furniture, or electronics.
- Athletic training or competitions
- Special dietary needs
- Personal care attendant or escort, if not otherwise provided by government benefits program
SNT are a critical component of your estate planning if you have disabled beneficiaries for whom you wish to provide after your passing.