Self Study: ALTCS PLANNING FOR MARRIED COUPLES

This CLE offers 1.5 Hours of Credit

As more and more baby boomers are diagnosed with dementia and other chronic conditions of aging, many people need to look to the Arizona Long Term Care System (“ALTCS”) to assist with the cost of care. Applicants for benefits who are married are often relieved to discover that they can retain a significant portion of their assets and still be eligible for benefits. However, the manner in which ALTCS calculates the value of assets that can be retained, and the requirements for titling the assets in the name of the “community spouse” who does not need care (the “well” spouse), can be daunting. By providing an overview of these rules and the planning techniques that will maximize the amount of assets available for the well spouse, this seminar will help attorneys representing incapacitated adults (or their guardians or agents), as well as attorneys assisting older adults with planning, understand best practice techniques in the context of considering ALTCS to pay for care.

Presenter: Marsha Goodman, Frazer Ryan Goldberg & Arnold, LLP

Marsha Goodman is a Partner with the law firm of Frazer, Ryan, Goldberg and Arnold, LLP.  Her Elder Law practice includes traditional elder law services, such as guardianships and conservatorships; Powers of Attorney and other Advance Directives; estate administration;  planning for eligibility for Veterans’ and Medicaid benefits and applying for those benefits when appropriate; and advocating for her clients to assure that they receive all of the Medicare, private health insurance and long term care insurance coverage to which they are entitled. In addition, her staff includes human services professionals who work with Ms. Goodman and their clients’ families to bundle asset protection, public benefits qualification, insurance assistance, nursing home advocacy and crisis intervention into a comprehensive package called a Life Care Plan.

Ms. Goodman graduated summa cum laude from St. Lawrence University in Canton, NY, and earned her JD degree from he Vanderbilt University School of Law in Nashville, TN. She is admitted to practice in Arizona and Michigan (inactive), and is an accredited attorney before the Department of Veterans Affairs.  She is a member of the National Academy of Elder Law Attorneys and a former President of the Board of Directors of the Life Care Planning Law Firms Association.  She is a member of the Elder Law, Mental Health and Special Needs Planning section of the State Bar of Arizona, and a Past President of the Executive Council of the State Bar’s Probate and Trust section. She has been appointed to the Central Arizona Leadership Council of the Desert Southwest Chapter of the Alzheimer’s Association. Ms. Goodman previously served on the State Bar’s Military Legal Assistance Committee, and she provides pro bono services through the Maricopa County Bar Association’s Probate Legal Assistance Project, and Veterans Legal Clinics conducted by the Disabled Veterans Association (“DAV”).  She has been recognized as a Certified Elder Law Attorney by the National Elder Law Foundation since November, 2015, and was elected as a Fellow of the Academy of Trust and Estate Counsel in March, 2019.

Ms. Goodman enjoys staying active, on the golf course and in the gym. She holds the Arizona and US dead lift record with the World Association of Benchpress and Deadlifters  for her age and weight class.

Cancellations: the cost of the CLE will be credited to your MCBA account if the CLE is canceled in one of the two manners listed below:

 1) MCBA cancels or postpones the CLE or

 2) At least two business days prior to the program, MCBA receives your cancellation, in writing, via email at (cle@maricopabar.org). Please note a $25.00 administrative fee applies. 

If you registered and paid, but could not attend, you may request that materials be sent to you, free of charge.