News & Updates
Sylvia Nissenboim joins Oelbaum, Brown & Alsop
Oelbaum, Brown & Alsop is pleased that Sylvia Nissenboim, MSW, LCSW has joined the firm as their Client Care Coordinator. She brings a significant amount of training and experience to her position with the firm. She is a published author, national speaker and consultant on matters related to aging. She works in conjunction with our attorneys, has the training, background and compassion to help families navigate through the aging process. She is a tremendous resource for families caught in the midst of crisis.
Oelbaum, Brown & Alsop Staff are Walking to Help End Alzheimer's
Our staff and families will be participating in the Alzheimer's Association Memory Walk® held at Busch Stadium on Saturday, September 11th. Our team captain, Christine Alsop, will be leading "Alsop's Angels" on a one mile on-field walk. This is our second year walking in the Memory Walk and we look forward to help raise awareness for this wonderful event. If you would like to donate to this worthy cause, visit the website listed below and enter Christine as the first name, Alsop as the second name and click Search. Scroll down and click Christine's name. Enter your information. The website is as follows: alzstl.kintera.org/faf/search/searchParticipants.asp?ievent=336143&lis=0&kntae336143=B499115A869747BEA35B3D7B8B08F2BB.
Martha Brown Joins the Board of Advisors for Your Family Matters
Your Family Matters provides many services for current and new nursing home residents, senior living residents and their families. They strive to be advocates for seniors providing companionship, advice and a voice for seniors living in or transitioning to a St. Louis nursing home. Their website is now up and running and Martha Brown is one of their Board Advisors. For more details call 314-258-9188 or visit their website at: www.yourfamilymattersllc.com.
Oelbaum, Brown & Alsop is Invited to Special Medicaid Meeting
Cathy Hanewinkel, our Medicaid paralegal, received an invitation by the State of Missouri Department of Social Services to attend a special presentation on the new Medicaid application computer system. The Family Support Division's new system is now being implemented on both new and existing applications. Within the office, Cathy has developed new techniques to more accurately document critical dates and deadlines to make sure the new systems are implemented properly. Understanding these new procedures and rules will allow us to more efficiently assist our clients.
Family Talks About The Special Needs Alliance
"We have one (Special Needs Trust). We used a lawyer from the Special Needs Alliance and he did an awesome job. I would highly recommend using that group (they have affiliated lawyers all over the country) because SN Trusts are really tricky and you need someone highly specialized to do one. And if anyone says they can do it for less than $1000, they can't, so find someone else. Ours cost a lot of money. We were quoted $5000, but we did full estate planning with it so it ended up being about half that."
National Healthcare Decisions Day is April 16th
Brigid Fernandez with Oelbaum, Brown & Alsop, LLC is coordinating the 3rd Annual National Healthcare Decisions Day on April 16th. Together with The Bar Association of Metropolitan St. Louis (BAMSL) and other national, state and community organizations; we are leading a massive effort to highlight the importance of advance healthcare decision-making. Our goal is to ensure that everyone has the opportunity to communicate and document their healthcare decisions to their families and healthcare providers.
On April 16 from 10:00 to 2:00 p.m., various locations throughout St. Louis City and St. Louis County will be open to the public. Attorney volunteers will be providing free information about advance care planning and advance directive forms.
For more information or to join in this worthwhile effort, please call Brigid Fernandez with Oelbaum, Brown & Alsop, LLC at 314-962-0186. Information is also available at the following website: www.nationalhealthcaredecisionsday.org. For more information on Advance Directives see the Oelbuam, Brown & Alsop blog at http://elderlawstlouis.com/blog.
Early Onset Dementia Added to SSA List
The Social Security Administration (SSA) announced on February 11th, 2010 that it added early-onset (younger-onset) Alzheimer's disease to the list of conditions under its Compassionate Allowance Initiative. Applicants with early-onset Alzheimer's would be considered eligible for Social Security Disability (SSDI), Supplemental Security Income (SSI), and other disability benefits (as long as all other criteria was met) and would be fast-tracked for benefits. By adding early-onset Alzheimer's disease to the list of "Compassionate Allowance" conditions, it will simplify and streamline the SSDI/SSI application process and should result in the applicant receiving SSDI/SSI benefits faster. In addition to early-onset (younger -onset) Alzheimer's disease, there are four "related dementias" on the Compassionate Allowance List. They are: frontotemporal dementia (FTD) - Pick's disease, Creutzfeldt - Jakob disease, mixed-dementia and primary progressive aphasia. There are now 88 conditions that have been included as part of the Compassionate Allowance Initiative. See ssa.gov/compassionateallowances for more information.
MO HealthNet Application Battle Ends in a Victory for Our Client
A married couple needed to submit an application for MO HealthNet Benefits. Their only daughter lived in California. We assisted their daughter in the application process. Despite the daughter's best efforts to obtain all necessary information, the application was subjectively rejected for failure to cooperate. The rejection meant the family could possibly lose months of eligibility if the application process had to re-start from square one. We requested an administrative hearing to argue the caseworker's determination that there was a failure to cooperate. The caseworker subsequently had a medical leave of absence, so we were forced to postpone the hearing until she returned as the hearing would require her presence in order to address her opinion of lack of cooperation.
In order to prevent any additional loss in potential benefits, we made a second application. As expected, the application was processed and was rejected. The rejection gave us the grounds to request a hearing for spousal impoverishment. This would allow the spouse living at home to utilize all of her own income, as well as her spouse's income and to retain all of the family assets. In short, there is no monthly payment to the nursing home; MO HealthNet pays the entire bill.
We finally received the date for the hearing. One hearing was held to discuss both issues (the failure to cooperate as well as the spousal impoverishment). We argued that our client's daughter did as much as she could under the circumstances. She made several trips to St. Louis in an effort to obtain information, she made phone calls, and lawyers from our office went to the bank to obtain information and as a result made every effort to cooperate.
The hearing officer agreed and stated that there was no failure to cooperate. She stated that our client did more than was required to assist her mother in completing the MO HealthNet application. Additionally, the issue of "failure to cooperate" is a subjective one with no specific deadlines that need to be imposed. Our client also won the spousal impoverishment argument in that she was allowed to keep all of the marital assets, her husband's income as well as her own income. She received the benefits effective, November, 2008.
Google Web Alert for: Oelbaum, Brown & Alsop
Dolan Media Company -- Dolan Media Newswire Story
"A lot of lawyers who were just doing estate planning are trying to get into elder law," noted Christine Alsop, a partner in Oelbaum, Brown & Alsop...
Brigid Fernandez completes Advanced Veterans Training
Attorney, Brigid Fernandez, has successfully completed the Advanced Veterans training in Georgia.
Christine Alsop Wins Appeal Regarding Nursing Home Rights
Partner, Christine A. Alsop won an appeal to the Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services in favor of a client who had been threatened with an illegal discharge from a local nursing home. The Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services agreed with Christine’s position that such a discharge could not occur as the nursing home had failed to provide a competent plan of discharge to a safe and adequate place for the nursing home resident.
Micah Huff Reverses State’s Decision Regarding Client’s Disability Status
Micah Huff successfully argued an administrative appeal case in St. Charles County concerning the State’s determination that a client was not disabled for MO HealthNet benefits. Micah obtained a reversal of the State’s decision and helped his client obtain MO HealthNet benefits which covered nursing home costs.
Martha Brown discusses a case that explains the importance of helping her clients.
Memory Walk in Forest Park
On September 12th the Alzheimer’s Association - St. Louis Chapter sponsored a Memory Walk in Forest Park. Oelbaum, Brown & Alsop championed the cause by becoming an event sponsor and organizing a team for the walk. Our team consisted of the firm’s employees and their families and was led by Christine Alsop, our team captain. Together, along with thousands of other participants, “Alsop’s Angels” walked 3 miles through Forest Park in support of Alzheimer’s care, support and research. It was touching to see team members walking in memory of their loved one. This event showcased the importance of Alzheimer’s research to help combat this serious, debilitating disease. We were happy to do our part in the fight against Alzheimer’s.
ATTORNEY MICAH HUFF QUOTED IN THE JOPLIN GLOBE
Attorney Micah Huff has been quoted in The Joplin Globe in regards to a local probate case. See complete story.
MARTHA BROWN CO-CHAIRS PROGRAM
Partner, Martha Brown is co-chair of the NAELA 2009 Special Needs Program - "Helping Everyone Find Their Wings". The program being held in Phoenix, Arizona at the Arizona Grand Resort encompasses programs on Special Needs Trust administration, Pooled Trust, Housing issues, Veterans Benefits and much more. The program runs from May 27 to May 30, 2009. For registration information go online to www.NAELA.org or e-mail naela@naela.org.
The National Academy of Elder Law Attorney (NAELA) is a non-profit association that assists lawyers, bar organizations and others who work with older clients and their families and people with disabilities.
FIRM NAME HAS CHANGED
Please be advised that the firm name has been changed from Oelbaum & Brown, LLC and is now Oelbaum, Brown & Alsop, LLC. Ms. Alsop has been a partner since 2006 and we are pleased to officially make this change.
OELBAUM, BROWN & ALSOP, LLC WELCOMES NEW ATTORNEY
M. Brigid Fernandez has joined the firm as an associate attorney. Ms. Fernandez is a graduate of St. Louis University School of Law and is licensed to practice law in the State of Missouri. She also has a Master's Degree in Social Work from the University of Missouri-Columbia. She is a licensed Clinical Social Worker and a Certified Civil Mediator. Prior to joining Oelbaum, Brown & Alsop, she clerked for the Honorable Booker T. Shaw in the Missouri Court of Appeals. Ms. Fernandez also has 18 years experience working as a Medical Social Worker and will head the Life Care Planning services for the firm.
ADDITIONAL SERVICES OFFERED
Oelbaum, Brown & Alsop is pleased to offer two additional areas of legal services - Life Care Planning and Veterans Benefits. See our Home Page for specific information regarding these services.
CONGRATULATIONS ON AWARD
Martha Brown was named the recipient of the 2008 NAELA Powley Award at the annual Institute of the National Academy of Elder Law Attorneys (NAELA) in Kansas City, Missouri, on October 24, 2008.
The Powley Elder Law Award is presented annually to a NAELA member who is recognized in his or her community as a leader in promoting a greater understanding of the rights and needs of elders and persons with special needs and of how elder law attorneys advocate for those rights.
The award is established in the memory of Wes and Helen Powley, grandparents of NAELA Member Tim Takacs from Tennessee. Both Wes and Helen were active in civic affairs for all of their lives and Wes practiced dentistry well into his 80s.
The NAELA Powley Award comes with a $1000 donation in the name of the recipient from the Takacs family to a non-profit organization of the recipient's choice. Brown chose the Association for Aging with Developmental Disabilities to receive this year's donation.
