Elder Law News
From Enea, Scanlan & Sirignano, LLP
February 2025
|
|
|
New York's Elder Law Team
|
|
|
Enea, Scanlan & Sirignano Expands with New Somers Office
|
|
|
Enea, Scanlan & Sirignano, LLP is pleased to announce the opening of our new office in Somers, N.Y. This expansion further strengthens the firm’s presence in the community, where we have served clients from a home office for three decades. Our new location will enhance accessibility for clients throughout Northern Westchester, Putnam, and Dutchess Counties, providing local families with greater convenience and personalized guidance on preserving their assets and planning for the future.
“For almost 30 years, we have been honored to assist clients in Northern Westchester and the surrounding areas from our home office,” said Anthony J. Enea, Esq., the firm's managing partner and a Somers resident. “Establishing a full-service office here is a natural step in strengthening our commitment to the community. Estate and long-term care planning are essential at every stage of life. With our new Somers office complementing our White Plains headquarters, we remain committed to providing the highest level of service to our clients.”
Lauren C. Enea, Esq., a partner at the firm, echoed the sentiment, “As longtime residents of Somers, my father and I are thrilled to deepen our roots here and offer our services in a more accessible way. We welcome clients not only from Westchester, but also Putnam and Dutchess Counties who are seeking experienced, compassionate legal counsel for their elder law and estate planning needs.”
The new office, located at 339 Route 202, Suite 100 in Somers, is open by appointment for consultations and client meetings. For more information or to schedule a consultation, call 914-948-1500 or visit www.esslawfirm.com.
|
|
|
New York Medicaid Eligibility Updates
Effective January 1, 2025, the following updated Medicaid amounts will be used to determine eligibility.
|
|
|
Change to the Consumer Directed Personal Assistance Program (CDPAP)
|
|
|
WHO IS AFFECTED: The Consumer Directed Personal Assistance Program (CDPAP) is a Medicaid program that allows the Medicaid recipient (the “consumer”) to select their caretaker aide and direct their in-home care. The consumer or a designated representative (family member, agent, or guardian) is responsible for the selection (hiring/firing), training, and scheduling of caretaker aides. Anybody currently enrolled with CDPAP, and their caretaker aide, is affected by this change.
WHAT HAS CHANGED: The NYS state budget for fiscal year 2024-25 mandates that all consumers switch their current fiscal intermediary to a single fiscal intermediary called Public Partnerships, LLC (PPL). This requirement replaces the existing 600+ fiscal intermediaries in NYS, which are to close by April 1, 2025. Current fiscal intermediaries will no longer be able to pay a caretaker aide as of April 1, 2025 and will not be able to coordinate your services further, unless they have been approved by PPL as a partner/facilitator (see list of facilitators approved by PPL below).
WHAT IS REQUIRED: Consumers must register and onboard their aides to PPL by March 28, 2025. If a consumer has not on-boarded their caretaker aides (and substitute aides) with PPL by March 28, 2025, their home care services will stop.
HOW TO MAKE THE TRANSITION (choose one of the four ways listed):
1. Place a phone call to the PPL customer support center: 1-833-247-5346
2. Online through the PPL@Home online system: https://pplfirst.com/cdpap
3. Contact a Facilitator: If your current CDPAP caretaker aide is arranged with Community Care Home Health Services (CCHHS), please call 888-401-4539 to arrange the transition, as CCHHS is an approved facilitator. If your current fiscal intermediary is not an approved facilitator, please find a weblink to a list of approved facilitators below. For a list of all facilitators, please visit: https://pplfirst.com/cdpap-facilitators/
4. Attend an In-Person or Virtual Registration session: You must call to schedule at 833-247-5346. Upcoming dates listed here: https://pplfirst.com/cdpap-resources-events/
For further information, visit: https://pplfirst.com/programs/new-york/ny-consumer-directed-personal-assistance-program-cdpap/
|
|
|
Lauren C. Enea Joins Italian American Forum Board of Trustees
|
|
|
Enea, Scanlan & Sirignano, LLP is pleased to announce that Lauren C. Enea, Esq., partner, has been appointed to the Italian American Forum's Board of Trustees. The Forum, a network of business and community leaders, serves as a catalyst for the exchange of ideas on relevant contemporary issues while supporting worthwhile initiatives dedicated to promoting and preserving the Italian American heritage. For more information, visit the Italian American Forum online at www.iafny.org.
|
|
|
Trusts & Mortgages Are Not Mutually Exclusive
By: Stella King, Esq.
|
|
|
Too often, homeowners dismiss the idea of transferring their real property to an inter vivos trust (i.e., a trust that is created during one’s lifetime as opposed to a trust that is created under the terms of a Last Will & Testament) because the real property is subject to a mortgage. The concern is usually that the lender will either forbid such transfer from occurring or that the due-on-sale (DOS) clause of the loan agreement will be triggered by the transfer, allowing the lender to demand full repayment of the loan and to foreclose on the property if said loan is not repaid immediately. Thanks to the Garn-St. Germain Depository Institutions Act of 1982 (the “GSG Act”), this is not always the case.
The GSG Act, enacted by Congress in an effort to ease pressures on banks following the high inflation of the 1970s, deregulated savings and loan associations, permitted adjustable rate mortgages, and afforded protections against the DOS clause of mortgages. Although the GSG Act provides for the enforcement of DOS clauses in a general sense, it also carves out a number of exceptions, one of which is the protection afforded to owners of residential real estate (containing less than five dwelling units), a residential manufactured home, and/or shares of stock associated with a cooperative apartment. 12 U.S.C. §1701j-3(d).
|
|
|
Upcoming Speaking Engagements
Featuring the Attorneys of Enea, Scanlan & Sirignano, LLP
|
|
|
Wednesday, February 26, 2025 from 5:00-6:30pm
Lauren C. Enea, Esq. will be speaking on
“Life Transitions and the Unexpected”
Hosted by: The Bristal at White Plains
In Person: White Plains
For more information, please contact (631) 372-2272.
***
Wednesday, March 19, 2025 from 12:00-1:00pm
Lauren C. Enea, Esq. will be speaking on
“Conveying Real Estate and the Tax Consequences”
Hosted by: White Plains Bar Association
Webinar
For more information, please contact our office at (914) 948-1500.
***
Monday, March 24, 2025 from 3:00-4:00pm
Lauren C. Enea, Esq. will be speaking on
“Protecting Your Assets and Identity”
Hosted by: Bronxville Public Library
Webinar
For more information, visit: https://tinyurl.com/yktkznt6
***
Thursday, March 27, 2025 from 7:00-8:30pm
Sara E. Meyers, Esq. will be speaking on
“Accountable Aging: Preparing for the Elder Years”
Hosted by: Chappaqua Continuing Education
In Person: Chappaqua
For more information, please visit: https://tinyurl.com/yc4j5r73
***
Tuesday, April 8, 2025 from 5:30-6:30pm
Lauren C. Enea, Esq. will be speaking on
“Protecting Your Assets and Identity”
Hosted by: North Castle Public Library
In Person: Armonk
For more information, please contact our office at (914) 948-1500.
***
Thursday, April 10, 2025 from 12:00-1:00pm
Lauren C. Enea, Esq. will be speaking on
“What Happens When Someone Dies Without a Will in New York”
Hosted by: Lawline
Webinar
For more information, visit: https://tinyurl.com/svpp7848
***
Wednesday, April 23, 2025 from 1:00-2:00pm
Lauren C. Enea, Esq. will be speaking on
“Estate Planning for Every Age”
Hosted by: Scarsdale Public Library
In Person: Scarsdale
For more information, please contact our office at (914) 948-1500.
|
|
|
The Talking Seniors podcast is currently on break.
Take a listen to some of the episodes from last season.
|
|
|
Episode 13: What to Discuss with Family When an Alzheimer's Diagnosis Occurs
Anthony J. Enea, Esq. interviews Joan Nimmo of The Alzheimer's Association about the important conversations that are necessary when a diagnosis of Alzheimer's occurs within the family.
|
|
|
Follow Us on Social Media
|
|
|
If you would like to unsubscribe and stop receiving these emails click here.
|
|
|
|
