Long-Term Care Planning in Savannah

Compare care preferences with available resources

Start by recording the care options you want to discuss, what matters most in each, and any concerns or preferences that should guide a future decision. Then compare those preferences with the resources you can document today, rather than assuming that a particular insurance policy or public program will cover a chosen option.

Gather current insurance policies and benefit information, account and income summaries, and any existing long-term-care or health-related documents. Note what each item says and what remains unclear. This is an organizing tool, not a coverage determination or eligibility decision.

• Care preferences and questions for family or care providers
• Insurance documents and written benefit information to verify
• A general picture of income and financial resources
• Existing powers of attorney and health-care directives

Keep decision-making roles distinct

A health-care directive can identify an agent or alternate and express health-care preferences. A financial power of attorney authorizes someone to act on another person’s behalf, but its scope, duration, and limits matter. Neither should be assumed to grant every authority or replace the other.

Other roles are different, too: a trustee acts in a trustee role, while a court-appointed guardian or conservator and a government-appointed benefit fiduciary have separate roles. Reviewing the actual documents can help identify who may act, for what purpose, and where clarification may be needed.

• Who is named to communicate health-care preferences?
• Who is authorized to handle financial matters, and within what stated scope?
• Are the people named still appropriate, and do they know where the documents are kept?

Treat TennCare as a question to assess

TennCare CHOICES is a Tennessee long-term-services-and-supports program. Both medical and financial requirements apply, so planning should not assume that an application will qualify or that CHOICES will fund a particular care arrangement.

If the program may be relevant, gather information about the person’s circumstances and ask what requirements apply to the situation. Keep that inquiry separate from reviewing private insurance, personal resources, care preferences, and decision-making documents.

• What care needs and preferences should be discussed?
• Which insurance benefits or resources have been confirmed, and which still need verification?
• What information would be needed to ask whether CHOICES could be relevant?

Prepare a one-page planning comparison

Bring a simple worksheet with three columns: preferred care and concerns; documents, insurance, or resources that may relate to it; and open questions or next steps. Attach copies or identify where relevant records can be found. Mark unverified information clearly instead of treating it as settled.

For a planning discussion, ask whether existing documents match the decisions you want people to make, whether the named agents and alternates remain suitable, and what additional information is needed to assess insurance or possible TennCare questions. Dale Law Group, PLLC offers long-term-care planning and related estate-planning services to clients in Tennessee.