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In contrast to this time last year, when clients were frantically gifting to save estate tax before adverse tax law changes, this year has returned to the norm, with more traditional and routine end of…
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In contrast to this time last year, when clients were frantically gifting to save estate tax before adverse tax law changes, this year has returned to the norm, with more traditional and routine end of…
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In contrast to this time last year, when clients were frantically gifting to save estate tax before adverse tax law changes, this year has returned to the norm, with more traditional and routine end of…
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John Dedon On Estate Planning: Estate Planning – What a Difference a Year Makes
In contrast to this time last year, when clients were frantically gifting to save estate tax before adverse tax law changes, this year has returned to the norm, with more traditional and routine end of…
Ask the Expert: Making Our Home Safe for Dad
Q. We just found out that my father, Barry, will be moving in with us in the new year. He is in his 70’s, has Parkinson’s, arthritis, and is in a wheelchair a lot of the time. We don’t have much money to renovate, but we want to make sure our home is safe and comfortable for him. Being in our home with his grandchildren is where he is the happiest, and quality of life for my dad is of utmost importance to us. I am most worried about him falling. What small adjustments can you recommend to make our home safe and livable for him, so he can stay as long as possible? Also, if it is too much for us to handle alone, who can we call for assistance?
A. There are lots of simple modifications you can do to make your home safer for your father that don’t cost a lot or are completely free. By making some minor adjustments, your father can move into your home and hopefully live safely, comfortably, and independently, among his loved ones.
As you mentioned, falls are certainly a cause for concern, as they are the leading cause of home injury among seniors. Falls can result in hip fractures, broken bones, head injuries, and significant loss of independence. Those over age 75 who fall are four times more likely to be admitted to a skilled nursing facility. The good news about falls is that most of them can be prevented.
The following are a few simple modifications from the AARP Home Fit Guide, that will help to decrease the likelihood of falls and to make your home all-around more accessible for your father:
- Pick up any clutter that can cause your father to trip, such as newspapers, books, shoes, clothes, electrical cords, and phone cords.
- If you have throw rugs, remove them or use double-sided tape or non-slip pads underneath to secure them.
- If you have stairs, consider installing handrails on both sides.
- Add lamps, light fixtures, and night lights where needed to improve visibility. Consider installing motion sensor lights outside the front and back doors and in the driveway.
- Get some non-skid bath rugs for the bathroom floors, put a non-slip rubber mat or self-stick strips on the floor of the tub/shower and install grab bars inside the tub/shower. Consider getting a hand-held adjustable shower head installed and purchasing a shower or bathtub seat so your father can shower from a safe seated position.
- Organize your kitchen cabinets so things are within easy reach. Make your cabinets and pantry easier to access by installing pullout shelves or lazy susans.
- Since your father uses a wheelchair, adapt your home by installing ramps on entrance steps, and mini-ramps to go over high entrance thresholds. You can even widen the doorways an additional two inches by installing “swing clear” offset door hinges.
- To make things more comfortable, since he has arthritis, replace round doorknobs with lever handles, round bathroom faucets with lever faucet handles, and knobs on cabinets with pull handles.
If you are not handy or need professional guidance to make your home accessible for your father, please consider the following:
- Think about hiring a Professional Organizer to help you organize and declutter, making rooms less crowded and therefore less of a fall hazard. You can find a directory of Certified Professional Organizers (CPO) by visiting the website http://www.certifiedprofessionalorganizers.org.
- Find an Aging in Place Specialist to make your home accessible. You can find a directory of Certified Aging in Place Specialist (CAPS) by visiting the website of the certifying organization – the National Association of Home Builders, at http://www.nahb.org.
- All the help available to seniors may in itself be overwhelming. How do seniors choose the right service provider for their needs? If you live in Northern Virginia, be sure to check out the Trusted Referrals listed on The Fairfax and Fredericksburg Elder Law Firm of Evan H. Farr, P.C. website.
It is always a good idea to plan for the future, just in case your father needs more adaptations and assistance than you can provide. Nursing homes in Northern Virginia cost $9,000 – $12,000 per month (less in Fredericksburg). Life Care Planning and Medicaid Asset Protection is the process of protecting your father from having to go broke paying for nursing home care, while also helping ensure that he gets the best possible care and maintains the highest possible quality of life, whether at your home or, in the future, in an assisted living facility or nursing home. Learn more at http://www.VirginiaElderLaw.com and call us at our Virginia Elder Law Fairfax office at 703-691-1888 or at our Virginia Elder Law Fredericksburg office at 540-479-1435 to make an appointment for a no-cost consultation.
Dad, What’s the Penalty for Driving 400 MPH?
This is one of many hypothetical questions I get from Max. He’s excellent at embellishing facts to make them a bit ridiculous, if not impossible. But that’s what makes them fun to think about and answer. Assuming you could drive a car 400mph down a city street, what are the possible penalties for driving it in a 30mph speed zone?
First, it is possible to drive a car more than 400mph. Or 470mph, to be exact. While absolute land-speed records (which involve jet-powered cars) are slightly north of 700mph, Don Vesco holds the “wheel-driven land speed record” of 470.444mph. Vesco set the record in 2001 while cruising along Utah’s Bonneville Salt Flats in his Vesco Turbinator.
So, assuming that I hop into one of these Vesco Turbinators for a quick jaunt down Lyndale Avenue in South Minneapolis, what’s the penalty for my 400mph commute? In other words, for the roughly six mile journey downtown to the Target Center, what’s the penalty I could pay for getting there in a Turbinator in less than 60 seconds?
Here’s what I came up with, at least under Minnesota law. And, as we almost always do, let’s assume I get caught, at least this time.
- License Revocation. Going 400mph is a bit more than Minnesota’s “extreme speed” of 100mph, the speed limit over which a driver’s license is automatically revoked.
- Reckless or Careless Driving. I’d wager that going 400mph down Lyndale Avenue, a semi-residential street, is driving a “vehicle in such a manner as to indicate either a willful or a wanton disregard for the safety of persons or property,” otherwise known as reckless driving, a misdemeanor so long as you also don’t get into an accident. Heedless driving that endangers people (but does not involve wanton or willful disregard of that danger) is careless driving, also a misdemeanor. I’m not sure I have a strong defense against either, at least if I’m going 400mph past the Walker Art Center and the Basilica of St. Mary.
- Racing. “Racing” is reckless driving but involves a person who “willfully compares or contests relative speeds” while driving, no matter the posted speed (and it also includes boats). I guess it could be a defense to racing if you were actually commuting to work in your Vesco Turbinator—that is, not “contesting” the Dodge Caravan you passed a few milliseconds back. Or not trying to best the wheel-driven land speed record of 470mph. Doubtful.
Those are the crimes. Max, though, asked about the penalty for driving down the road at 400mph—370mph over the Minneapolis city speed limit. If caught and convicted of speeding, it would mean a fine of at least $212, plus whatever surcharges the court tacks on these days, plus more if I happened to pass through a designated work or school zone. And if convicted of reckless driving, it could mean up to 90 days in jail, a $1,000 fine, or both. Finally, for “extreme speed”—speed in excess of 100mph in Minnesota—I’d get my license revoked for at least six months. Worth it to go 400mph down a city street. Probably in the mind of a 13-year-old.
As an aside, the closest anyone has come to such extreme speeding was a Minnesota motorcyclist allegedly clocked at 205mph on a rural road with a posted speed limit of 65mph. Though folks doubted that his Honda RC51 motorcycle could go that fast, the cyclist ultimately pled guilty to speeding and for failing to possess a valid motorcycle license. He avoided a careless driving conviction, paid a fine, and did 200 hours of community service.
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In contrast to this time last year, when clients were frantically gifting to save estate tax before adverse tax law changes, this year has returned to the norm, with more traditional and routine end of…