Yesterday my client was informed by a Medicaid case worker that the $6,500 fee that they paid me for planning their estate was a "rip-off."  Under the case worker's analysis, the client should return all transferred assets, spend down all of the parent's money, and when the assets got down to $4,000, they will qualify […]

The other curious thing about the healthcare debate as it relates to Mississippi is the claim by Republicans that malpractice reform will play a significant roll in reducing healthcare costs.  Mississippi enacted significant malpractice reforms about 5 years ago under the argument that high malpractice premiums were driving doctors out of the state.  The reforms […]

The Shelby County Health Care Corp., known locally as The MED, has dramatically increased its lien filings in Tennessee Circuit Court, relying on a state law giving hospitals the right to perfect their lien within 120 days of a hospital discharge.  Lien filings increased from a number so small it was unreported in 3rd Quarter […]

There is a potential new heir to the Steve McNair estate. In papers filed Friday, Clover Lee claims that McNair is the father of her 17 year old daughter.  If that is proven to be correct by DNA testing, the 60% of the football millionaire's estate set aside for his children will be divided 5 […]

An update of a 2007 survey of health in America again ranks Mississippi last among all states and the District of Columbia in quality of health.  Among the reasons cited were poverty in the Mississippi delta and Mississippi's high rate of obesity, which ranks Mississippi as the nation's fattest state.  Among other interesting facts, the […]

The Clarion Ledger report that a business partner of former NFL quarterback Steve McNair has asked the court to block the sale of McNair's interest in the restaurant that the two were partners in, and to instead shut it down.   Raymond White filed a motion Monday in probate court to stop attorneys for McNair's […]

Citing low reimbursement rates, Mayo Clinic has announced that effective January 1, 2010, it will no longer accept Medicare and Medicaid patients.  Story.  That is interesting, given that Mayo is one of the models pointed to by the administration for results-based treatment.  It will not have any impact on Mississippi Medicaid recipients, since Mayo does […]

In meeting with a probate client, I am reminded how important it is in planning an estate not to forget the flexibility of a disclaimer.  In this case, the decedent's Will provided for a family bypass trust — a technique used to utilize the decedent's federal estate tax exemption equivalent in order to avoid paying […]

While sitting in Hinds County Chancery Court this morning waiting to see the judge, I ran across an old friend representing an estate that is a good example of what happens when proper planning is not done.  His client died at age 44, leaving behind a wife and two minor children.  He owned a business […]

The Mississippi AG along with AG's from 29 other states, has sent a letter to the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services asking that it suspend its current state by state nursing home rating system.  Under the current rating system, nursing homes within a state are compared against one another for various criteria on a […]