Legislation

• Bill Introduced: S.3219 Senior Investor Protections Enhancement Act of 2008
  A bill to enhance penalties for violations of securities protections that involve targeting seniors.
  
  
  (June 25, 2008)
• Bill Introduced: H.Con.Res.339 Expressing the sense of Congress regarding the necessity to ...
  Expressing the sense of Congress regarding the necessity to improve public awareness in the United States among older individuals and their families and caregivers about the impending Digital Television Transition through the establishment of a Federal interagency taskforce between the Federal Communications Commission, the Administration on Aging, the National Telecommunications and Information Administration, and the outside advice of appropriate members of the aging network and industry groups.
  
  
  (April 29, 2008)
• Bill Introduced: H.R.5799 Nursing Home Transparency and Improvement Act of 2008
  To amend titles XVIII and XIX of the Social Security Act to improve the transparency of information on skilled nursing facilities and nursing facilities and to clarify and improve the targeting of the enforcement of requirements with respect to such facilities.
  
  
  (April 13, 2008)
• Bill Introduced: S.2794 Senior Investor Protection Act of 2008
  A bill to protect older Americans from misleading and fraudulent marketing practices, with the goal of increasing retirement security.
  
  
  (March 30, 2008)
• Bill Introduced: S.2641 Nursing Home Transparency and Improvement Act of 2008
  A bill to amend title XVIII and XIX of the Social Security Act to improve the transparency of information on skilled nursing facilities and nursing facilities and to clarify and improve the targeting of the enforcement of requirements with respect to such facilities.
  
  
  (February 12, 2008)

Regulations

Government

• Notice - Agency Information Collection Activities; Proposals, Submissions, and Approvals
  Aging Administration
  Notice
  Agency Information Collection Activities; Proposals, Submissions, and Approvals,
  16874 [E9-8386]
  DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES Administration on Aging Agency Information Collection Activities; Proposed Collection; Comment Request; SMP (Formerly Senior Medicare Patrol) Program Outcome Measurement AGENCY: Administration on Aging, HHS. ACTION: Notice. SUMMARY: The Administration on Aging (AoA) is announcing an opportunity for public comment on the proposed collection of certain information by the agency. Under the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (the PRA), Federal agencies are... [read document]
  View Document | Download PDF
  
  (April 12, 2009)
• Notice - Agency Information Collection Activities; Proposals, Submissions, and Approvals
  Aging Administration
  Notice
  Agency Information Collection Activities; Proposals, Submissions, and Approvals,
  15984-15985 [E9-7968]
  DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES Administration on Aging Agency Information Collection Activities; Proposed Collection; Comment Request; Annual Reporting Requirements for the Older Americans Act Title VI Grant Program AGENCY: Administration on Aging, HHS. ACTION: Notice. SUMMARY: The Administration on Aging (AoA) is announcing an opportunity for public comment on the proposed collection of certain information by the agency. Under the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (the PRA), Federal... [read document]
  View Document | Download PDF
  
  (April 7, 2009)
• Notice - Agency Information Collection Activities; Proposals, Submissions, and Approvals
  Aging Administration
  Notice
  Agency Information Collection Activities; Proposals, Submissions, and Approvals,
  15729-15730 [E9-7847]
  DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES Administration on Aging Agency Information Collection Activities; Proposed Collection; Comment Request; Semi-Annual and Final Reporting Requirements for Older Americans Act Title IV Discretionary Grant Program AGENCY: Administration on Aging, HHS. ACTION: Notice . SUMMARY: The Administration on Aging (AoA) is announcing an opportunity for public comment on the proposed collection of certain information by the agency. Under the Paperwork Reduction Act of... [read document]
  View Document | Download PDF
  
  (April 6, 2009)
• Notice - Delegation of Authority
  Aging Administration
  Notice
  Delegation of Authority,
  8260 [E9-3839]
  DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES Administration on Aging Delegation of Authority Notice is hereby given that I have delegated to the Assistant Secretary for Aging the authority vested in the Secretary of Health and Human Services under section 119(c) of the Medicare Improvements for Patients and Providers Act of 2008, Public Law 110-275 pertaining to making grants to Aging and Disability Resource Centers under the Aging and Disability Resource Center grant program. These delegations... [read document]
  View Document | Download PDF
  
  (February 23, 2009)
• Notice - Agency Information Collection Activities; Proposals, Submissions, and Approvals
  Aging Administration
  Notice
  Agency Information Collection Activities; Proposals, Submissions, and Approvals
  ,
  7694 [E9-3522]
  DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES Administration on Aging Agency Information Collection Activities; Proposed Collection; Comment Request; State Annual Long-Term Care Ombudsman Report and Instructions for Older Americans Act Title VII AGENCY: Administration on Aging, HHS. ACTION: Notice. SUMMARY: The Administration on Aging (AoA) is announcing an opportunity for public comment on the proposed collection of certain information by the agency. Under the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (the... [read document]
  View Document | Download PDF
  
  (February 18, 2009)

Articles

• Do Older Workers Lower IT-Enabled Productivity? Firm-Level Evidence from Germany
  ZEW - Centre for European Economic Research Discussion Paper No. 08-129 Irene Bertschek and Jenny Meyer Centre for European Economic Research (ZEW) and Centre for European Economic Research (ZEW) Date Posted: April 17, 2009 Last Revised: April 17, 2009
  (April 16, 2009)
• The Life Cycle Effects of Subjective Mortality Risk
  Edwin Wong University of Washington - Department of Economics Date Posted: January 19, 2009 Last Revised: April 7, 2009
  (April 6, 2009)
• The Effects of Wage Indexing on Social Security Disability Benefits
  Social Security Bulletin, Vol. 68, No. 3, pp. 1-44, 2008 L. Scott Muller affiliation not provided to SSRN Date Posted: February 10, 2009 Last Revised: March 31, 2009
  (March 30, 2009)
• Tax Competition in an Aging Society
  David P. Bernstein affiliation not provided to SSRN Date Posted: March 27, 2009 Last Revised: March 27, 2009
  (March 26, 2009)
• Forms of Benefit Payment at Retirement
  Pablo Antolin , Colin Pugh and Fiona Stewart Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development, OECD , affiliation not provided to SSRN and Organization for Economic Co-Operation and Development (OECD) Date Posted: March 26, 2009 Last Revised: March 26, 2009
  (March 25, 2009)

News

• Law Week topics include foreclosures, elder law, small claims
  Palm Beach Daily News, FL
  By MICHELE DARGAN, Daily News Staff Writer The hot legal topics of foreclosure, elder law, small claims and condominium-homeowner law are on the agenda for Law Week, presented by the Palm Beach County Bar Association. The popular annual event begins ...
  
  (April 23, 2009)
• Elder abuse alert goes out in local newletter, with a scam warning
  San Jose Mercury News,  USA
  By Chris Vongsarath An elder abuse alert has gone out to all area adult and senior centers warning of a possible financial scam targeting local seniors. The scheme was first reported about a month ago, originating from the Willows SeniorNet Learning ...
  
  (April 22, 2009)
• Elder abuse charge added to Ruby Wright's case
  Santa Rosa Press Democrat, CA
  BY LORI A. CARTER Sonoma County prosecutors added a new charge of elder abuse Thursday to the case of a Santa Rosa woman accused of murdering her husband of 41 years. But Judge Arthur Andy Wick denied their request to increase bail for Ruby Wright, 59. ...
  
  (April 22, 2009)
• Ga. Lawyer Used Elder Law Practice to Snare Ponzi Victims
  The National Law Journal
  For five years, a Marietta, Ga., attorney who specialized in elder law arranged community workshops where he sought investors for a bogus financial scheme that would siphon more than $40 million from his unsuspecting clientele, according to a federal ...
  
  (April 22, 2009)
• Spotlight on Elderlaw
  Wave of Long Island (subscription), NY
  The financial crisis, coupled with possible changes in the estate tax law, make now a good time to review your estate plan. The future of the estate tax will likely be up for debate in Congress soon because one of the priorities of the Obama ...
  
  (April 22, 2009)

Blog Posts

• What is Estate Planning?
  Let's start with what it isn't. Estate planning is not just for the wealthy. It is not just about avoiding probate and minimizing taxes. It is not just transferring wealth at your death. It is not about which documents to use. It is not a one-time event. It is about your family, their needs, and your goals. It is about taking care of you and your loved ones at all stages of your life. It is about results and meeting your expectations. A proper estate plan most importantly ensures and provides...
  (April 23, 2009)
• Maximum Fine Levied Against Nursing Home For Failing To Supervise Resident While Smoking
  Nursing homes have a duty to protect their residents from harm inflicted by not just the staff and other residents at the facility--but also keeping residents from harming themselves. Rivera Healthcare Center, a California nursing home, failed to protect a resident from harming himself and consequently received a $100,000 fine-- the highest fine permissible under California law. The fine comes after a California Department of Health investigation related to the burn-related death of a...
  (April 23, 2009)
• VA Compensation Claims and the “Medical Nexusâ€� Requirement
  There are three criteria that a veteran must meet in order to receive service-connected compensation from the Veterans Administration (VA): A Current Disability. There must be a current disability, one that has been diagnosed by a medical professional; An Event In Service. There must be evidence in the military service records of the occurrence or aggravation of a disease, injury, or event in service; and, Medical Nexus Evidence. There must be a nexus, or link, between the current disability...
  (April 22, 2009)
• Who Benefits From Damage Caps In Nursing Home Lawsuits?
  Not surprisingly an article supporting damage caps in nursing home lawsuits was written by nursing home administrator, Carrie Ermshar in the Tennesseean.com. In her piece, Ermshar equates damages awarded to an injured person as a penalty against a nursing home. "We must ask ourselves a tough question: At the end of a lawsuit, who is really being punished?" Now, before anyone accuses me of taking Ms. Ermshar's comments out of context, I suggest you read her entire piece. Nonetheless, Ermshar's...
  (April 22, 2009)
• Update: New Estate Tax Bill
  As discussed last week, Seattle Congressman Jim McDermott introduced an estate tax bill yesterday. It is H.R. 2023, entitled "To amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to reform the estate and gift tax". The text is not yet available, but you can get the text and check the status with the last two links. It appears that the bill includes a permanent estate tax exemption of $2.0 million, higher tax rates, and indexing. This bill adds to a growing debate on the future of the estate tax that...
  (April 22, 2009)