Olivia K. Smith on Families & Seniors

Special Education COVID-19 Guidelines

January 25, 2021Filed Under: Uncategorized

The coronavirus is severely challenging schools to provide the necessary services to students with special needs. Students with special needs are provided Free Appropriate Public Education (FAPE), which requires tailoring to meet individual disability needs. The US Department of Education is providing details about how states, schools, and parents can best address student special education needs following the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA). The program’s goal is to give children with special needs the same education opportunities as those without disabilities.

The guidelines are one set of procedures for children ages 2 to 21 and another for younger children. Teachers and parents are tasked with working collaboratively to meet the students’ needs in either age group. Communication between parents and public agency staff must create understanding and define the roles each provides to integrate their services to a child with special needs. If there is a dispute that is not possible to resolve, then the three dispute resolution mechanisms, as defined by IDEA, are implemented. These are mediation, state complaint, and due process complaint procedures.

The New Guidelines for Special Education During COVID-19

The new guidelines define that discretionary timelines for resolving complaints are on a case-by-case basis during the COVID-19 pandemic for both age groups. The regulations are highly detailed and available online for both groups, ages 2 – 21 and infants and toddlers, as put forward by the US Department of Education’s Office of Special Education Programs (OSEP). Timelines for due process complaints and hearings may also be adjusted in certain circumstances or conducted via conference calls or video conference calls.

Betsy DeVos, the US Secretary of Education, says the department has issued new information that clarifies no federal law shall be used to prevent schools from offering distance learning opportunities to students with special needs. The Office for Civil Rights (OCR) and the Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services (OSERS) explains, “… every school district must take the necessary steps to address the health, safety, and well-being of all its students and staff, educators can use distance learning opportunities to serve all students.”

Before issuing this new information, some school districts were using the Department of Education guidelines as a reason not to educate children with disabilities. Secretary DeVos states, “This is a time for creativity and an opportunity to pursue as much flexibility as possible so that the learning continues. It is a time for all of us to pull together to do what’s right for our nation’s students.”

No school district should use education rules and guidelines to derail disabled student learning, whether during a pandemic or not. Encouragement to solve issues at a local level is encouraged as a one size fits all solution for students with special needs is impossible to achieve. Together, school systems and staff, along with parents, must meet the challenges this pandemic brings to continue the education process of all students, disabled or otherwise.

What is Required of Special Educator Teachers During COVID-19

Educators that require additional resources to meet disabled students’ distance learning needs during COVID-19 can tap both OCR and OSERS for technical assistance. Students may require voice recognition only for online learning, while other students may require specialized equipment to interact over the internet. A supplemental fact sheet for IDEA provides quick reference and internet links to answer any questions about providing services to children with disabilities during COVID-19.

Even if the level of learning online is not as robust as being in a school facility face to face with a special needs teacher, there is undeniable importance for students to have a schedule, a routine of learning to which they must adhere. Education is not only about information but also critical thinking skills and learning how to cope with life under adverse conditions. The coronavirus is challenging special needs students, educators, and parents alike to adapt to situational distance learning.

If you have questions or would like to discuss your own situation in a confidential setting, please don’t hesitate to reach out. Please contact us at 513-771-2444.

The Stresses of a Spouse becoming the Main Caregiver

January 18, 2021Filed Under: Elder Law, Long Term Care

Becoming the main caregiver for a seriously ill spouse can trigger relationship challenges. In the process of change, you can lose your best friend, your love, and your future as you both had imagined it. Promises will change from words spoken in oath on your wedding day to deeds of care in your mostly, but not exclusively, older years. The new caregiver morphs from a loving spouse into their new role, which is an entirely different sort of relationship of primary service. In more tragic cases, the caregiver can become distant to the marital bond, struggling with feelings of loss, fear, anger, resentment, or misunderstanding.

It’s a situation no spouse looks forward to on either side of the equation. A loving couple does not look forward to the day when they either must watch and tend to the mortal decline of their spouse or, conversely, be the spouse who feels wracked with guilt feelings knowing their health problems are placing a tremendous caregiving burden on their spouse. No matter the desire to avoid the experience, very few married couples will elude the complication that serious illness brings to their shared lives. Sadly, the needs of the caregiving spouse are often overlooked at a time when they need renewed strength to support their partner in new ways.

The caregiving pressures exerted on a spouse are significant. According to an analysis of 168 studies, while the caregiving spouse will protect their mate, they report more symptoms of depression, lower levels of psychological well-being, and more significant physical and financial burdens. To cope with the changes presents challenges, and sadly, the longer you have been married, the more difficult the process of rewriting the relationship’s rules and expectations become. Early on in the illness diagnosis, spouses are unclear as to how to handle the short-circuit in communication and productively process their feelings.

Many new spousal caregivers will feel the complications of isolation. Family members and close friends may not visit, not help, or even ignore the couple struggling to create new behavioral norms. Health Affairs reports that 55 percent of older spouses experience their end of life caregiving years without help from children, other family members, or even paid home health aides. The entirely new sort of relationship that becomes forged between husband and wife becomes defined by illness and lost emotional connections.

The need then becomes the focus on what to do to improve the situation. The first is the caregiving spouse needs an accurate understanding of the condition, treatment, prognosis, and needs of their ill spouse, whether they are diagnosed with dementia, cancer, heart failure, kidney dysfunction, or another serious illness. The information needs to come directly from attending physicians and health care providers. Caregivers need to participate in medical appointments and become an active participant in identifying health and wellness issues and potential fixes. Medical recommendations need to be prioritized so that the caregiver can be a positive, encouraging reinforcement rather than a nagging, stress-inducing reminder that can trigger frustrations on both sides.

If family and friends are willing to help lighten the load, it is imperative to accept help. Housekeeping, erranding, providing casseroles, transportation, visiting, anything that can reduce your workload as a caregiver is essential to accept graciously. Review your insurance plans as many give some level of coverage of home nursing services, occupational, and physical therapy. These services can improve your partner’s abilities and safety in your home.

Share as much time as reasonable with your spouse, listen to their thoughts, and spend time in quiet reflection. Follow routines that are established patterns in your life together. A Friday movie night at home with popcorn, walking the dog, or sharing morning coffee as a continued routine helps to keep a sense of continuity in the face of the unknown.

Recognize that you are not alone in your struggle. Authors Barbara Kivowitz and Roanne Weisman have written about their journeys as the caregiving spouse of a seriously ill mate in a book entitled Love in the Time of Chronic Illness: How to Fight the Sickness – Not Each Other. The most poignant recommendation describes shifting the notion of caregiving from a set of daily responsibilities to an act of expressing compassion. Kivowitz encourages couples to “Measure success by how well you connect, love and feel loved.” Don’t let a serious illness shake the foundation of your marriage. Identify your roles and set structure to address the issues at hand, and in the face of the unknown, you both will be better for it.

If you have questions or would like to discuss your personal situation, please don’t hesitate to contact us at 513-771-2444.

What Happens to your Digital Assets?

January 11, 2021Filed Under: Asset Protection, Elder Law, Estate Planning

Today, almost everyone has digital footprint. From social networks like Facebook, Linkedin, Instagram, Twitch.tv and Twitter, blogs and licensed domain names, email, music, photos, seller accounts on eBay, Amazon, or Itsy, gaming accounts, even your financial, utility, and medical accounts are all part of your digital footprint. When most of us created these accounts, we blithely accepted the End User License Agreement (EULA) without much thought to when we would no longer be around to manage their content and activity. However, a EULA designates in detail the rights and restrictions that apply when using the software known as terms of service (TOS). Most EULA’s are a standard form of contract, a contract of adhesion, which is known to exploit unequal power relationships. A user has no option to negotiate the terms of a EULA if they want to use the software.

When you create your will and its associated documents like a durable power of attorney (in the event you become incapacitated) it is prudent to include digital assets and a designation for someone to access your online accounts and manage their activity. Without specific instructions, most of your online accounts will not pass through the typical estate planning devices like trusts and wills because they are not your property. Still, they are very representative of your being. Since most TOS are non-transferable, you will likely be unable to transfer the “ownership” of your online accounts legally. However, you can still plan for how they should be handled when you die.

In terms of Facebook and other social network platforms, each company has its policy regarding the account of the deceased. Facebook, for example, will permit your account to be placed in a “memorial” status so that it can be viewed, and loved ones can leave memorial messages. Other social networking sites will delete or deactivate your account. If the social network is not appraised of your death, the company won’t know for a while, allowing someone to make changes to your account after your death, perhaps even posting a final status or update of your choosing. Though this is in opposition to most social networking platform policies, it is difficult for online companies to know about and monitor user activity in the event of death.

Your executor should inform readers of a blog or other licensed domain names you maintained while alive. A licensed domain name should be transferred or ended as continued licensing payment makes no sense. The content of these sites should be removed or archived. If you belong to online communities such as a book group or community list serve, you may also choose to leave a final message or have your executor notify the group of your passing.

If you store movies, music, photos, eBooks, or other digital online files, your executor should have access to the files and carry out your wishes as to what to do with them. If you do not leave access to your online accounts, they will eventually become disabled due to inactivity, and no one will have access to the files. In the event you own the data, i.e., personal photos, you can use your will or living trust to leave them to a loved one or a friend. You will have to leave detailed descriptions (My trip to Paris) for photos. As far as purchased online music or eBooks it is not the same as owning a physical CD or book. Software or digital content does not permit acquisition of ownership rights. This means the money you paid for the online content was more of a subscription service solely for your use and not transferable upon your death. Your virtual music and film library will die with you.

If you are an online seller on eBay, Amazon, Itsy, or the like, leave specific instructions about what to do with your online store. You may leave all profits that continue to come in and the stock items you sell through your will or living trust. When the company knows of your death, your executor will have no power over the account itself, but you can make provisions for the profit and stock items to be bequeathed. If you want someone to take over your online store after you die, you will need to reference the TOS of the company. Most do not allow accounts to transfer; however, the new “owner” can open a new account and reimagine your storefront.

Financial, utility, and medical accounts should all be addressed very clearly in your digital will. Leave instructions as to what website, username, and password are for each account. Also, leave written instructions about what to do with each of them. Regarding your financial accounts, their contents will be addressed in your will or trust, but your executor will have to access these accounts to wrap up your estate. These accounts include checking and savings accounts, mortgage, life insurance, and retirement accounts, as well as phone, cable, gas, and electric bills, tax preparation services, medical accounts, and more.

Your online presence requires digital legacy planning. Take a good look at all of your online accounts and be sure to leave reliable access to them and instructions for your executor. We can help you with this process, and with drafting appropriate planning documents to deal with these assets.

If you have questions or would like to discuss your personal situation, please don’t hesitate to contact us at 513-771-2444.

Everyone should Plan for the Unexpected

January 4, 2021Filed Under: Elder Law, Estate Planning

Recently, the COVID-19 pandemic has left many unprepared and confused. There are numerous reports of shortages of antibacterial hand sanitizer, disinfecting wipes, and even toilet paper. While we can’t predict when something like COVID-19 might strike, we can take steps to prepare for an unexpected crisis to help reduce the stress on ourselves and family members.

Designate a family member who will check on elderly relatives. Make sure everyone knows who will responsible for checking in with an elderly loved one each day. Also set up a process for notifying other family members of an elderly loved one’s condition – this may including sending an email, text messaging, or phone calls. The method is not as important as agreeing to a process and sticking to it so all family members stay informed.

Seek medical advice in the event of a health care crisis. There has been a great deal of reporting about COVID-19, and some of it has been inconsistent. Reach out to your trusted medical team to understand what you and your loved ones should be doing in this, or any, health care crisis.

Make sure someone knows how to get your bills paid if you are unable to. This type of power can be provided to an agent under a financial power of attorney. Powers of attorney can include numerous powers so it is critical to talk with legal counsel before signing any type of legal document that gives someone else authority over your finances.

Be sure there is an accurate list of medical prescriptions readily available in your home. If you become ill, it is important that someone knows the medicines you take and the dosage. Keep this in your home where others can find it, and make sure the list is dated, noting any time it is updated. Many of us assume that our doctor has an updated prescription list, but if you are seeing multiple specialists, that may not be true.

Designate someone you trust to make medical decisions for you if you are unable to. This should not be a form that is downloaded from the internet. Deciding what type of treatment you want, where you want to live, and what should happen if you have a terminal illness are serious topics that should be considered carefully, then translated into a proper legal document.

Planning for an unexpected health care or financial crisis can help relieve a great deal of stress for you and your family. We would welcome the opportunity to help you come up with a plan that works for you.

If you have questions or would like to discuss your personal situation, please don’t hesitate to contact us at 513-771-2444.

Special Education COVID-19 Guidelines

The New Guidelines for Special Education During COVID-19

What is Required of Special Educator Teachers During COVID-19

The Stresses of a Spouse becoming the Main Caregiver

What Happens to your Digital Assets?

Everyone should Plan for the Unexpected

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