How a Special Needs Trust Can Help You Provide for a Child With Cerebral Palsy

 Posted on May 12, 2023 in Estate Planning Blog

The average lifetime cost of medical care and assistance for a person with cerebral palsy is estimated to be just under $1,000,000. If your child has cerebral palsy, ensuring that your child has access to the support, medical care, and assistance he or she needs is probably at the top of your mind.

A special needs trust is an estate planning tool that allows for the transfer of assets to a disabled person. When compared with transferring assets through a will, a special needs trust offers significant advantages.

Special Needs Trusts for Disabled Individuals in Illinois

Doctor's appointments, speech therapy, medications, assistive devices, special education programs, and medical equipment such as wheelchairs are just some of the many special needs experienced by children or young adults with cerebral palsy. The costs associated with these needs can be extraordinary. For parents of children with cerebral palsy, financial planning is essential.

Like all trusts, a special needs trust begins with transferring assets to the trust and assigning a trustee to manage the distribution of trust assets for the beneficiary. In this case, the beneficiary is the person with cerebral palsy. Trust assets can be used for medical care and medical equipment not covered elsewhere, travel, recreation, accessible vehicles, education, and other expenses above and beyond everyday expenses.

The main benefit associated with special needs trust is that it allows you to provide financial support to a disabled person without risking that person's eligibility for government assistance. Programs like Supplemental Security Income and Medicaid typically have limits on the amount of assets a person can own. If you use a will to transfer money or property directly to your disabled child upon your death, he or she may be cut off from these government benefits.

Using a trust to provide financial assistance to a disabled person also helps ensure that the trust assets are used for your intended purposes.

Contact our Lombard Estate Planning Lawyers

If you wish to provide financial support to a child or other family member with cerebral palsy, a special needs trust may be the best way to do so. Setting up a special needs trust gives you peace of mind knowing that your loved one will have access to the financial resources he or she needs even after you pass away. For help setting up a special needs trust, turn to the skilled Lombard trust attorneys at A. Traub & Associates. Call us at 630-426-0196 to set up a confidential consultation.

Source:

https://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/mm5303a4.htm