Special Needs Trusts
Supplemental needs trusts (also known as "special needs" trusts) allow a disabled beneficiary to receive gifts, lawsuit settlements, or other funds and not lose his eligibility for certain government programs. Such trusts are drafted so that the funds will not be considered to belong to the beneficiary in determining his eligibility for public benefits.
As their name implies, supplemental needs trusts are designed not to provide basic support, but instead to pay for comforts and luxuries that are not available from public assistance. These trusts typically pay for things like education, recreation, counseling, and medical attention beyond the simple necessities of life. However, the trustee can use trust funds for food and shelter if the trustee decides doing so is in the beneficiary’s best interest despite a possible loss or reduction in public assistance.
Very often, supplemental needs trusts are created by a parent or other family member for a child with a disability (even though the child may be an adult by the time the trust is created or funded). Such trusts also may be set up in a will as a way for an individual to leave assets to a disabled relative. In addition, the individual with a disability can often create the trust himself, depending on the program for which he or she seeks benefits. These "self-settled" trusts are frequently established by individuals who become disabled as the result of an accident or medical malpractice and later receive the proceeds of a personal injury award or settlement.
Each public benefits program has restrictions that the supplemental needs trust must comply with in order not to jeopardize the beneficiary’s continued eligibility for public benefits. Both Medi-Cal and SSI are quite restrictive, making it difficult for a beneficiary to create a trust for his or her own benefit and still retain eligibility for Medi-Cal benefits. But both programs allow two "safe harbors" permitting the creation of supplemental needs trusts with a beneficiary's own money if the trust meets certain requirements.
The first of these is called a "payback" or "(d)(4)(A)" trust, referring to the authorizing statute. "Payback" trusts are created with the assets of an individual with a disability under age 65 and are established by his or her parent, grandparent or legal guardian or by a court. They also must provide that at the beneficiary's death any remaining trust funds will first be used to reimburse the state for Medi-Cal paid on the beneficiary's behalf.
Medi-Cal and SSI law also permits "(d)(4)(C)" or "pooled trusts." Such trusts pool the resources of many disabled beneficiaries, and those resources are managed by a non-profit association. Unlike individual disability trusts, which may be created only for those under age 65, pooled trusts may be for beneficiaries of any age and may be created by the beneficiary herself. In addition, at the beneficiary's death the state does not have to be repaid for its Medi-Cal expenses on her behalf as long as the funds are retained in the trust for the benefit of other disabled beneficiaries.
Income paid from a supplemental needs trust to a beneficiary is another issue, particularly with regard to SSI benefits. In the case of SSI, the trust beneficiary would lose a dollar of SSI benefits for every dollar paid to him directly. Some attorneys draft the trusts to limit the trustee's discretion to make such payments. Others do not limit the trustee's discretion, but instead counsel the trustee on how the trust funds may be spent, permitting more flexibility for unforeseen events or changes in circumstances in the future. The difference has to do with philosophy, the situation of the client, and the amount of money in the trust.
Choosing a trustee is also an important issue in supplemental needs trusts. Most people do not have the expertise to manage a trust. An alternative is retaining the services of a professional trustee. For those who may be uncomfortable with the idea of an outsider managing a loved one’s affairs, it is possible to simultaneously appoint a trust "protector," who has the powers to review accounts and to hire and fire trustees, and a trust "advisor," who instructs the trustee on the beneficiary’s needs. However, if the trust fund is small, a professional trustee may not be interested. This can be an argument for pooled trusts.
