Help from Our Professional Network with Other Services
As our clients get older, WFC is inherently involved with the care and clinical needs of our aging seniors, handling physical and medical conditions as they arise. We also contribute significant added value by assisting clients through the web of inevitable planning issues as they age. These areas of adult care can be fraught with confusion and misperceptions. WFC and Founder Glenn Lane routinely deal with these planning tasks and have developed vital partnerships with credentialed and professional resources who know how to manage them responsibly.
“Over the years, I have learned to anticipate things needing to be done when they are slipping through the cracks. My previous corporate financial services and technical background, caring for my parents and in-laws with dementia, as well as personally operating WFC, have all sharpened my recognition of these circumstances. I help identify gaps in services and make introductions on who can help them.”
– Glenn Lane, WFC Founder
Planning issues we identify with can be broken down into Four Categories:
Household Management
At the outset of every engagement, we conduct a home assessment. WFC can be the first in a long time to notice hazards or overlooked matters in the senior’s home as remote adult children haven’t seen their family house in a while.
Home Assessment
During these assessments, we may find safety issues like tripping hazards on the floor, conditions that can lead to falling or neglect of the home’s exterior. When a WFC staffer can remedy the problems, we take care of them for the client. When these household upkeep matters are too complex and/or require more require professional help, WFC will recommend bringing in the appropriate resources to get the house in order.
Other tasks we find that need addressing are clerical in nature. The client may need someone to process medical claims or answer personal correspondence, in which case a professional Personal Affairs Manager is appropriate.
Daily Money Management
Often, we discover that the client needs help paying the bills. The situation may be remedied by bringing in a Daily Money Manager – specialist who need to pass certification testing and can handle assistance with both simply overlooked bills as well tax records, balancing a checkbook or negotiating with creditors.
Legal Matters
We frequently observe that clients need assistance with legal matters such as Wills & Trusts, Estate Planning, Advanced Directives, Powers of Attorney, etc. In these cases, we recommend a legal professional with the necessary experience and skills to handle these delicate personal matters.
Paying for Home Care
WFC Payment Options
Our goal is always to remove any burden from the client and help as much as we can with payment delivery. We recognize that there are several options available to the client for payment of home care. We make it as easy and comfortable as possible for clients to transact their payments.
Most of our clients or their families pay us directly. We accept various methods of weekly payments via electronic or regular check, credit card, ACH Automatic Withdrawal, and PayPal. We can also set up split payments for multiple family members or designated third parties such as brokerage firms, investment managers, trustees, elder care attorneys, guardians, and other client representatives.
Long Term Care (LTC) Insurance
Long Term Care insurance policies are often difficult to understand. WFC has extensive experience with LTC insurance and assists clients regularly on how to utilize them most efficiently.
We make the LTC insurance process easy by helping our clients understand its benefits and usage as well as handling claims and payments if desired. WFC distinguishes itself from other agencies by our comprehensive methods of LTC assistance and the valued relationships we’ve developed over the years with these insurance providers.
Our experience with over 20 LTC insurance providers prepares us for most situations clients are likely to face.
We have electronic claims submissions with many of them.
We’re familiar with different processes for assessing and approving claims and invoices.
If preferred, WFC also accepts the assignment of benefits from the LTC company, and our client is not out of pocket for their LTC Benefits. Click here or further information.
Disability / Workers’ Compensation
When home care is needed as a result of disability or workers’ compensation claim, WFC will assist by coordinating with the insurance providers regarding documentation submission, benefits verification, and payment. As with other methods of payment, we can work with any third parties the client designates.
Reverse Mortgages
There is another alternative for clients to pay by utilizing Reverse Mortgages on their homes. These are best suited for seniors who do not require immediate care and can live independently in their homes for a few more years. During that time, they can use the money from the reverse mortgage to be more accessible to acquire long-term care insurance or make modifications to their homes.
For further information on reverse mortgages, click here.
Medicaid Planning
WFC has observed much confusion, misperceptions, and misunderstanding from our clients over Medicaid. Often, people don’t take advantage of what’s available to them. They believe there are long waiting periods to get on Medicaid and even longer waiting periods to get into nursing homes with Medicaid.
Though our clients will no longer be with us as they move to Medicaid coverage, WFC assists with the planning. To prepare them for Medicaid, we regularly bring in professionals whose practices predominantly focus on Medicaid coverage to consult with our clients and their families.
Investments
When clients’ health declines and/or develop cognitive impairments, they may need assistance with their investments. In these situations, we recommend financial advisors and planners who have the skill sets to meet the needs of aging seniors whose portfolios need more active management.