The Oversight of Guardianships in Florida
Portia B. Scott, J.D., L.L.M. • September 1, 2021

With the recent news about Britney Spears and the sensational 2020 film, I Car a Lot, Guardianships (referred to in some jurisdictions as “Conservatorship”) have come into the public awareness and are often viewed with outrage.

 

Certainly, there are always issues which merit close examination and Guardians and Guardianships are, and should be, subject to especial scrutiny. After all, a Guardian is not appointed unless some disability has been found which strips from the Person Under the Guardianship (the “PUG”) some of their natural authority regarding self-determination.

 

Children who are PUGs usually are so because they have come into more money than Ez* parents may hold in their automatic status as “natural Guardians.” A parent is a Natural Guardian of Ez child’s person and property up to the amount of $15,000.00. Above $15, 000.00 a Guardian must be appointed. A child may inherit such assets or receive the funds from a settlement of a lawsuit or through some other manner.

 

An adult may lose Ez rights due to physical or mental or emotional inability as determined by a Court. The standard for removing a person’s rights through the Court is “clear and convincing” evidence. Under that standard the Court must find, without hesitation, that the person is incapacitated in some way.

 

Once the powers of Guardianship are invoked, the Court becomes the “Super Guardian” in that the Judge is watching over the shoulder of the appointed Guardian. There are reports which must be filed regarding the PUG’s progress toward full rehabilitation - always the aim of Guardianships. There are accountings with supporting documentation which are audited by the Clerk of Court’s own auditor. The PUG maintains Ez ability to request the Judge reinstate Ez rights, wholly or partially.

 

The safeguards are in place specifically to protect the PUG from the very type of abuses which create Hollywood Headlines and Fodder for Films. Florida does care about its PUGs.

 

* this article uses the gender neutral third person pronoun of “E”, possessive pronoun of “Ez”

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Odd Laws - Iceland

By Portia B. Scott, J.D., L.L.M. • January 31, 2025
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MEDICAID IN FLORIDA Part I

By Portia B. Scott, J.D., L.L.M. • June 11, 2024
Medicaid planning is a complicated concept with many moving parts, all of which need to work in tandem and cohesively together to achieve the goal of providing quality long term care and/or nursing services to a Floridian in need. People often merely state that Medicaid is always a payor of last resort, but that expression needs to be defined and discussed as part of an over-all plan. The first issue addressed, then, is what is meant by “The payor of last resort?” Medicaid is, indeed, the payor of “last resort.” Briefly, this means, when all other medical assistance care is gone, Medicaid may step up and help pay for some uncovered medical expenses. Although Medicaid is a Federal program, it is administered on a State-by-State basis. When Medicaid was first being created, each state in the Union submitted their own plan on how the funds available to their own State’s Medicaid applicants. Florida submitted its plan which continues (with some tweaks) as to be used by Florida’s Medicaid system. If the applicant (the “patient”) otherwise qualifies for Medicaid in Florida, the State’s Medicaid program will help pay the expenses of Long Term Care, including Nursing Home Care. So, if the patient has a privately purchased policy for Long Term Care Insurance, those benefits will have to be fully depleted before Medicaid will provide any financial help. If the patient has more than $2,000.00 in “countable assets,” those will need to be spent before Medicaid will help. (We do mean “spent,” too; not gifted away!) If the patient is on Medicare, Medicare will step back and no longer pay once Medicaid has taken over. This means that the patient’s Medicare premium will no longer be deducted from any Social Security payment, increasing the net income of the patient. Further, there will no longer be a need for supplemental health insurance since the policy (Medicare) which was being supplemented, no longer is paying. When good planning has been implemented, including, at times, some of the countable assets of the patient having been legally and permissibly transformed into uncountable assets, Medicaid will step in to help pay for the Long Term Care Nursing Home expenses. This is what is meant when the term “payor of last resort” is used.
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