Celebrities like Jay Leno and Emma Hemming Willis (married to Bruce Willis) are speaking out about their experiences with guardianship and caregiving. If you are caring for a family member with dementia too, a time will...more
The CMS Innovation Center has officially launched the Guiding an Improved Dementia Experience (GUIDE) Model, in which 390 participating academic medical systems, small group practices and clinics, hospice agencies,...more
While facilitating a monthly circle of support for caregivers, I’ve noticed one of the most distressing issues they face is the “driving dilemma,” meaning their loved one who has been diagnosed with dementia continues to...more
If you have had a loved one suffer from dementia, you know the emotional, physical, and financial toll of this terrible disease. With advancements in dementia treatment, however, there is renewed hope on addressing this...more
The Michigan Court of Appeals recently considered a case presenting the question of whether Anna Brudek had sufficient mental capacity to execute a deed conveying one-half of her real property to her boyfriend, Alvin Rice. In...more
The CMS Center for Medicare and Medicaid Innovation (CMMI) is launching a new Alternative Payment Model (APM) focused on Dementia Care: The GUIDE model. It will launch in July 2024 and run for eight years. More details will...more
The US Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) recently announced a new, voluntary and nationwide test model designed to support two rapidly growing demographic groups: people living with dementia, and their unpaid...more
On July 31, 2023, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) announced a new eight-year voluntary nationwide model – the Guiding an Improved Dementia Experience (GUIDE) Model that aims to support people living with...more
The GUIDE Model is an eight-year model that will test an alternative payment for participants that delivers key supportive services to people with dementia, including comprehensive, person-centered assessments and care plans,...more
Health care providers furnishing dementia care should take note of a new payment model called Guiding an Improved Dementia Experience (GUIDE), which was announced by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) on July...more
Independence Day invites reflection on another form of freedom. How do we respect the autonomy of California’s elders who experience progressive forms of dementia while protecting them from potential abuse and other harm?...more
A patient’s decision to take any prescription medication is a very personal one that requires the patient to weigh several variables, including the potential benefit the medication could provide as well as the possible risks....more
Dementia casts a long shadow in California trust and estate litigation. Contestants claim that an elder with dementia lacked sufficient mental capacity to make an estate planning change, or that dementia left the elder highly...more
In a peer-reviewed article published in the Journal of Alzheimer’s Disease, 2020;78(2):757-775. doi: 10.3233/JAD-200662, Canadian researcher found that a history of mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI) almost doubled the risk...more
In Washington: The Senate began former President Trump’s second impeachment trial Tuesday afternoon, voting to affirm its own jurisdiction to hear the case. Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-MD) led the House managers’ presentation of an...more
Just to repeat myself – pharmaceutical and medical device firms face extraordinary risks of enforcement under the False Claims Act. While everyone likes to write and focus on FCPA or anti-corruption risks for global drug and...more
On July 1, 2019, Connecticut Governor Ned Lamont signed into law Public Act 19-115, “An Act Concerning Alzheimer’s Disease and Dementia Training and Best Practices” (PA 19-115). This legislation modifies the continuing...more
On May 22, 2019, Minnesota Governor Tim Walz signed a significant new assisted living licensure bill into law. Previously in Minnesota, assisted living facilities were required to register with the Minnesota Department of...more
“Claims of sexual harassment typically involve the behavior of fellow employees. But not always,” said a federal appeals court in Gardner v. CLC of Pascagoula, LLC. The case shows employers must take employee complaints of...more
Employers may be liable to their employees for harassment by non-employees under Title VII. Courts have found liability for this so-called “third-party harassment” in some of the following fact-specific contexts: waitresses...more
Garden variety memory lapses, like misplacing car keys, are normal, but where do you draw the line? A good rule of thumb is that if you notice that your loved one has repeated episodes of memory loss, and/or troubling...more
Having a loved one with dementia can be scary, but if you add in a firearm, it can also get dangerous. To prevent harm to both the individual with dementia and others, it is important to plan ahead for how to deal with any...more
Mental capacity issues are commonplace in California trust and probate litigation. Jonathan Canick, Ph.D., who spoke last year at the Sacramento Estate Planning Council on the subject of “Aging, Cognition and Capacity,”...more
In a propensity-matched cohort study of more than 350,000 veterans with and without traumatic brain injuries (TBI), mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI) without loss of consciousness was associated with more than a twofold...more
What mental capacity standards apply in California civil litigation? Last month we presented on this subject at the Placer County Bar Association’s annual spring conference in Roseville. I’ll offer highlights here. Short...more