Autism: Special Needs Trust
PLANNING FOR THE DISABLED CHILD: SPECIAL NEEDS TRUSTS
Parents of disabled children face unique challenges in planning for their children's social,
medical and financial needs. Planning for the unthinkable allows you to take control of
your child's emotional and financial security. It will also give you peace of mind to know
that your child will be cared for in the way you intended
Your estate plan should incorporate special provisions for providing financial security
for your disabled child in the event of your death. Often, the best way to achieve this is
to create a "special needs trust"(set up to provide for the child's extra and supplemental
needs, other than basic food, shelter and health care expenses which may be satisfied
through public programs). The special needs trust is intended to supplement, rather than
supplant, public assistance benefits that the beneficiary is entitled to receive under various
programs such as Supplemental Security Income ("SSI") and Medicaid. Generally, the
designated trustee is given broad discretionary powers to distribute income and principal
to or for the child's benefit.
When establishing a special needs trust, consider including the following provisions:
- Authorize distributions to be made directly to providers of services, such as
schools, health care professionals, institutions, etc.
- Give the trustee sole discretion over payments of income and principal in order
to maximize your child's eligibility for public assistance benefits under current law.
- Empower the trustee to terminate the trust if it is possible that your child may
in the future become sufficiently competent to manage his or her own assets.
- Include spendthrift provisions so that your child's creditors may not seek to
apply trust assets to satisfy debts of the child. This may also help to fend off claims
from public assistance agencies for reimbursement of benefits paid to or for the
benefit of your child.
- You may want to consider naming an individual and an institution as co-trustees
to divide up the responsibilities.
A very helpful book to read-Planning for the Future by L. Mark Russel and
Arnold E. Grant.
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