Scope
What I don't do, and who to see instead.
Most businesses bury this. I'd rather you read it before you call, because knowing where my competence stops is most of what makes the rest of it worth anything.
Legal advice — including anything about your assets
I can tell you what the Medi-Cal rules are. I cannot tell you what to do about your house, your savings, or your accounts, and I won't. That's Medi-Cal planning, it's the practice of law, and doing it without a license is a crime in California. It's also the single easiest way for a well-meaning person to do real damage to a family.
Who does
An elder law attorney. I keep a list, and I'll come to the meeting.
Drafting your documents
I won't write or fill in your advance directive, POLST, power of attorney, trust, or deed, and I won't witness them. I will explain what each one is, what it does, and what to think about before you go — so the appointment you're paying for is spent well.
Who does
An attorney. Sometimes your doctor, for POLST.
Managing your money
I don't pay your bills, hold your funds, sign on your accounts, or serve as your agent under a power of attorney. In California, doing those things for money requires a Professional Fiduciary license. I'll review a bill with you, find the errors, and prepare the appeal — your hands stay on the money and the pen.
Who does
A licensed professional fiduciary, or a family member you trust.
Selling you insurance
I'm not licensed to sell insurance and I don't take commissions. I'll read the long-term care policy you already have and explain what it actually covers, and I'll fight a denied claim. I won't tell you which Medicare plan to enroll in.
Who does
HICAP, free, for unbiased plan comparison. A licensed agent, if you want to buy something.
Doing it for you
This is the big one, so I'll be direct. I advise — you act. I don't file your appeal, make your calls, sit in your care conference, or sign anything. What I do is tell you exactly what to file, where, by when, what to put in it and what to leave out — then read what came back and tell you what it means. Partly that's the law: acting for you would make me your fiduciary, and that's a licensed job I don't hold. Mostly it's that you're the one with the authority, and what you're missing isn't a spare pair of hands. It's knowing which lever to pull. Most families get one shot at a discharge appeal. My job is making that one the right one.
Who does
If you genuinely need someone to take the tasks off you, that's a licensed professional fiduciary or a hands-on care manager. I'll tell you if that's what your situation calls for.
Hands-on caregiving
I'm not a nurse or an aide. I don't provide personal care, medical care, or supervision. I help you work out how to find, evaluate, and pay for people who do.
Who does
A licensed home care organization, or IHSS — which I'll show you how to apply for.
Care outside Orange County, Los Angeles, or San Diego
You can hire me from anywhere — plenty of my clients live in other states. But the person you're worried about needs to be in one of those three counties. That's not squeamishness about distance. Medi-Cal, IHSS, and California's review process don't exist in Ohio, and even within California the rules that matter are county-level: Orange County has one Medi-Cal plan, Los Angeles has a different structure, San Diego another. I know those three properly. I'd rather refer you than sell you a shallow version.
Who does
An independent advocate in that county or state. Try the Alliance of Professional Health Advocates or Greater National Advocates — and I'll help you work out what to ask them.
Support for you, the caregiver
I'll help you get your mother's benefits right. I'm not the person to get you through it — and that's a real, separate need, not a lesser one. Caregiver Resource Center OC does counseling, respite planning, and caregiver support across Orange County, free. Somebody there did exactly that for me for years. Please call them before you call me, or as well as.
Who does
Caregiver Resource Center OC — (714) 446-5030, caregiveroc.org. Free.
Family disputes and 24/7 availability
I can bring a family together for a conversation about what your father wants. I can't referee an argument about his estate. And this is a deliberately small practice, run alongside other commitments — I'm not an answering service and I won't pretend to be one.
Who does
A mediator or attorney for disputes. 911 for emergencies.
Why this page exists
Every line above is a service someone will eventually ask me for, usually while frightened, usually at the exact moment I most want to help. Some of them would be crimes. All of them would be worse for you than the referral.
An independent guide is only worth hiring if the independence is real, and it isn’t real unless it has edges. So these are mine, written down in advance, where you can hold me to them.
Still sounds like your situation?
Then let's talk for half an hour and find out. If it turns out you need one of the people on this page instead, I'll tell you who and why.