i am replacing a family member, im status of durable poa, its very hard to get this person on the phone. i need the care plans, physicians, and financial reports, to know where to begin.
I think you being a Caregiver may be a conflict of interest. Who is going to determine what you are paid? If the friend is mentally competent, then you need a contract stipulating hours, overtime and pay rate. You do not want anyone to question your records when friend passes. You need your ducks in a row. If you hire thru an agency, thats one thing, but privately you will be taking out payroll taxes and making sure they get to the right agency. Aides are not self-employed by the IRS. So get familiar with the Labor laws.
I think you will need a lawyer to make sure everything is on the up and up. Keep good records.
In your bio, it mentions that you plan hiring caretakers for the person, and that you plan to yourself be one of the paid caretakers.
if this is the situation, this is not imho ever, like ever, going to be something you can DIY. You need to find an attorney to work with you and the elder to come up with caregiver contracts and also make sure that the POA done will be sufficient for you to take to a bank to get account access. & if not sufficient, they draw up fresh more detailed POA, will, etc. The issue in your doing any of this DIY is that as a POA you have a required fiduciary duty to the person and doing anything that looks like “self dealing” - like you paying yourself to caregive - can look like self dealing. If the prior POA wants to be difficult or was not happy on the change, and they find out you are paying yourself from the elders $, this can morph into problems for you as it looks like self dealing. Caregiving needs to be under a contract, based on rates for your area and the duties you will be doing, what your professional education or experience is, and with all taxes, withholding etc done correctly.
also unless Social Security has changed, a POA means zero to SSA. They will want the elder to do a request to have you become their representative payee. You cannot do this, elder has to do it. SSA is very helpful in getting things done but their regulations are fixed.
Really find an attorney, let them shepherd all this and let them send a strongly worded letter to the old POA as to the change and request all financial & legal documents.
Still a no go with SSA. I'm POA for an elderly lady. I had to take her to SSA office to rep. payee for her last month. I had no problems with my POA at any other place.
I think you will need a lawyer to make sure everything is on the up and up. Keep good records.
if this is the situation, this is not imho ever, like ever, going to be something you can DIY. You need to find an attorney to work with you and the elder to come up with caregiver contracts and also make sure that the POA done will be sufficient for you to take to a bank to get account access. & if not sufficient, they draw up fresh more detailed POA, will, etc.
The issue in your doing any of this DIY is that as a POA you have a required fiduciary duty to the person and doing anything that looks like “self dealing” - like you paying yourself to caregive - can look like self dealing. If the prior POA wants to be difficult or was not happy on the change, and they find out you are paying yourself from the elders $, this can morph into problems for you as it looks like self dealing. Caregiving needs to be under a contract, based on rates for your area and the duties you will be doing, what your professional education or experience is, and with all taxes, withholding etc done correctly.
also unless Social Security has changed, a POA means zero to SSA. They will want the elder to do a request to have you become their representative payee. You cannot do this, elder has to do it. SSA is very helpful in getting things done but their regulations are fixed.
Really find an attorney, let them shepherd all this and let them send a strongly worded letter to the old POA as to the change and request all financial & legal documents.