My sister had been the caregiver for my parents this past year, demanding $6000/month for services. My parents are in good shape and highly aware, so the lawyer had a care assessment and determined that my sister was grossly overcharging. APS stepped in with a review, and in the end my sister was asked to quit as a caregiver.
The attorney reached out to a caregiving organization that also provides a free service to take the folks around to see independent living situations. The deal is that the organization gets a commission from the independent living place when the elderly are placed there, and the elderly don't have to pay for the finding service.
The twist was today I got an email update from the person helping my parents find an independent living arrangement. She had also lined up a realtor, a home repairman, and was eagerly awaiting me to come from out of state and help finish cleaning the house to get it ready for sale. Seemed to be a bit of pressure.
Now I just got confirmation from the attorney who didn't like this at all. For in addition to pushing ahead with these steps, the organization had issued an invoice of $4000 for their alleged free service.
The attorney fired this organization, asserted that an independent financial advisor had been appointed to my parents, and also asserted that my parents were vulnerable, elderly people that had already been through one experience that left them with a bad feeling.
I feel like I am on a rollercoaster. I am reassured that at least there is an elder law attorney involved that is staying on top of things, but at the same time my parents seemed to getting bounced around from one vulnerable situation to another.
They have decided on an independent living place that seems good, and they put a down payment up already. So I am hoping that this will be a safe next step and no more unscrupulous individuals getting involved.
