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Davidow, Davidow, Siegel & Stern, LLP
Long Island's Elder Law, Special Needs & Estate Planning Firm

Tuesday, June 28, 2005

The Long Island Community Foundation

The Long Island Community Foundation is a part of the nation’s fastest growing form of philanthropy. The LICF is an economic alternative to a private foundation or a commercial gift fund. The Long Island Community Foundation, a division of The New York Community Trust, distributes more than $12 million annually through the 168 charitable funds that Long Island residents and businesses have set up within LICF. If you are thinking about giving, it is an efficient and hassle-free way of giving to a public charity.

The Community Foundation’s mission is to build a permanent source of private funding for Long Island’s charities. Funds can be named for their donors, for their purposes, or as memorials. The two main types of funds are donor-advised and field-of-interest funds. Donor-advised funds allow donors to participate in the selection of the beneficiaries. Field-of-interest funds enable the Community Foundation to support charitable agencies and organizations within a geographic or charitable area (such as child welfare) specified by the donor. Either way, funds are a great way to create a family legacy and to make a real and lasting difference in the daily life of our community.

In addition to the peace of mind and goodwill of charitable donations, there are several advantages and benefits to creating a fund in the Community Foundation. You will recognize greater tax savings by establishing a fund through the LICF rather than through a private foundation. A fund can be established in less than one day, often with a single page document, whereas a private foundation takes months to establish with lots of expensive paperwork. A fund offers donors maximum tax benefits without the bother of administration. The LICF staff performs all of the administrative work (bookkeeping, accounting, and check writing) and assures that only bona fide charities are supported.

A fund in the Community Foundation is a great way to permanently give back to the community in which you live. A LICF fund allows the joy of giving and the recognition donors expect when they are donating to charity. An experienced estate planning attorney, like the ones at Davidow, Davidow, Siegel and Stern can help assist in any charitable contributions you may want to make.

Log on to the Long Island Community Foundation’s website at www.licf.org for more information.

Monday, June 20, 2005

New Technologies Spot Alzheimer's Beginnings

Even without a cure, early detection is important, experts say...

Two high-tech brain scans and a new blood test can identify Alzheiner's linked neurological changes years before actual symptoms arise, researchers report.

Besides allowing individuals to begin drug therapy early and not wait for the future, these early -detection tests might someday help those take full advantage of preventive therapies.

"We already have medications coming down the pike that already change the course of the disease, " explained William Thies, Director of Medical and Scientific Affairs at the Alzheimer's Association. "As those medications become available, there's going to be a tremendous need to identify Alzheiner's disease earlier and earlier".

Three studes outlining the new screening technologies were presented at the Alzheimer's International Conference on Prevention of Dementia, in Washington, D.C.

One study used positron emission tonography (Pet) Scans hooked up to a specially designed, MRI computer program. That program automatically tracks glucose metabolism in an area of the brain called hippocampus, a key memory center.

"If there's reduced [metabolic] activity there, you have cognitive problems, and are at risk of developing Alzheimer's." The technology grew out of the work from a team who first discovered hippocampal shrinkage to be a harmful indicator of Alzheimer's disease.

Using this computerized scanning technology, the NYU researchers followed 53 healthy participants between 54 and 80 years of age for between 10 and 24 years in a first -of-its-kind, long term experiment. Participants received PET scans at the beginning of the study and then at the three-and-six year mark.

Six of the participants did go on to develop Alzheimer's disease.

Before this, we didn't have any idicators or biomarkers, and now we can finally know what to look for and examine this further in clinical research."

Early detection methods are much further advanced than their development than the blood-based screen. "But obviously, the blood screen is much easier and requires less machinery and fits much easier into the physician's routine.

In the absence of effective treatments, however, does early detection really make sense? Studies now believe that it does.

The impact of the current medications we have is likely to be biggest in the scope of the disease. And Alzheiner's disease is so dislocating for families--knowing ahead of time allows you to plan better for the future in a number of ways. Waiting until symptoms appear--and competency is impaired--may be too late, the affected individual is taken out of the mix, and the family is left trying to interpret what they would want.

The decades long push for effective, preventive therapies may produce fruit. The advent of powerful drugs that fight Alzheimer's will make early detection even more important than it is now. At the same time, advances in imaging technology are fueling this research boom, allowing us to locate and target exactly those areas of the brain most affected by the disease.

For much more on Alzheimer's disease, visit the Alzheimer's Association.

Source: 6/19, HealthDay News, E.J. Mundell.

Wednesday, June 1, 2005

Time is Running Out! Seminar Invitation

TIME IS RUNNING OUT!
The one FREE seminar you CAN’ WAIT to attend.

Presented by Davidow, Davidow, Davidow, Siegel and Stern, Long Island’s Elder Law, Special Needs and Estate Planning Firm.

Medicaid has long served as a safety net for middle class seniors faced with the catastrophic cost of a nursing home. This program is currently under attack and likely to change. Learn how to PLAN NOW before the window closes forever. Don’t limit your options and jeopardize everything you’ve worked a lifetime to acquire.

NOW, more than ever, it’s important to learn the answers to these crucial and timely questions:

• If I put together a plan right now to protect my assets from a nursing home, will I be grandfathered in?
• What will Medicare cover?
• If I can’t rely on Medicaid in the future to pay for long term care costs, what exactly should I be doing now?
• I want to learn from the Terri Schiavo case…do I need a Health Care Proxy or a Living Will or both?
• What exactly is a Living Trust?
• If I become incapacitated, how will my finances and medical decisions be handled?
• Do I really need a will?
• I have a disabled child. How can I protect and provide for that child when I can no longer do it myself?
• What is the difference between Revocable and Irrevocable Trusts?

Choose from these two seminars:

Wednesday, June 22nd at 10:00am
Breakfast Buffet and Presentation
Riverhead Polish Hall
214 Marcy Avenue, Riverhead

Or

Tuesday, June 28th at 6:00pm
Dinner Buffet and Presentation
The Milleridge Inn
585 North Broadway, Jericho

Reservations are required. Call 631-234-3030 or email JGrisolia@Davidowlaw.com to reserve your seats. Discover why planning NOW is more important than ever!